Making your own sushi isn’t as daunting as it sounds.
It’s a great way to eat plenty of healthy food all in one sitting and all it takes is a little preparation.
A few years ago when I first began making sushi it used to take me hours as I gingerly rolled up the seaweed sheet, overfilled the rolls and fiddled with the bamboo mat, terrified that my clumsy efforts would insult an entire nation.
Now though, I just prepare the rice well ahead of time, roll on a sheet of greaseproof paper and add whatever I want.
Plenty of vegetables can be added such as avocado, peppers, cucumber and carrot. Herbs like coriander, mint and basil add bursts of flavour.
While these aren’t traditional, I’ve learned that making sushi your own way is the best way. I rarely make it with raw fish, even though it’s delicious when I get the chance.
Ceviche
Make sure you ask your fishmonger for sushi grade fish as you’ll need it to be as fresh as possible to eat it raw. If you’re nervous of eating raw fish,
you can always bathe it in some lime or lemon juice as you would ceviche. This preserves the great raw texture while “cooking” it with the acidic citrus juice and adding gorgeous flavour in the process.
Recently I tried making the latest sushi craze that's starting in San Francisco, The Sushirrito.
As the name suggests, it's a sushi burrito mash-up and it's delicious. It involves making a burrito-sized sushi roll with Asian-fusion fillings. It does feel almost sacrilegious to be creating a sushi burrito when in Japan it takes five years of training just to be able to prepare the rice or sushi meshi.
It can take up to 20 years before an apprentice can earn their place behind a chopping board and create sushi for customers.
It is an art and an incredible skill. Traditionally it was a means of preserving fresh fish – the fish and rice would ferment together.
Now a mixture of vinegar and sugar is added to the cooked rice to give that sour sweet taste.
We should all be eating more seaweed as it has countless health benefits.
I’ve found this maki sushi the most successful way of eating it. You’ll find all of these specialist ingredients, including the bamboo rolling mat, in larger supermarkets or health food shops.
Once you have the key ingredients, such as the rice, nori sheets, wasabi, pickled ginger and rice wine vinegar in the cupboard, you can easily make sushi regularly and it’s a great store cupboard dinner.
Avocado and salmon maki sushi: Serves 4
The five ingredients
- 250g sushi rice
- 50g hot smoked salmon
- 1 avocado
- 4 nori seaweed sheets
- 2tbs pickled ginger
From the pantry
- Rice vinegar
- Soy sauce
- Salt
- Sugar
Method
Rinse the rice well in a sieve, washing it under running water. Once the water runs clear tip it into a pan with 500ml water. Leave to soak for half an hour if you can before bringing to the boil then turning the heat as low as possible; place the lid on and leave the rice to cook for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave for 10 minutes before removing the lid.
Meanwhile, mix 1 tbsp sugar with 3 tbsp rice vinegar and 1/2 tsp salt. Stir well in a small bowl until dissolved. Once the rice is ready transfer it to a large wide bowl, I usually place it on something flat like a platter or tray. Spread the rice out and pour over the vinegar mixture. Gently coat the rice in the vinegar without mashing it. Cover with a damp towel and leave to cool.
To make the sushi roll, lay a sheet of greaseproof paper or a bamboo mat on the work surface. Place a nori sheet, shiny side down, on top. Spread a thin layer of rice over the sheet, leaving a 1cm border on the very top. Layer the ingredients in the lower half of the sheet, then roll up carefully but confidently, using the mat or paper to help roll it tightly and firmly. Store in the fridge or cut right away. Divide into six pieces using a very sharp wet knife. Serve immediately with the soy sauce.
• Every Thursday, we'll tweet the five ingredients from @lillyhiggins and @irishtimeslife so you can have them ready for Friday. Email givemefive@irishtimes.com with your suggestions for recipes
• The Great Irish Bake Off is on TV3 at 9pm every Sunday. Read Lilly's Bake Off diary on irishtimes.com/life-and-style after each episode
