Sushi Modoki
The Japanese Art and Craft of Vegan Sushi
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
An acclaimed Japanese vegan chef presents an innovative collection of recipes and techniques for making sushi, nigiri, rolls and more—all without meat.
Sushi is perhaps the most iconic Japanese food. But as any vegan or vegetarian knows, there’s only so many cucumber rolls a person can eat. Enter chef iina with her unique, all-vegan re-creations of classic sushi rolls and bites. She calls them Sushi Modoki—“modoki” being Japanese for “mimic.”
In iina’s hands, tomatoes transform into “fatty tuna,” mushrooms into “scallops,” and carrots into “salmon”—with mind-boggling, irresistibly delicious results. Clear, step-by-step instructions show you how to make five different styles of sushi with all-natural, whole ingredients—and assemble elegant plates bursting with color and crunch: Nigiri: “fish” over riceMaki: sushi rollsChirashi: scattered sushi bowlsInari: fried tofu stuffed with “fish” and riceOshi: pressed sushi Plus, you’ll find the full range of traditional sides: salads, soups, sauces, pickled vegetables, and hot and cold drinks. Sushi Modoki is the ultimate guide to becoming a vegan sushi master—with more than 50 recipes to “wow” vegans and sushi-lovers alike.
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In this concise manual, iina, who hosts cooking classes in Tokyo, instructs readers in the craft of vegan sushi, leaning on various vegetable preparations to visually evoke a variety of sliced fish. Skinned boiled pepper stands in for rich tuna, while steamed, seasoned eggplant takes the place of eel. Her recipes are clever, but often the sleight of hand falters: konnyaku, a firm, flavorless jelly, plays the roles of both squid and shrimp to ill effect. A wan impression of uni, the roe of sea urchin, reveals the limits of pure imitation, as a mixture of kabocha squash, carrot, and sake lees (the leftover from sake fermentation) can deceive the eyes but not the palate. While iina finds her footing in commonplace vegan recipes like inarizushi, bundles of rice in a sweet fried tofu skin, she often stumbles when she strays too far from tradition. One recipe needlessly replaces rice with cauliflower, and another marries kiwi, asparagus, and tofu cream cheese in a rice paper wrap. Beyond the delight of visually appealing dishes, home cooks will likely find little satisfaction here.
