SUSHI SALAD BOWL

Day 8- my creativity decided to fail me and I consulted a cook book for the Sushi Salad Bowl recipe you see below. The AWW Complete Book of Modern Asian proved very useful, and I used the foundation of a sushi salad recipe for this dish. All the Japanese ingredients listed can be purchased at any major supermarket. Having tried my hand at making sushi before, this was a much quicker and less painstaking process which tasted like the inside of a sushi roll. You can play with the ingredients and add lemon, daikon, salmon, chicken, toasted seaweed etc. I kept my sushi salad bowl very simple (it was Sunday night after all). 

INGREDIENTS

• 2 green shallots, finely chopped
• 15cm stick fresh lemongrass, finely chopped
• 3cm piece fresh ginger, finely grated
• a small dash of sesame oil  
• 1 small carrot, finely grated
• 1 lebanese cucumber, diced 
• 1/2 a ripe avocado, diced 
• 150g green beans, cut into 2cm pieces 
• 2 cups sushi rice (koshihikari rice- available at any major supermarket)
• 2 cups water
• 1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds 
• just under a 1/4 of a cup rice wine vinegar 

Dressing

• a small dash of sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons mirin 
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce 

COOKING 

1. Place rice and water in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil over medium-high heat. Reduce to a simmer and cover for around 10-12 minutes or until the rice is absorbed. Remove the rice from the remove and stand, covered for 10 minutes. Remove the cover after this time, and gradually pour in the rice wine vinegar as you fluff the rice with a fork at the same time. 

2. Meanwhile, heat sesame oil in a small to medium frying pan over medium heat. Add shallots, lemongrass and ginger and stir for 2 minutes. Add cut beans and stir for around 2-3 minutes or until beans are slightly tender. 

3. Dry-fry (this means use no oil) the sesame seeds in a small frying pan until golden in colour. 

4. Place the dressing ingredients in a screw-top jar and shake well to combine. 

5. Place the sushi rice in a large serving bowl. Top with carrot, cucumber and diced avocado. Add cooked shallots, lemongrass, ginger and beans. Drizzle dressing over the top and serve. 

NB- for a less healthy option, add some Kewpie mayonnaise over the salad. 

x E