Sushi Party
One of my favourite strategies for stress-free entertaining is to get my guests to do as much work as possible. Not only does this make things more interactive and fun, I find everyone appreciates their food more when they have contributed. Please just use this as a guide and substitute in your favourite sushi fillings.
enough for 2
for the sushi:
200g / 7oz (1cup) sushi rice
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 avocado
100g (3oz) smoked salmon
3-4 large nori sheetsfor the salad:
3 handfuls baby spinach
1 tablespoon sesame seedsto serve:
wasabi, optional
soy sauce
pickled ginger, optional
1. rice: Bring a medium saucepan of water to the boil. Add rice and simmer for 11 minutes.
2. dressing: combine vinegar and sugar with 1/4 teaspoon fine salt. Stir to dissolve the sugar.
3. to serve: Prepare salmon and avocado and place on a large platter or wooden board along with the wasabi, soy and ginger. Chop the nori sheets into quarters and place on the platter.
4. rice: When the rice has cooked, drain very thoroughly in a strainer then transfer to a baking sheet, sprinkle with the dressing and spread out to cool the rice as quickly as possible.
5. salad: While the rice is cooling, wilt the spinach in the saucepan used or the rice. It will take only a minute or so on a high heat. Remove from the heat, cool under running water and squeeze dry. Place spinach in a small bowl and top with sesame seeds
6. to serve: Transfer cooled rice to a serving bowl and take everything to the table.
7. Get your guests to make their own sushi by placing a little rice in the center of a nori sheet top with avocado, salmon, spinach and a little wasabi. Roll into a cone shape and try to eat delicately. Repeat.
prepare ahead?
The rice could be cooked ahead and kept in an airtight container in the fridge for a day or two before hand. Allow to warm up slightly before using.
leftover potential
Will keep in the fridge for a few days but the pastry will lose its crunch.
variations for fun
fish – feel free to experiment with proper sushi fish if you can access it. Make sure your fishmonger knows you will be eating it raw. Tuna and salmon are the two most popular. Prawns and squid can also be lovely.
vegan / vegetarian – try cucumber rolls and of course have extra avocado on hand.
can’t find sushi rice? – substitute in white short grain rice.
slow-carb – serve with raw grated cauliflower sprinkled with a little of the vinegar dressing instead of the sushi rice OR serve sashimi with nori on the side.
sushi bowls / can’t find nori? – if the idea of ‘roll your own’ is a bit daunting, serve rice in bowls and top with the fillings. Serve soy and wasabi on the side.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
rice, vinegar, sugar, nori, sesame seeds, soy sauce – pantry
avocado – use for another meal (I love it with eggs for breakfast or use to make guacamole)
smoked salmon – will keep unopened in the fridge for weeks or months depending on the use by date.
baby spinach – use for another meal. or wilt down in a pan with a little olive oil and it will keep for weeks in the fridge. Can be frozen.
wasabi, pickled ginger – will keep in the fridge indefinitely.
problem solving guide
rice chalky – this means the rice has been undercooked. Next time simmer for a litle longer before draining and cooling.
rice sticking together – it’s supposed to for sushi – don’t worry about it. 🙂
can’t find sushi rice? – just use other short grain white rice like calrose.
can’t find rice vinegar – sherry or white wine vinegar will work.
too sweet – the sushi dressing does add quite a bit of sweetness to the rice – balance this out with more soy sauce but next time use less sugar in your dressing.
serving suggestions
Best in the middle for everyone to help themselves.
back to Stress-Free Entertaining overview page
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
mmm, we made this tonight and loved it! How fun!
I didn’t even read the dressing step – ha! I’m guessing it was for the spinach, but I just put some sesame seed oil on it and it was delicious.
Ours were definitely rolled into more of the sushi taco variety than the traditional cone – but we live in the southwest, so it is fitting 🙂
Oh, and more topping ideas:
poached chicken, shredded
tender cuts of cooked beef, very thinly sliced
other fish
crab
shrimp
shiso leaves (no shiso? try mint leaves)
Japanese-style scrambled egg (it’s a bit sweeter)
fish roe
cucumber
daikon (Japanese radish) and carrots, julienne (they go well together)
shiitake mushrooms, sliced
asparagus
…the possibilities are endless!
love it!
thanks mrs mack 🙂
I watched the video… I see you mentioned adding the “dressing” to the rice there. 🙂
May I suggest a more authentic way of cooking the rice though? Even by the end your rice looked a little soggy, and I think that might be because you boiled and strained it.
I use an automatic rice cooker now, but when I lived outside of Japan and didn’t have one, I used this method from my Japanese cookbook:
1. Wash the rice thoroughly, changing the water several times until the water runs clear. This just takes a few minutes and improves the texture of the rice once it’s cooked. Even better would be to let it sit in a strainer/sieve for 30 min to an hour to rest, but it’s not the end of the world if you don’t.
2. Even if you skip all of step one, try these next steps. Put the rice in a deep pan and add about 15% more cold water than rice (for 200 g/7 oz rice you will need about 250 ml/8 fl oz water). The water level shouldn’t be more than a third from the base of the pan.
3. Cover the pan, place over a high heat and bring to a boil; this may take 5 min. Turn the heat down as low as possible and simmer (a few small bubbles breaking the surface) for 10-13 min, or until all the water has been absorbed. Don’t lift the lid during this process (use a clear glass one so you can see without peeking).
4. Remove the pan from heat and set aside, still covered, for about 10 minutes. Don’t skip this as this rest period makes a big difference.
To eat normally, at this point give it a good stir using a folding motion and dish into bowls to serve. For sushi rice, spread it out and sprinkle on the “dressing.” Fold (don’t mix) it in. A baking/cookie sheet like you suggested works, but a large wooden cutting board might be better since wood absorbs extra moisture (wet it first so the rice doesn’t stick to it). If you’re in a hurry to cool the rice, waving a fan or pointing an electrical fan at it helps… but be careful not to dry it out.
Also, to make the meal more substantial, serve grilled chicken on the side, along with your suggested salad. Traditional options are skewered chicken with a teriyaki sauce, or minced/ground chicken made into meatballs and skewered.
Another traditional alternative to the spinach salad would be some steamed kabocha (similar to acorn squash).
Hope that helps! 🙂
thanks for sharing your rice method mrs mack!
I used to use the absorption method but now prefer boiling because its soo much quicker, doesn’t require a glass lid and is more consistent.
but if you’re after perfect dry rice your method sounds great! I’ll have to try it.
Jx
Well, not *dry* exactly. The rice I’ve seen in America is very dry (I don’t know about Australia). Each grain is separate and if you touch the rice it’s like touching soft bread crumbs… no obvious moisture. Japanese rice cooked the way I’ve described will be sticky and chewy, and will tend to clump rather than scatter. If it’s dry either there was not enough water or it was overcooked! 🙂
I think you’ve missed a step. You make the “dressing” in step two, but then don’t implement it anywhere in the later steps.
You’re supposed to use it on the rice, right?
good spotting thanks mrs mack!
I’ve updated the method now 😉
jx