Reason to Celebrate

Exciting news! A new restaurant is making the headlines and rightly so. Dundee is about to have its very own sushi restaurant! For anyone who loves Japanese cuisine, this is welcoming news. Sushi will no longer be a delicacy reserved for special occasions which merit the journey to Edinburgh, Glasgow or London, instead, it will be readily available for all to enjoy on a regular basis.

The restaurant is to be called ‘Oshibori’ and is expected to open in May. The locals of Dundee have longed for a Japanese restaurant for many years, and the man who has finally answered their prayers is 23 year old artist and chef, Usman Malik, a graduate from Duncan of Jordanstone. All ingredients on the menu are to be sourced from Japan and plans are in place to incorporate sushi robots into the kitchen as part of the team! These amazing machines roll sushi to perfection. Happy days. 

To celebrate the opening of this new restaurant, I thought I would share with you, a simple sushi recipe which you can enjoy at home in anticipation of these culinary delights. Even better, the recipe is suitable for vegetarians so everyone can enjoy. 

How to Make Avocado Hosomaki

Maki is a sushi roll which consists of fish or vegetables with rice wrapped in nori (seaweed). There are two variations of this sushi roll which are; Futomaki, also known as ‘fat maki’ and Hosomaki, otherwise known as 'thin maki'. Futomaki consists of sushi rice and two or more different fillings, whereas, hosomaki consists of rice and a single filling (either fish or a vegetable). 

Equipment You Will Need

A bamboo rolling matt

A ‘hangiri’ (this rice cooling barrel is useful but non-essential)

A sharp knife

Ingredients

Avocado

Sushi Rice

Nori (seaweed paper)

Soy Sauce

Method

1. Cook the sushi rice and leave to cool (either in the ‘hangiri’ or a bowl.

2. Take a sheet of nori and place it flat on top of the rolling matt.

3. Spread a layer of sushi rice over the nori, leaving approximately half an inch of space at the top of the paper. This strip is what later, holds the roll in place. Make sure that the layer of rice is flat and even for ease of rolling.

4. Lay single strips of avocado horizontally across the centre of the nori, on top of the bed of rice.

5. Time to roll. Using the rolling matt, start to gradually roll the nori, applying pressure as you go.

6. Once the sushi is rolled, dip the end of your sharp knife in water in preparation for slicing the maki. The water ensures a clean cut.

7. Slice the maki in half, trim of the uneven ends and cut the rest of the roll into even pieces.

8. Serve with a small side dish of soy sauce for dipping. 

Enjoy!