Oshi-Zushi, fun to say and eat

As part of my job, I get to review cookbooks from time to time.  It's a great gig because I get to explore books I otherwise would not have had access to. In today's StarTwo, I reviewed Terry Tan's Asian Cook. You can read the review here.

Tan covers a range of Asian cuisine and instead of testing recipes which I'm already familiar with, I chose cuisine which is new to me -- new in the sense I've never tried making it myself. I chose to try a couple of Tan's sushi recipes and foumd, to my surprise, my efforts bore fruit. tan's instructions were clear and uncomplicated and even though Japanese food requires very precise style and technique, his instructions were quite clear. I must admit though, I did go onto YouTube to see how sushi was rolled and how the tamagoyaki (Japanese rolled omelette) was done. Read my version of the tamagoyaki here.

I enjoyed the Oshi-Zushi (that's the square, pressed sushi pictured on the left) the most: both making it and eating it. The original recipe calls for crab meat but being vegetarian, I substituted it with shredded marinated tofu.

Oshi Zushi

A: Sushi Rice

1 3/4 cup sushi rice

31/2 cups water

50 ml rice vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

Wash rice till the water runs clean. leave to drain in a strainer or colander for at least 30 mins. Put the drained rice in a rice cooker with enough cold water to rise 3 cm above the level of the rice (about 31/2 cups). When done, leave to stand for 10 mins.

Meanwhile, mix the vinegar, sugar and salt in a small pan. Place over medium heat till sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. Cool using fan.

Sprinkle the vinegar mixture over rice. Using a wooden spatula gently fold through the rice. Cool rice with fan until it's cook enough to handle

B: Tofu

1 block firm tofu, patted dry

2 tbsp Japanese soy sauce

lemon juice

salt and pepper

Marinde tofu in soy sauce and lemon juice, salt and pepper for about an hour. Grill and shred.

C: 3 thin omelettes (3 eggs and a pinch of salt), shredded

Line a wooden sushi mould or a 8 inch square shallow baking tin with cling flim. Let the cling film hang over the sides so its easier to remove the Oshi-Zushi once its done.  Spread the sushi rice evenly at the bottom till it comes about halfway up the mould/tin. Press down firmly.

Add a layer of tofu to cover the rice. Press down firmly.

Sprinkle the shredded omelette all over the top and press down with a lid. Keep the lid on till you're ready to serve.

Lift the Oshi-Zushi by lifting the cling flim carefully. Cut into bite sized pieces and garnish with lemon and thyme or binegered ginger and soy sauce.