Crispy Rice with Spicy Tuna & Tobiko Trio
Crispy pan-fried sushi rice blocks topped with diced yellowfin ahi tuna (akami cut) in spicy mayo, finished with a trio of tobiko, chives, and sesame seeds.
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
Crispy Rice
- 3 cups cooked sushi rice
- 3 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
- Neutral oil grapeseed, canola, or rice bran, for shallow frying
- Flaky sea salt
Spicy Tuna
- 12 ounces sushi-grade ahi tuna small diced
- 3 tablespoons Kewpie mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons sriracha or to taste
- 1½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1½ teaspoons soy sauce
- 1½ teaspoons finely sliced scallions
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon chili crisp oil optional
Tobiko Trio & Garnish
- Red tobiko for topping 6 pieces
- Black tobiko for topping 6 pieces
- Green wasabi tobiko for topping 6 pieces
- White sesame seeds for garnishing the black tobiko pieces
- Microgreens for garnishing the red tobiko pieces
- Chives finely sliced for garnish
Instructions
- Prepare the rice: While the rice is still warm, gently fold in the seasoned rice vinegar. Line one end of a 9x13-inch baking dish with parchment or plastic wrap. Press the rice into a rectangle approximately 9x6 inches, about 3/4 inch thick. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
- Make the spicy tuna: In a chilled bowl, gently combine the diced tuna, Kewpie mayonnaise, sriracha, sesame oil, soy sauce, scallions, sesame seeds, and chili crisp oil (if using). Refrigerate until ready to assemble.
- Cut the rice: Invert the chilled rice slab onto a cutting board. Cut into 18 rectangles (3 rows by 6 columns). I used a 2.16 × 1.4-inch rectangle cookie cutter to cut out little rectangles of rice.
- Fry the rice: Heat about 1/4 inch of neutral oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the rice until deep golden and crisp, about 3-4 minutes per side. Transfer to a wire rack and lightly season with flaky sea salt right away while it's still wet so the salt will cling to it.
- Assemble: Top each crispy rice rectangle with about 1 tablespoon of the spicy tuna mixture. Finish six pieces with black tobiko and a scatter of white sesame seeds, six pieces with red tobiko and microgreens, and six pieces with green wasabi tobiko. I used the 2.16 × 1.4-inch rectangle cookie cutter as a mold to hold the tuna in place for the topping of each piece.
Notes
Makes 18 pieces total - 6 each of black tobiko, red tobiko, and green wasabi tobiko.
I plated it as shared appetizers for six people - two people to a plate - three plates.