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Ernie Gray's recent life changes are about as exotic as the variety of sushi he prepares at a new South Side restaurant.

Gray, the head sushi chef at Nakama Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar, is a Hawaii native who converted from life as a Honolulu surfboard designer to capitalize on his Japanese upbringing. After a year and a half working as a sushi chef at the Red Lion Hanalei Hotel in San Diego, Calif., Gray kissed the sun and the beach goodbye and said aloha to Pittsburgh, where his girlfriend, Melissa Ching, is studying medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.

Gray, 32, soon landed his job at Nakama, which opened along Carson Street in late September, and is adjusting to the dramatic cultural and climatic change. Yet nothing beats the excitement and joy of preparing sushi, Gray says, the very essence of which involves elements of the exotic and unknown.

The Shadyside resident enjoys "having people sit at a bar and experience something they haven't experienced before -- colors, tastes and textures."

Ever since the restaurant opened in the former Rite Aid building, diners have swarmed through its doors and ordered an ocean of sushi and appetizers, says Joe Collincini, owner of Nakama, which seats about 230. On a recent weekend night, about 100 people who did not have reservations were unable to eat at Nakama because no space was available, he says.

"It's like a sushi McDonald's here," says Collincini, 56, who also owns Miyako Japanese Steak & Seafood Restaurant in Pine. "Pittsburgh is becoming more sophisticated in sushi."

Yet Pittsburgh goes only so far in its experimentation. The city's meat-and-potatoes roots is, perhaps, one of the reasons Japanese restaurants do so well here, Collincini says. Japanese restaurants use good old surf and turf, but they use a different recipe and cook it with a unique method on a silver griddle right at the center of your table -- a cooking method called teppan.

"Japanese steakhouses are really a different way to present steak, lobster, shrimp, scallops and chicken -- and there's really nothing Japanese about these," says Collincini, of Crafton, who employs a head teppan chef and head kitchen chef along with Gray. "It's just a different twist on these.

"Pittsburgh is a very unique city. It's surf and turf," he says. "You don't change things here. (Pittsburghers) know what they like, and they stick with it."

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Hawaiian Style Sushi

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Before tackling a sushi rolling venture in your kitchen, make sure you have the right tools. You will need a very sharp knife, a deep fryer, a maki su (bamboo sushi rolling mat) and plastic wrap. The maki su, along with many of the food ingredients, are available at Asian grocery stores.

Hawaiian Style Sushi is a good start for squeamish sushi beginners.The only raw fish in the recipe is the spicy tuna spread on top. All the other seafood -- the shrimp and the eel -- is cooked.

For the sushi rice:

• 2 cups short grain rice
• 1 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt

For the spicy tuna:

• 2 heaping tablespoons of raw tuna, preferably ahi tuna
• 1 teaspoon of Sri Racha Hot Chili Sauce, or something similar
• 1 teaspoon of mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon of sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon of masago (tiny fish eggs)

For the sushi roll stuffings and garnishes:

• 8 pieces of jumbo shrimp
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup tempura batter, mixed with 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
• 4 sheets of nori (seaweed sheets)
• 4 imitation crab stix, cut in 3-inch halves
• 8 avocado slices, about 3 inches long and 1/8-inch thick
• 1/2 cucumber, thinly cut into 3-inch strips
• 1 package of broiled eel; cut into 8 strips, about 3 inches long and 1/8-inch thick
• 4 sheets of soybean paper
• Ponzu Sauce (recipe follows)
• Eel sauce
• Spicy Creamy Sauce (recipe follows)
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• Fresh sliced ginger (for garnish)
• Wasabi paste (for garnish)
• Soy sauce (for garnish)

To prepare the rice: Wash the rice until the water runs clear, put into a sieve and let drain for 1 hour. Put the rice into a small, deep pan or pot with 2 cups of water, cover and bring to a boil for about 5 minutes. Reduce heat and simmer for 12 minutes without lifting lid. When you hear faint cracking noises, remove the rice from the heat and let sit for 10 minutes. Transfer the cooked rice into a large bowl wiped with a wet cloth. Combine vinegar, sugar and salt in a bowl, splash the mix over the rice with a spatula, and stir. Stir again every 15 minutes until the rice cools off.

Prepare the spicy tuna: Mash all ingredients together.

To assemble sushi rolls: Coat the shrimp in the cornstarch, then dip it in tempura batter and panko. Deep fry in hot vegetable oil for 1 minute, then set aside to cool. Layer the sushi rice on the nori, forming it across each sheet. Make sure you constantly wet your fingers. Do not press down on the rice. The trick is to gently form it, not mash it. Flip over the nori so that the rice side is facing down.

Layer a crab stix on the top of each nori, and add 2 avocado slices, a pinch of cucumber strips and 2 eel strips in descending order below. Finish with 2 pieces of shrimp side by side, with the tails out. The bottom part of the nori should be empty. Roll and form the flat sushi roll very carefully with the thumb and index finger, tucking in the roll in at the ends. Use a bamboo sushi rolling mat to solidify the roll's shape.

Place soybean paper on top of the sushi roll, and evenly spread the spicy tuna mixture on top of it. Place plastic wrap over the roll and form it again with the rolling mat. Slice through the wrap and the roll very carefully with a very sharp and wet knife, using quick angled cuts rather than pressured, downward motions, which would squish the roll. Wet the knife between cuts. Make 1/2-inch pieces.

Lightly drizzle Ponzu Sauce (see below for Chef Ernie's special sauces) and eel sauce over the sushi pieces, and drizzle Spicy Creamy Sauce onto the plate. Place sushi on the plate and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve with fresh sliced ginger, wasabi paste and soy sauce.

This recipe makes 4 sushi rolls, and feeds 2 to 4.

Chef Ernie's special sauces

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Spicy Creamy Sauce

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• 1/4 cup of mayonnaise
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground dried chiles (cayenne pepper or similar)
• 1/2 teaspoon of wasabi paste

Combine ingredients and stir.

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Ponzu Sauce (citrus soy sauce)

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• 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons of water
• 2 or 3 dashes of pepper, depending on spice preference
• 1 clove of finely diced and chopped garlic

Combine ingredients and stir.

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