Spicy tuna crispy rice

My absolute favorite dish to order when at a Japanese restaurant, spicy tuna crispy rice. It’s a dish I’ve attempted more than once and which I am very excited to have finally made successfully at home.

This recipe starts by making the rice the night before. This is necessary so that the rice has a chance to cool and form into patties, otherwise they will fall apart during the frying hot bath they will take.

Makes approximately 20 pieces.

Ingredients:

You’ll need: a temperature gauge to measure the heat of the oil!

The rice:

500g sushi rice, rinsed twice

500g water, to cook the rice

4 tbsp sushi seasoning, or sushi vinegar

750ml neutral oil, such as rice bran or vegetable oil

The tuna:

200g sashimi grade raw tuna

1 tsp sesame oil

The assembly:

1/2 an avocado, sliced thin, then halved

1/2 a small jalapeno, sliced thin

2 tbsp kewpie mayo

1 tbsp of your favorite hot sauce

Thin soy sauce, to serve - or regular soy sauce

Sushi sprinkle aka ‘furikake’:

1 packet roasted seaweed, the kind you snack on

2 tsp white sesame seeds

1/2 tsp white sugar

1/4 tsp onion powder

pinch of salt

Method:

Note: start the night before serving.

To prep the rice: rinse the rice twice, or until the water runs clear, by mixing water with rice in a mixing bowl and refreshing the water in between rinses. After rinsing it twice, add 2 cups of cold water to a mixing bowl with rice and let it soak for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, pour out the water and rinse the rice once more.

To cook the rice: add rice with 500g water to a medium saucepan or pot with a tight fitting lid and bring to a boil. As soon as it begins to boil (where the bubbles are in the center of the rice, not just the outside), turn down the heat to low, put the lid on and set a timer for 12 minutes. During this 12 minutes, leave the rice completely alone, do not touch it or move it around. Love it and leave it alone. After 12 minutes, turn off the heat while leaving the lid on. Set another timer for 5 minutes so the rice has a chance to steam and fluff up. After 5 minutes, remove the lid and add the sushi seasoning and stir to mix well. Allow to cool slightly.

Refrigerate the rice: grab a rectangular baking sheet tray of any size that will fit in your fridge and eventually freezer. Mine was 18 x 13 inches. Line it with either baking paper or cling wrap, with enough to be able to wrap over the top. Once the rice has cooled slightly, pack it down into the tray, making sure not to leave any gaps in the corners. It should be about 1 - 1.5 inches in height. Wrap it tightly using the baking paper or cling wrap so the rice is completely enclosed and tightly packed. Place in the fridge overnight. If you can find something heavy to rest on it that is perfect. I used a box/bottle of almond milk because it was the perfect size to evenly distribute the weight and press down the rice.

The next day:

Prep the tuna: remove the tuna from the fridge and slice into long strips. Dice the strips to get super small pieces. Go over the diced tuna with a knife to get a mince-like texture, aka super finely chopped. Add to a mixing bowl and toss in sesame oil and mix to combine. Keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

Slice the veggies: thinly slice jalapeno into rings and avocado into slices, then halved to get little triangles.

Make the spicy mayo and furikake: mix hot sauce with kewpie in a small bowl, then taste and adjust. In another bowl, crumble seaweed sheets using your hands into small pieces - as small as you can get it. Add sugar, salt, sesame seeds and onion powder and mix to combine. Set aside.

Fry the rice: remove the rice from the fridge and slice into squares. Line the same baking tray from before with the same baking paper and add the rice squares onto the sheet and place in the freezer. Pour 750ml of neutral oil into a deep pot and bring to 375F. Remove the rice squares from the freezer when the oil is almost at it’s perfect temperature. Once the oil is at 375F, carefully lower one rice square in at a time, frying for 2-3 minutes, or until lightly golden on the outside. Place onto a paper towel lined plate, lightly salt the top of the square and repeat with the remaining rice squares.

To assemble: add a squeeze of spicy mayo on top of each rice square and smear to create a base for the tuna to stick to. Pile tuna on top, followed by avocado, jalapeno and a sprinkle of furikake. Add a touch of soy sauce over the top of each one and enjoy straight away!