Rice/Grains

Temari means a hand ball in Japanese, and it’s another style of sushi.

Yes, there are a lot of different types of sushi, including “nigiri,” “maki (rolls),” “temaki (hand-roll),” “chirashi (scattered),” “oshi (pressed)”…

I like Temari because they are easy to make and they look adorable.

The vegan “salmon” is a game changer(previous post), and now I can enjoy making/eating things like this (below).

Sushi rice was wrapped with vegan smoked “salmon” and topped off with Yuzu mayo, cucumber, and vegan caviar.

It’s pretty and delicious!

Well, I should probably explain the name.

Gomoku rice is a popular Japanese rise dish.

You combine uncooked rice, broth (usually soy sauce based), and basically anything you like, typically vegetables, meat, or/and fish, and cook everything together.

You can use a regular pot and cook on a stove, but I typically use my rice cooker, which makes the whole process very easy.

Gomoku means five items, but that does not mean that you can only add five things.

In this one you find carrot, Shiitake mushrooms, dried Daikon radish, fried bean curd, and peas.

I decided to make it into Onigiri this time.

Onigiri means a rice ball, and often times they are made into this triangle shape and you wrap it with roasted seaweed sheet.

I enjoyed it with miso soup, pickled beet, and “egg” bake for breakfast.

Last weekend we took a trip to New York City.

We got to try great vegan food there, and one of the memorable meals was the one at Beyond Sushi.

Their sushi was so creative and unique, and that really inspired me to be a bit more bold in my sushi-making.

I also found this vegan “caviar” at a vegan shop in the city, and I was excited to try with my sushi.

The “caviar” is made with seaweed, and it definitely satisfies my craving for the “ocean” flavor.

The texture is also spot-on!

Inside: avocado; sweet-spicy tempeh, Japanese Shiso basil leaves
Outside: cucumber; homemade vegan turmeric mayo; black “caviar”

Inside: pickled beets; avocado
Outside: radish; homemade vegan mayo, orange “caviar”; chervil

Inside: Tofu with sweet teriyaki sauce; black sesame seeds
Outside: Kanpyo

All were super yummy!

We had a few warmer days this week, but it’s still pretty cold for March, and we are expecting more snow this weekend.

It’s not fully spring yet, but I would like to think it’s right around the corner.

To celebrate and welcome this new season, I made this Japanese style breakfast.

I had some salted Sakura flowers, and I thought these would be perfect to decorate my rice.

Isn’t it just lovely?

I got some spring inspired props ready too.

What you see on this breakfast table are Sakura rice, miso soup, Kabocha salad, and braised black bean Hijiki seaweed.

Have a great weekend everyone.