lox bowl

Ingredients:

For the sushi zu:

¼ cup rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

For the chili mayo:

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

½ teaspoon Sriracha

¼ teaspoon rice vinegar

For serving:

¾ cup short-grain rice

4-6 ounces store-bought lox, thinly sliced

1 small avocado, halved, peeled and thinly sliced

½ small Persian cucumber, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

2 tablespoons quick pickles

½ cup packed cilantro leaves and tender stems

2 small scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced on the bias

2 tablespoons fresh salmon roe, optional but well worth it

½ cup seaweed salad

Directions:

Prepare the sushi zu: 

Combine the vinegar, sugar, salt in a small plastic container. Stir to combine, put a lid on it, then let sit at room temperature before using. (The mixture mellows with time and is best prepared a few hours in advance. It will keep in the refrigerator for several months.)

Prepare the chili mayo:

In a small bowl, stir together the mayo, Sriracha and vinegar. Place in a small Ziploc bag. Seal and refrigerate until ready to use.

Prepare the rice: 

Rinse the rice in a fine mesh strainer until the water runs clear. Drain the rice and transfer to a medium pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add 1 cup water, cover with the lid, and bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and cook for exactly 10 minutes. Turn the heat off, but do not remove the lid. Let sit, covered, for 10 minutes. (Alternately, cook the rice in a rice cooker according to manufacturer’s instructions.)

Meanwhile prep all of the garnishes.

As soon as the rice is cooked, remove the lid and pour the 2 ½ tablespoons sushi zu on top. Using a rice paddle or the back of a wooden spoon, gently break up the rice with a

cutting and folding motion, delicately coating the grains of rice with sushi zu.

Divide the rice evenly among two shallow bowls. Cover the rice with an even layer of lox. 

Trim the corner of the Ziploc bag with the chili mayo. Pipe the sauce over the lox.

Arrange the selected garnishes in clockwise clusters: First, the avocado, then the seaweed salad. Followed by the cucumbers and pickles. Sprinkle the cilantro around the rim, and place the scallions in the center. Set the salmon roe (if using) in a nice mound next to

the scallions.

Serves 2