cucumber

Sushi is the perfect light summer meal. I love making a batch and snacking on it through the day, it never leaves me too full. It’s actually really easy to make, all you need is a sushi rolling mat, which you can pick up at your local supermarket. The beautiful vibrant pink comes from a little beetroot juice, but you can of course leave it out, or use other natural colourings, turmeric for yellow, red cabbage for purple or spinach for green. I love the earthiness of beetroot mixed with rice wine vinegar though, it really works well with the creamy avocado and refreshing cucumber.

I’ve tried to make the instructions on rolling sushi as simple as possible, but if like me, you prefer to look at pictures, there’s a great diagram here. Next time I will take more pictures I promise!

I was kindly gifted these gorgeous knives by Edge of Belgravia recently (best gift ever, thank you lovely knife people) and they have quickly become my new favourite kitchen toys. Super sharp and incredibly slick, they make slicing, chopping and dicing a sheer pleasure. You really do need a sharp knife to cut sushi, so I definitely recommend checking out these knife sets if you’re in need of one, they’re very reasonably priced for the quality.

Beet, cucumber and avo maki (makes 3 rolls, at least 18 pieces of sushi)

• 1 cup sushi rice
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1 tsp coconut sugar (or any other sugar you have)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3-5 tbsp pure beetroot juice
• 3 nori sheets
• 1/2 cucumber, sliced into thin, even strips
• 1/2 avocado, sliced as above
• Black sesame seeds (optional)

1. Rinse sushi rice well under cool, running water until most of the starch is removed (the water should run fairly clear when it’s ready).
2. Mix rice vinegar, sugar and salt together in a little bowl.
3. Add sushi rice and water to a pan and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and put the lid on. Leave to cook for 8 minutes. Check to see if all the water has been absorbed, if not, cook for a few more minutes.
4. When your rice is ready, immediately stir through your vinegar, sugar and salt mix and add 3 tbsp of beetroot juice. If you want it pinker, add some more beetroot juice. Allow to cool to room temperature before using.
5. Lay out your nori sheet according to the packet instructions (usually shiny side down) on a sushi mat. Spread a third of the rice on 2/3 of the nori sheet, working from the edge closest to you. Be sure to spread the rice right to the sides. Take your time here.
6. Layer your sliced veggies lengthways across the rice, about a third of the way in from the edge closest to you. Sprinkle the veggies with black sesame seeds, if using.
7. Lift the edge closest to you and begin to tightly wrap the rolls all the way to the end, pushing down lightly on the sushi mat with each turn to help it stick together.
8. Using the sharpest knife you have, chop each roll into inch rounds. Serve with wasabi and tamari soy sauce.