Nigiri-zushi Rice Ball Practice for the Pro

If you are aiming to be a serious chef, you should practice intensively for a month or so making rice balls—about two hundred pieces a day. You need not make a large quantity of sushi rice for this. Just prepare 6 cups of sushi rice and make as many rice balls as you can, lining them up on a chopping board where you can inspect and critique your work. When you have finished the first practice round, return all the sushi rice balls to their container, breaking them up, and repeat the practice by making an additional batch. You can do this three times before the rice becomes too mashed for practice. Sorry for the waste, but after three rounds, you must discard the rice.