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Sushi cake.

Sushi Cake

Sushi Cakes are whole savory cakes made from sushi rice layered with a variety of sashimi and everything from ikura to avocado, shiso leaves, and cucumbers. It's beautiful, fun, and delicious!
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Prep Time: 1 hour
Servings: 8 people
Author: Kathy

Ingredients

Sushi Rice

  • 6 cups fresh cooked rice (2 cups uncooked rice = 6 cups cooked rice) ideally Japanese short grain rice
  • ½ cup sushi vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon salt

Sushi Cake

  • 2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
  • 10 shiso leaves
  • 1 Japanese cucumber or any other seedless cucumber
  • 1 avocado
  • ½ pound imitation crab salad
  • ½ pound ahi poke
  • ¼ pound ikura
  • ½ pound scallop sashimi
  • ½ pound salmon sashimi
  • ½ pound ahi sashimi
  • ½ pound chutoro sashimi

Instructions

  • Prepare the rice:
    Once the rice is done cooking in the rice cooker, open the rice cooker and gently fluff the rice. Let cool for 5 minutes.
    During those 5 minutes, mix the sushi vinegar, sugar, and salt together until dissolved. Then pour the mixture over the warm rice and gently mix with a rice paddle. Set aside and let cool while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
  • Prepare the fish and seafood:
    Slice the scallops and set aside. Then slice the ahi, salmon, and chutoro. Place everything on a plate. Cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.
  • Prepare the ahi poke and imitation crab salad (store bought):
    Poke and crab salad usually come in large pieces/chunks but because we are going to spread this over the rice layers, we want it in smaller pieces. Use a knife and finely chop the poke and salad, then set aside.
  • Prepare the shiso, cucumber, and avocado:
    Wash and pat dry the shiso leaves. Thinly slice the cucumber.
    You can also slice the avocado at this time, but now I like to do that last minute (right before I place the avocado on the sushi cake) to keep the avocado extra fresh and green.
  • Time to assemble the sushi cake! Prepare the pan:
    Wash and dry any 8-inch pan. Use large piece of plastic wrap to cover the interior of the pan. Make sure to use a large enough piece of plastic wrap so that it hangs over the sides of the pan - this will make it easier to remove later.
  • Add rice layer 1:
    Use a rice paddle to scoop about a third of the rice. Gently pat it into the pan. You don't want to smash the rice into the pan, but you also want the rice to be pressed down firmly enough so that it doesn't fall apart later. This first layer will become the "top" of the sushi cake when we flip it over layer so you want to make it nice and even.
  • Add the ahi poke layer:
    Use a spoon to add all the ahi poke in a single and even layer. I don't spread all the way to the very edge because I like to leave the edges "clean." It looks nicer from a side view when serving the finished sushi cake.
  • Add rice layer 2: Add a second layer of rice.
  • Add the imitation crab salad layer:
    Use a spoon to add all the imitation crab salad in a single and even layer.
  • Add rice layer 3: Add a third layer of rice.
  • Press and flip:
    You should have enough layers to reach the top of the pan (I often go over the top of the pan little but it's ok). Use the rice paddle to give everything a gentle firm pat (we don't want things falling apart).
    Then place a large serving plate on top of the pan. Slowly flip it over and remove the pan. Then remove the plastic wrap. Now you have completed the foundation of the cake.
  • Add the sesame seeds:
    Use your hands to lightly press the sesame seeds around the sides of the sushi cake. You can use as little or as much as you like. White sesame seeds are the default, but if you have black sesame seeds it's fun to mix both colors.
  • Add the cucumber layer: Cover the surface of the sushi cake with a layer of sliced cucumbers.
  • Add the sashimi:
    Now this part is really up to your own "style." But I will tell you how I like to do it. First I take one shiso leaf and place it on top of the cucumber layer. Then add 3-5 slices of ahi sashimi on top of the shiso.
    Then I take a second shiso leaf and repeat with the salmon. Then repeat again with the chutoro.
    Keep repeating the shiso plus three fish until you form a full ring around the edge of the sushi cake. Leave the center part open so that you can place the avocado/scallop/ikura crown in the middle.
  • Make the center sashimi "crown":
    Thinly slice the avocado and form a crown. Place it in the middle. Then layer in the sliced scallop sashimi. Then top with the ikura. You want enough ikura so that the orange really pops (the more ikura, the merrier!) But you don't want to cover the beautiful scallops, so arrange accordingly.
  • The sushi cake is ready to serve! ^_^
  • Here are tips on how to serve the cake:
    Remove the top (aka "frosting") layer of the sushi cake and place it on a plate. This includes all the sashimi, shiso leaves, avocado, ikura, etc.
    Then slice the cake into however many pieces you want. I cut the 8-inch cake into 8 pieces. Plate each cake slice. Then place a shiso leaf followed by a couple slices of each sashimi type on top of the cake slice. Place some of the avocado, scallop, and ikura on the side, right next to the cake slice.
    Serve with a small dipping dish of soy sauce and wasabi on the side. Eat (with chopsticks) and enjoy. We LOVE sushi cake.

Notes

Note: The ingredients call for more sashimi and rice than you may actually use. I always overestimate for sushi cake in case you decide you use a larger pan to assemble the cake (I used an 8-inch pan, but 9-inch pans seem to be more common). Or in case you want to make an extra mini cake or have extra rice and sashimi to eat on the side. It's always a good idea to have extra ingredients when it comes to sushi cake ^_^