Sushi
Real sushi at home: glossy seasoned rice, salmon and tuna maki, cucumber and avocado rolls, and hand-shaped nigiri, with the knife work and rolling kept calm and simple.
The whole recipe in 60 seconds
Sushi, in 5 ideas
- Seasoned short-grain rice is the whole game. Glossy, distinct grains that hold together without ever turning to paste.
- Sushi-grade fish from a fishmonger you trust. Kept cold and sliced with a long, unhurried stroke, never sawn.
- Wet hands and a wet knife are. The two tricks that stop warm rice sticking to everything it touches.
- A bamboo mat gives maki their tight, even spiral. Rest the roll seam down before slicing.
- Serve within the hour. While the rice is still supple and the nori keeps a little snap.
What you need
Ingredients
- 2 cups sushi rice (about 400 g)
- 2 1/2 cups water
- 1/3 cup rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 6 sheets nori
- 8 oz sushi-grade salmon fillet, skinned
- 8 oz sushi-grade tuna fillet
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 1/2 cucumber, cut into thin sticks
- Soy sauce, to serve
- Wasabi and pickled ginger, to serve
How to make it
Method
Rinse the rice in a bowl, swirling and draining, until the water runs almost clear. Cook with the measured water, then rest, covered, for 10 minutes.
Warm the vinegar, sugar and salt until dissolved. Fold through the hot rice with a slicing motion, fanning as you go, until glossy. Cover with a damp cloth and cool to room temperature.
With a very sharp knife and long strokes, slice the salmon and tuna into strips for maki and into neat rectangles for nigiri. Keep everything cold.
For maki: lay a nori sheet shiny side down on a bamboo mat. With wet hands, spread a thin layer of rice over it, leaving a 2 cm border at the far edge.
Lay fish, avocado or cucumber along the near edge. Roll firmly with the mat, squeeze gently to seal, and rest seam side down for 2 minutes.
Slice each roll into 8 pieces with a wet, sharp knife, wiping the blade between cuts.
For nigiri: shape 2 tbsp of rice into a small mound, add a dab of wasabi, and drape a fish rectangle over the top, pressing lightly at the sides.
Arrange everything on a platter and serve at once with soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger.
Cook the rice a touch firmer than usual: the vinegar seasoning loosens it as it cools, and firm grains roll and slice far more cleanly.