I think most of us enjoy sushi out. Let’s face it, sushi on a Saturday night downtown with a good bottle of sake and some uni dessert is heaven. I really could eat sushi most nights of the week.
A few dilemmas in my plan. First off, sushi every day can break the bank. We all know the good stuff is expensive and we all need more than one roll and order of sashimi to feel full.
Second, going out gets old. I love my place, I love coming home and cuddling with my dogs… and enjoying our sunset views. I also enjoy sharing my home and entertaining friends in it from time to time.
Hmmm… sushi and a dinner party at my place. Why not? Or so I thought when the idea first popped into my head. My BFF Irina’s birthday was coming up and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to test out my sushi and sashimi making “skills.” She’s a sushi lover like me so I decided to give it a try.
OK, so obviously I’m not going to spend the entire day fishing in the San Diego bay nor am I going to clean and slice the fish or prep the rice- I need like 103992453 classes for that and 109283 hours of time. But, I have heard of a few great Japanese markets in and around the San Diego area so after work, I googled one and headed there.
The Japanese marketplaces have it all from sushi and sashimi, to wasabi peas and things I had no idea as to what they were because the ingredients were all in Japanese. Thankfully, the market employees were able to either translate or direct me in a better direction. I found every piece of fresh sashimi I needed along with rolls of spicy tuna and cucumber, uni, green tea mochi balls and my spicy wasabi peas, yay!
I even found a super neat sake pitcher hand painted with blue flowers and four matching sake glasses… along with chopsticks and cute chopstick holders. And get this: they were all on SALE. Yep… I actually managed to find a sale item I loved and in under five minutes time!
The next step: getting these items home STAT and in my refrigerator. The key to fresh fish is to keep it fresh!
The more you get to know me, you’ll realize I really love SIMPLICITY. I hate cooking hot food during a dinner party. First of all, kitchen smells permeate the space you and your guests are socializing in. Next, as a hostess you’re so busy cooking, you don’t have time to socialize with your guests. Lastly, timing the food so that everything comes out hot and ready to go is sooo difficult! It requires a talent I definitely do not possess.
Sushi, as I discovered, is very EASY!!! All you need to do is shop, slice sashimi, decorate plates, slice some lemon, add ginger and wasabi sauce to the dishes, and serve. You can even prep ahead of time and place saran wrap over your delicacies on their serving dishes, keeping them in the fridge until your guests are ready to be served. Take the dishes out, remove the saran wrap, carry to the dinner table and serve.
Hot sake is easy too. A martini requires a shaker, several ingredients and a good bar tender! Hot sake requires a sake pitcher, hot sake and a microwave. Heat the sake for about a minute and fifteen seconds and serve.
I’m seriously so happy I experimented with a sushi night. My friends and fiancé loved everything! I even got creative and added caviar to halved avocados. If you like avocados and caviar, you must try this!
The clean up wasn’t half bad either. The mochi green tea ice cream was yummy and the simplest dessert I’ve ever served.
The best part about sushi? You can enjoy it guilt free! As long as you eat in moderation and choose a mixture of sashimi and rice, you’ll eat a protein packed meal with fewer calories than if you had enjoyed a bowl of chips or a night out with bread and butter as a starter! Sushi is a total mode de vie FIT for us health conscious girls and guys!
Do not fret, if you’re on a budget, sushi at home is totally doable! To create a budget, buy less sashimi and more rolls, look for less expensive fish (ahi was the priciest when I was shopping so I only got one and two salmon), and be sure to fill up your guests with a few simple appetizers before their main course. Wasabi peas, nuts and a cheese platter are great starters people can munch on even after their sushi dinner.
A few tricks of the trade as I continue to learn and to take notes from my friends and clients! Let me know what you guys think and if you try a sushi night of your own! Send me some pics of your creative dishes!
xx, Shanna