Thursday 10 March 2011

Sushi

First time I tried it I did not even like.

I found it bad, an unclear taste, hard to chew and difficult to swallow.

Since then I evolved in a full fledged fanboy of this recipe that mixes perfectly raw and boiled ingredients in tasty morsels.

I always saw Sushi like a special treat, like Pizza. Something you eat on accasions and that becomes quickly a social moment with friends and family.

I suddenly realized that in know how to bake Pizza and I actually do it for friends and family. So, why not Sushi?


Photo Monsieur tout le monde

Google is your friend

Few clicks are enough to learn the basics (I suggest you check the how-to videos on Youtube) after that you are ready to start. You will need:

- Rice
- Sushi vinegar
- Nori seaweed
- Toppings


Rice

Believe it or not, Japanese rice is actually originary from Italy, so you can use italian rice. choose Arborio or Roma rice ( depends if you like larger or smaller grains).

Rinse the rice in a bowl, throw the water and repeat till the rice becomes translucent.

To cook it follow this simple rule: 1 cup rice+ 1 cup water+ 1/2 cup water. If you use two cups of rice, then two and a half cups of water are needed and so on.

I have a cooker, but if you use a pot, bring it to boil, then lower the fire to minimum and leave it simmer 20 minutes. After that put a lid on it and leave it for 20 minutes more. DO NOT PEEK!

Sushi vinegar

Vinegar has to be sweetened a little; You can find sweetened vinegars, in that case no problem.

In case you could not find it add to one teaspoon of sugar each 4 tablespoons of vinegar and use 4 tablespoons of vinegar each 3 cups of rice ( you do the math).

Pour the vinegar on the rice after its twenty minutes rest , cover the bowl and put it aside to cool off.

Nori seaweed

It is usually sold in ten sheets pack. you use to give a little extra bit of taste. Useful, but not necessary.




Toppings

Except for meat, everything goes.

I saw vegetarian sushi, some with fruits. Here in Belgium some put some fresh cheese in it to give a creamy note ( before you start screaming, many japanese use mayo that for)

You can start using Salmon ( raw or smoked), shrimps, Surimi, tuna.

Some possibilities:

- Salmon+ cream cheese+ fresh dill
- Shrimps+ cream cheese
- Shrimps+ Surimi
- Salmone+ cucumber
- Tuna+ Cucumber+ cream cheese+ fresh dill

Just be creative and have fun.

Some plain soja sauce will pair nicely, but try put some olive oil in the Soja sauce and you'll have a nice surprise

Enjoy your meal :)




Photo Monsieur tout le monde

Saturday 5 March 2011

It's been a long time...

Almost one year?

To quote Billy Crystal in "When Harry met Sally" what's the statute of limitations on apologies?

In this last year I did not write a lot for a series of reasons, many of them quite personal and as such, if you excuse me, I will not talk about them here.

I reassure you, I did not work extensively on my house, so you did not miss much.

Going on through my life I think I can now understand when I can push and when I have to sit back and rest.

Last year was a "sit back and rest" year, but now it is over.

House sleeps from too much, I am not what I used to be last year, but she is there. Unaware of it. It has to stop.

This Blog was like my house, fixed in time, running on a routine that does not work anymore with me.

But this blog is the window from which you can see my project evolve and as such. it is time it evolves with it.

Here are the relevant changes to it.

- Graphic theme is lighter. I took off whatever was unnecessary and messy and now it looks more clean and readeable




- I always loved to have some music playing under my posts, but it seems that not everyone agreed whit that choice. So I compromised. Cd of the month is still at its place, but now starts only if you click on the Play button.



-I will not have always new things going on in the house that are worth a full post but I will not leave you without info on this project. Right this page you will find the Twitter and the Tumblr updates of yours truly. Feel free to follow them here or to subscribe to the feeds.



- If you own a smartphone, be aware that the "mobile" version is up and running, as such if you enter the Blog adress you'll be authomatically redirected to it.

Those are the main changes, but more will follow. A new Logo is worked on and I will rearrange the Tag system making it easy to find the post you are looking for

Works start again this Weekend. Stay with me.

I have so much to show you. :)