Avocado Sushi

Ingredients

• 2 cups sushi rice
• 1 cup wild rice / black rice
• 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 4–5 nori sheets, halved
• 2–3 just-ripe avocados, sliced
• 1 cucumber, sliced into thin strips
• 2 carrots, sliced into thin strips

You'll also need

• 2¼ cups (560 ml) cold water, for cooking the sushi rice
• Soy sauce, to serve
• Pickled ginger, to serve
• Wasabi, to serve (optional)

Method

1. Bring a medium pot of water to the boil, add the wild or black rice and simmer uncovered until tender but still a little chewy, about 30 minutes for black rice or 45 for wild rice. Drain well and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, rinse the sushi rice in a sieve under cold running water until the water runs almost clear, then put it in a heavy-based pot with the 2¼ cups of water. Bring to the boil, cover, turn the heat to its lowest setting and cook for 12 minutes, then take off the heat and leave to steam with the lid on for 10 minutes.
3. Stir the rice wine vinegar, salt and sugar together until dissolved. Tip the sushi rice into a wide bowl, add the vinegar mix and the drained wild or black rice, fold gently with a wet spatula, then cover with a damp tea towel and leave to cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes.
4. While the rice cools, halve, stone and peel the avocados and slice into long strips about 1 cm thick. Cut the cucumber and carrots into thin matchsticks roughly the length of a half-sheet of nori.
5. Cover a bamboo sushi mat (or a clean tea towel) with cling film and lay a half-sheet of nori on it, shiny side down. With wet hands, spread ¾–1 cup of rice evenly over the nori right to the edges, then flip the sheet over so the rice is underneath.
6. Lay a few strips of avocado, cucumber and carrot along the edge closest to you. Lift the mat and roll away from you, tucking the filling in tightly and pressing gently along the roll to firm it up.
7. Repeat with the remaining nori, rice and fillings. Slice each roll into 6–8 pieces with a sharp knife, wiping the blade with a damp cloth between cuts, and serve with soy sauce, pickled ginger and wasabi.

Grower's tip

For sushi you want avos that are just ripe: they give slightly when pressed near the stem but still feel firm overall, so they slice cleanly and hold their shape when you roll. Save the softer ones for guacamole.

Shop the ingredients: 12 Medium Avocados. Medium avos slice into neat strips that suit a half-sheet of nori, and the rest of the box sees you through the week.