This pumpkin sushi is made with sweet, crispy crusted pieces of winter squash tucked inside rolls of nori and rice, then finished with a tangy vegan "eel" sauce. It's a fun, decadent homemade sushi roll that's perfect for fall!
I love vegan sushi, but when I eat sushi, I eat serious sushi. Yes, basic veggie sushi is nice, but, especially if I'm going to the trouble of making homemade sushi, I want something really special. I'm talking decadence! Think peanut avocado sushi, cream cheese veggie sushi, or smoked tofu sushi. These rolls will not leave you hungry, and OMG are they tasty.
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But my favorite sushi roll to order at a restaurant has always been tempura pumpkin sushi. Have you had it? These rolls are stuffed with sweet winter squash covered in crispy tempura batter and served with eel sauce (which is often accidentally vegan!). It's about as delicious and satisfying as sushi gets, and I had to come up with a recipe so I could make it at home.
This vegan pumpkin sushi works with most types of sweet winter squash, so it's perfect for the cooler months of the year. You'll be dipping strips of the squash in tempura batter (adapted from my vegetable tempura recipe), then frying them until golden and crispy, and wrapping it all in sushi rice and nori. It's exactly what you need on those occasions when you're craving sushi and comfort food.
Ingredients You'll Need
Below you'll find a list of ingredients in this recipe, with notes and substitutions. Scroll all the way to the bottom of the post to see the full recipe, including the amount of each ingredient.
- Sushi rice. Stick with sushi rice rather than any old variety of rice for this recipe. It's super sticky and has a short grain, so it's perfect for shaping and holding together sushi rolls.
- Rice vinegar. You can find this in the international section of the grocery store.
- Salt.
- Sugar. Use organic sugar to keep the recipe vegan. Conventional sugar may be processed with animal bone char.
- Soy sauce. Tamari and liquid aminos will both work as substitutes.
- Brown sugar. This should also be organic.
- Mirin. This is a cooking wine you can find in the international section of most grocery stores.
- Cornstarch.
- Toasted sesame oil. This is a flavoring oil — not a cooking oil. Look for it in the international aisle.
- Vegetable oil. Any high-heat oil you normally use for frying is good here — peanut oil, corn oil, and canola oil are all fine options.
- Winter squash. I generally use butternut squash for my pumpkin rolls, but acorn, kabocha, and delicata are also great options. Sugar pumpkin will work, but it won't be as sweet or dense as the other options.
- Flour. I've only tested the recipe with all-purpose wheat flour (also known as white flour), so that's your best bet for success!
- Beer or seltzer water. I love making my tempura with beer, which adds a savory, slightly bitter flavor. But seltzer water is totally fine if that's what you've got.
- Baking powder. You only need this if you're going with seltzer water.
- Nori.
- Accompaniments. You'll want to grab some toasted sesame seeds, pickled ginger, and wasabi paste from the international aisle at the store.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Step 1: Soak the rice. Place it in a saucepan and cover it with water. Let it sit for about 20 minutes, then drain and rinse it. Return it to the pot.
Step 2: Cook the rice. Add water to the pot, along with rice vinegar, salt, and sugar. Place it over high heat, get the water boiling, then reduce the heat and let it simmer until the water is absorbed. Leave the lid on the pot for about 10 minutes when it's done, then fluff it with a fork.
Steps 3 & 4: Make the sauce. Combine your soy sauce, brown sugar, and mirin in a small pot, place it over medium heat, and bring it to a simmer. Let it cook at a low simmer for five minutes, while you mix some cold water and cornstarch. Add the mixture to the sauce, let it thicken, then take it off of heat and add the sesame oil.
Step 5: Heat your oil. Place about 2 inches of oil into a large pot, and set it over medium heat. Let it heat up while you begin preparing the fillings. You'll want it to get to about 350°F.
Step 6: Precook the squash. Cut the squash into small baton-shaped pieces, arrange them on a microwave-safe plate, cover it with a damp paper towel, then zap them for about 3 minutes. You just want to start softening them up.
Steps 7 & 8: Prepare dipping stations. Place some flour in one bowl, and in a second bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, salt, and either ale or seltzer water. If you go with seltzer water, you'll also need some baking powder.
Step 9: Fry the squash. Start by dredging a few pieces in the flour you just added to the bowl, then dip them in the batter, and transfer them to the hot oil. Fry your squash in batches, being careful not to crowd the pot. Once they're golden brown, place them on a wire rack to drain.
Steps 10 & 11: Prepare to roll. Cover your bamboo mat with plastic, then place a sheet of nori over the mat. Spread rice in a thin layer on the nori, wetting your hands to keep the rice from sticking.
Steps 12-16: Fill and roll. Flip your rice covered nori, then arrange the squash in a strip, about an inch from the edge. Roll it up tightly. Slice it into 8 pieces, then repeat the process to make 3 more rolls.
Tip: This short video demonstrates the process for rolling uramaki, also known as an inside out sushi roll. If you're not feeling that today, try making this recipe as maki (nori on the outside), which you can see demonstrated in this video.
Step 17: Finish and serve. Sprinkle your rolls with sesame seeds, then serve them with your vegan eel sauce, pickled ginger, and wasabi.
Variations
- Add to the filling. Tempura-fried squash goes great with chives, avocado, vegan cream cheese, pickled carrots, daikon, or cucumber. Or get creative and try your own additions!
- Crunchy topping. Sprinkle the finished rolls with crushed tempura bits or fried onions for some extra crunch.
- Quinoa sushi. Replace up to half the sushi rice with cooked quinoa.
Frequently Asked Questions
I haven't tried making this recipe with gluten-free flour, so I'm not sure. If you'd like to try it, I think an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend would be your best bet. You'll also need to make sure your beer is gluten-free (or stick with seltzer), and replace the soy sauce with gluten-free tamari.
Yes, but I recommend skipping the tempura if you'd like to bake it. Simply roast the squash instead. You can follow the basic method in my roasted sweet potato sushi recipe.
Yes, but make sure it's brown sushi rice. You may need to alter the cooking method a bit — refer to the package instructions.
Pumpkin sushi is best served the day it's made, but if you do have leftovers, they'll keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!
📖 Recipe
Tempura Pumpkin Sushi
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Rice
- 1 ⅓ cups sushi rice
- 1 ½ cups water, plus more for soaking
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon organic granulated sugar
For the Vegan Eel Sauce
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup organic brown sugar
- ¼ cup mirin
- 1 ½ tablespoons cold water
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
For the Filling
- Vegetable oil
- 12 ounces winter squash (such as butternut, kabocha, delicata, or acorn), cut into ¼ to ½ inch thick batons
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
For the Tempura Batter
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder (only use if you're making the batter with seltzer — do not use with beer)
- ¾ cup vegan ale or plain seltzer water, chilled
For Rolling
For Serving
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Pickled ginger
- Wasabi paste
Instructions
- Place the rice into a medium saucepan and cover it with cold water. Let it sit for 20 minutes, then drain the water and return the rice to the pot.
- Add the 1 ½ cups of water, rice vinegar, salt, and sugar. Stir, then set the pot over medium heat. Bring the water to a boil, cover the pot, and reduce the heat to a low simmer. Let the rice simmer for about 20 minutes, until the liquid is all absorbed. Turn off the heat and let the pot sit covered for 10 minutes. Uncover the pot and fluff the rice with a fork.
- Make the sauce while the rice cooks. Stir the soy sauce, brown sugar, and mirin together in a small saucepan. Set it over medium heat and bring the mixture to a simmer. Reduce the heat and let it cook at a low simmer for about 5 minutes.
- While the mixture simmers, stir the cold water and cornstarch together in a small container. After the sauce has simmered for 5 minutes, stir in the cornstarch mixture and bring the mixture back to a simmer. Once it starts to simmer, it should thicken slightly. Remove it from the heat, then stir in the sesame oil. Let the sauce cool.
- Place about 2 inches of oil into a large pot and set it over medium heat.
- While the oil heats up, place the squash batons onto a microwave-safe plate and cover them with a damp paper towel. Microwave the squash for about 3 minutes, until the pieces are just beginning to soften up. Be careful when removing the paper towel, as the squash will release hot steam.
- Place the ½ cup of flour into a small bowl.
- In a second bowl, whisk together the batter ingredients.
- Once the oil reaches about 350°F, place a few of the squash batons into the bowl containing the flour. Gently roll the batons to coat them in flour, then, one at a time, dip each baton into the batter. Coat the baton with batter, then shake off any excess before transferring it to the hot oil. Repeat the process, adding as many batons as you can at a time without crowding (you'll end up with about 4 batches). Fry the batons for about 3 minutes, then use a slotted spoon to transfer them to a wire rack to drain. Continue until all of the squash is fried.
- Wrap a bamboo mat in plastic wrap and place one sheet of nori over top. Keep a small bowl of water nearby and wet your fingertips.
- Distribute one quarter of your rice in an even layer over the nori, pressing it down until it's nice and thin. Wet your hands periodically to help prevent the rice from sticking to them.
- Carefully invert your rice-covered nori sheet so that the rice layer sits on the plastic wrap and the nori is face up.
- Arrange about a quarter of your squash filling in a strip extending widthwise across your nori, about an inch away from you.
- Carefully roll the end of the mat closest to you over your filling strip, tucking and squeezing to get it nice and tight. Continue rolling until you reach the end.
- Take your roll and place it seam side down on a cutting board. Using a large, sharp knife, cut the roll into eight pieces, wiping the blade clean with a damp towel between cuts.
- Repeat the process to make three more rolls using the remaining ingredients.
- Sprinkle the rolls with toasted sesame seeds, then serve with vegan eel sauce, pickled ginger, and wasabi.
Notes
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Nutrition
Nutrition information is provided as an estimate only and may vary based on ingredients, brands, portion sizes, and preparation methods.
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