Chirashi Sushi

Chirashi sushi means "scattered sushi", and that's exactly what it is: a bowl of warm, seasoned sushi rice covered with a colorful pattern of fish, sweet tamago omelet, crispy vegetables, nori, and sesame. Instead of rolling maki, you arrange everything on top of the rice, making chirashi the easiest way to create a beautiful sushi spread without any technical rolling work. Here we use prepared sushi shrimp, masago, and crab sticks, making the dish both easy to prepare and food safe. The secret lies in the rice: it should be gently mixed with sushi vinegar while warm and then cooled to body temperature before arranging, so each grain is shiny and separate.

• Cuisine: Japan
• Time: 50 minutes
• Servings: 4 people
• Difficulty: Medium

Instructions

1. Rinse 360 g of sushi rice thoroughly until the water runs clear, then cook the rice according to package directions. Let it steam for 10 minutes with the lid on.
2. Mix 5 tbsp of sushi vinegar with 2 tbsp of sugar and 1 tsp of salt until dissolved. Gently fold the mixture into the warm rice with a spatula in cutting motions, and let the rice cool to body temperature while fanning it lightly.
3. Make tamago: whisk 3 eggs with 1 tsp of sugar and 1 tsp of soy sauce. Cook the egg mixture in a lightly oiled pan to a thin, well-cooked omelet, roll it up, and cut it into strips.
4. Thaw the sushi shrimp and crab sticks according to package directions, and pat them dry. Cut the crab sticks into bite-sized pieces.
5. Cut the cucumber into thin half-moons, and have masago and toasted sesame seeds ready. Cut the nori into fine strips.
6. Spread the cooled sushi rice into four bowls or onto a large platter in an even layer.
7. Arrange shrimp, crab sticks, tamago strips, and cucumber on top of the rice in a colorful pattern.
8. Top with spoonfuls of masago, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and garnish with nori strips.
9. Serve immediately with pickled ginger and soy sauce on the side.

Tips

• Always mix the sushi vinegar into the rice while it's warm – this allows the grains to absorb the flavor best, but only arrange when the rice has cooled to body temperature.
• If you want to use fresh fish, choose fish of documented sushi quality and keep it ice cold until serving.
• Cut all toppings into uniform pieces to make the bowl look sharp and inviting.
• Edamame, avocado, or pickled daikon are beautiful and tasty extra toppings.