Chirashi Sushi - My Version Anyway

My cousins Nicole and Kip got us the coolest book for Christmas ! It is called The Complete Book of Sushi and I LOOOOOVE it ! I had already planned sushi for tonight but decided to try my hand a chirashi sushi (don't know what the literal translation is but to me it is sushi in a bowl) It was yum !
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Oh yeah. I almost forgot ... but then I looked at the photo and remembered ! Rory got me knives for Christmas. They are wonderful !! See them in the photo below ?! Cool, eh ?! I love them. I've been wanting to buy good knives for years. Really ... many years ! But, I just haven't. This year, Rory did ! I'm soooo glad ! I use them all the time !!!!!

So ... how to make the chirashi sushi. Start with the rice. Short grain. I cook mine in a rice cooker. Tonight I did three cups. (we have enough left over for a few rolls for tomorrow's lunch) Add the sushi rice vinegar and let rice cool. I just let it sit rather than use a fan like a real sushi chef would do. If you do just let it sit, make sure to cover it with a clean hand towel (or lid) because it will dry out if you don't. How much vinegar ? The back of the bottle should tell you. Mine says 1 tbls per cup of rice. And I usually add a little bit extra !

This is tamago. Easy to make.
Beat 4 eggs with 1 tbls sugar and 1/2 tsp salt.
Pour into tamago (or frying) pan. I heat on med-high and spray pan with oil.
Cook til almost cooked through but don't let it burn. Flip whole thing.
Cook til cooked through.

This is a tamago pan. My sister in law brought it back from Japan for me. Don't know what I'll do when it wears out !

Chop up whatever you want on top. I did tamago, cucumber, avocado, and imitation crab meat. That green stuff on top is chuka wakame. I've just discovered it and I love it ! After I took the photo, I also added thinly sliced (with scissors) seaweed, sesame seeds and soy sauce. Just put all of your toppings on top of your rice and voila ... dinner.

It's great too because people can pick and choose what they'd like on top. Can be a very kid friendly meal ! Of course, my kids didn't want their sushi in a bowl. Neither did Rory for that matter ! So ... I just made this for me and put the rest of the stuff chopped up on the table like I usually do when we have sushi. Rory rolled his own and he and I both made rolls for the kids.