Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
Sushi vinegar
400ml rice vinegar
250g caster sugar
80g Salt
3.5g kombu (kelp)
Sushi Rice
1kg Japanese sushi rice
1.25 litres water, plus extra to soak
15g pure Ceylon tea leaves
Caramelised soy sauce
1 green shallot, minced
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
METHOD
1 To make the sushi vinegar, combine the vinegar, sugar, salt and kombu in a medium saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes or until sugar and salt dissolves. Remove from heat and set aside to cool completely. Strain through a fine sieve. Set aside.
2 To make the sushi rice, rinse rice under cold running water until water runs clear. Place rice in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Set aside for 35 minutes to soak. Drain well. Place in a saucepan with water and place over high heat. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to very low and cook, covered, for 10 minutes or until water is absorbed and rice is tender. Remove from heat stir in the tea and set aside, covered, for 10 minutes.
3 Transfer rice to a large bowl with 225ml of the sushi vinegar and Use a spatula to carefully fold vinegar mixture through the rice, fanning with spatula occasionally. Continue folding until well combined and rice is sticky. Set side to cool.
4 Using wet hands, shape tablespoonful of sushi rice into triangle shapes. Wrap each one with a piece of Nori. Brush each with caramelised soy. Squeeze a bit of mayonnaise on each and spoon a few salmon pearls on each onigiri and a few bonito flakes
5 Will hold at room temp without the garnish for several hours
6 To make the caramelised soy sauce, heat a small saucepan over medium heat adding the soy sauce and honey. Stir until honey has dissolved. Add fresh ginger, shallots, and rice vinegar, stir then let simmer. Let it reduce (1-3 minutes)
Chefs tip
If you need a little extra kick add a bit of wasabi to the mixture.
The Carousel thanks celebrity chef and Dilmah Ambassador Peter Kuruvita for this recipe. This recipe was created to celebrate the launch of the Dilmah Green Tea range
