Football Sushi & Temari Bombs
いなり寿司と手まり寿司·(inarizushi to temarizushi)
Weekend Teppan & Hot Pots
If you grew up in a Japanese-American household, you didn't call them inarizushi; you called them football sushi. They were the chubby, umami-soaked tofu pockets that anchored every New Year's potluck. Beside them belong Temari bombs, jewel-like Kyoto spheres originally engineered so geishas could eat without smudging their lipstick. Both are spectacular accompaniments for a weekend hot pot because they can be made entirely in advance. The secret to the footballs is a technique called aburanuki, boiling the excess oil from the tofu pockets so they become sponges for a sweet soy broth. The Temari rely on a decidedly unglamorous grandma trick: standard plastic wrap.
Before you start
Mix the dashi.
If you are using instant dashi powder instead of homemade stock, simply dissolve one teaspoon of powder into one and a half cups of warm water.
Ingredients
- Japanese short-grain sushi rice2 cup
- water1 7/8 cup
- rice vinegar4 tbsp
- white sugar1 1/2 tbsp
- kosher salt1 tsp
- abura-age8 med
- dashi1 1/2 cup
- soy sauce4 tbsp
- brown sugar4 tbsp
- mirin2 tbsp
- smoked salmon4 small
- prosciutto4 small
- cucumber1 small
- assorted garnishes1 tbsp
Method
- 01
Cook the rice with slightly less water than usual.
Cook the short-grain rice using a little less water than standard to ensure it can absorb the vinegar later without turning mushy.
- 02
Fold the vinegar mixture into the hot rice.
Dissolve the rice vinegar, white sugar, and salt together, then pour over the cooked rice in a wide bowl, folding gently with a slicing motion while fanning it to room temperature.
- 03
Extract the oil from the tofu pockets.
Boil the halved abura-age in a pot of water for three minutes to purge their oxidized frying oil, then drain, rinse with cold water, and squeeze out the excess moisture like a delicate sponge.
- 04
Simmer the pockets in the savory broth.
In a wide pan, combine the dashi, soy sauce, brown sugar, and mirin, add the tofu pockets, and simmer on medium-low for twenty minutes until the liquid is almost entirely absorbed.
- 05
Cool the pockets entirely in the pan.
Turn off the heat and let the pockets cool completely in the residual syrup, which is the exact moment they actually absorb their deep flavor.
- 06
Stuff the footballs with seasoned rice.
Gently squeeze any dripping broth from the cooled pockets, then tuck about three tablespoons of sushi rice into the corners of each to form a chubby football shape.
- 07
Shape the Temari bombs using plastic wrap.
Lay a six-inch square of plastic wrap on the counter, place a garnish and a piece of salmon, prosciutto, or cucumber face down in the center, and add one heaping tablespoon of sushi rice.
- 08
Twist the wrap to compress the sphere.
Pull the corners of the plastic wrap together and twist tightly right above the rice to form a seamless, perfectly round ball, leaving them wrapped until ready to serve.
Notes
Prepare the Temari toppings properly.
The trick to a perfect Temari bomb is pliability. Stiff cuts of fish or vegetables will pop off the rice, which is why cucumbers must be salted to soften and proteins must be sliced extremely thin.
From Cook Japanese in America.