Few of us have the time or inclination to roll sushi at home. But here’s an easy way to enjoy those flavors and textures at home when fussy presentation isn’t a priority. In her new cookbook, “The Secret of Cooking: Recipes for an Easier Life in the Kitchen” (Norton, $40), Bee Wilson suggests cooking up a batch of the sticky shortgrain rice used for sushi and then serving it communalstyle, as is often done in Japanese households, with various tidbits scattered over the top. Serves 4. – Susan Puckett
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups short-grain (sushi) rice
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 ½ tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 5 to 7 ounces smoked trout, salmon, or other smoked fish
- 1 large English cucumber
- 2 ripe avocados
- ½ lemon
- 1 or 2 tablespoons white or black sesame seeds
- Pickled ginger and wasabi for serving
Instructions
- Place rinsed rice in medium pot with 1¾ cups water over medium heat and simmer. Cover, reduce heat to lowest setting, cook 12 minutes. Turn off heat and let rest, covered, 10 minutes.
- Insmall bowl, mix vinegar, sugar, and salt until sugar and salt dissolve. Transfer warm rice to large bowl and gradually drizzle vinegar mixture over rice, mixing until grains are all coated.
- Cover bowl until ready to eat. (It’s best served warm or at room temperature, but if not eaten within 2 hours it should be refrigerated.)
- Place rice in wide serving bowl or on platter. Tear fish into bite-size pieces. Cut cucumber in half lengthwise and slice in thin half-moons. Peel, seed, and slice avocado and squeeze lemon juice over slices.
- Scatter fish, avocado, cucumber evenly over rice and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve with pickled ginger and wasabi on side.
Susan Puckett is a cookbook author and former food editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Follow her at susanpuckett.com.
