The North American Meat Institute, a contractor to the Beef Checkoff, hopes to “beef up” traditional sushi with a new culinary concept called Beefshi, and polling suggests Americans are eager to try it.
Developed by a Culinary Institute of America-trained chef, Beefshi integrates prepared beef favorites like pastrami, corned beef, jerky, beef hot dogs and beef bologna into traditional, sushi style rolls. Eight, shot in a traditional sushi restaurant, depict how to prepare each recipe and can be viewed on the new web site Beefshi.com.
Among the recipes are:
- Texas Asade Sushi—Roast beef rubbed with lime zest, ground cumin and garlic and rolls with Cilantro, slivered jalapenos and onions, crumbled cotija cheese. Served with salsa.
- Inside Out Wisconsin Maki—Sushi rice on the outside wrapped around a stick of summer sausage, a sliver of Colby cheese and shaved dill pickles. Served with brown, spicy mustard.
- New York Deli Roll—Corned beef takes the place of nori on the outside of the roll. Slivers of fresh horseradish and Swiss cheese are rolled into the middle. Roll the exterior in a few caraway seeds.
- The Reuben Roll—Warm pastrami, sauerkraut and thinly sliced Swiss cheese rolled into sushi rice and served with Russian dressing.
- The Hiker’s Roll—A traditionally styled roll with nori wrapping around sushi rice, filled with slivers of beef jerky, slices of egg omelet and pea shoots or watercress with the leaves poking out the top of the roll. Dip into sriracha.
- Carolina Sushi—Shredded fried beef bologna and carrot slivers rolled in rice with a vinegared cabbage leaf in place of Nori.
In a recent online survey, American adults who eat meat and fish were asked to rate how appealing they found a photograph of a sushi platter and a photograph of a Beefshi platter. More than half (59 percent) find the concept of Beefshi appealing, almost equal to those who find sushi appealing (58 percent). Millennials aged 18-34 (66 percent) and those aged 35-44 (69 percent) showed a particularly strong interest in trying Beefshi.
“Beef has always been popular among Americans and Millennials and those aged 35-44, in particular, they seem to see the appeal of beef prepared in new and interesting ways,” said Meat Institute SVP of Public Affairs Janet Riley. “When a new and not-yet-tasted recipe scores this well against a familiar food like sushi, it’s clear that Beefshi is positioned to be a hot culinary trend in 2018 and beyond.”
Two-piece servings of Beefshi range from 100 to 180 calories, depending upon the recipe.
“Beefshi can serve as an excellent and innovative addition to sushi restaurant menus or any restaurant looking to innovate with a creative new food concept,” Riley said. “Beefshi recipes also use fully cooked and prepared beef products, making them safe and delicious options for beef fans of all ages.”
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