sushi salad

I have a handful of recipes that I have planned to blog about for a while...but the month got away on me, there should be a few more coming after this one!

We love sushi! But sometimes we don't feel like going out, let alone taking the time to make it (even if everyone makes their own). This is all the goodness of sushi, with way less time. The best thing is that you can add whatever you like to it. If you LOVE spicy tuna, you could top the salad with spicy tuna sashimi - yum.

Ingredients:
salad:
1 cup uncooked sushi rice
1/8 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp white sugar
1 portobello mushroom
1 tsp sesame oil
1 handful snap peas chopped
1 carrot julienned
1 avocado diced
1 red pepper julienned
1/3 of an English cucumber julienned
1/2 cup edamame beans (about 2 cups pods, boiled in water for 6 minutes - cool and seperate beans and pods)
1 cup crab
1 sheet of nori crumbled to top
sesame seeds to top

vinaigrette:
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp wasabi (or to taste)

Directions:

1. Cook rice according to package directions.
2. Combine first amount of rice wine vinegar and sugar in a microwaveable bowl and heat for about 20 seconds, enough to dissolve sugar.
3. Once rice is cooked, mix the sugar/vinegar in, and allow rice to come to room temperature.
4. Meanwhile, slice up portabello mushroom, fry up in first amount of sesame oil.
5. Once rice is cooled, add all the veggies and crab or any other protein you want to add.
   
6. Top with sesame seeds and crumbled nori.
   
7. Combine all the vinaigrette ingredients.

I personally thought this recipe was best when fresh - day of, I didn't love it the next day as a left over. We had it with chicken terriyaki and miso soup, an easy homemade sushi dinner.