Don't Be Afraid To Try Unique Flavors In Your Homemade Sushi

Japanese cuisine can be a true art-form and practice in tasteful minimalism. Sushi chefs in particular take great care in assembling dainty, bite-sized masterpieces with only a handful of ingredients. Sushi rice is the perfect blank canvas for a vibrantly colored cut of fish for nigiri. Nori wraps around rice to create an edible frame for a rainbow of thinly chopped vegetables in sushi rolls. While the beauty of great sushi lies in the simplicity and quality of its ingredients, don't be afraid to think outside the box to personalise your dish. We consulted world-renowned celebrity chef and restaurateur Masaharu Morimoto at the Flavors of the Open presented by DOBEL food festival for tips to help guide you through some easy upgrades for homemade sushi.

Morimoto is a Japanese and American Iron chef who's well-versed in the art of sushi-making and an expert on food presentation. The chef acknowledges the importance of letting the quality of the ingredients speak for themselves, saying, "Traditional sushi relies mostly on the natural flavors of its ingredients." So, instead of piling extra ingredients onto the rolls themselves, chef Morimoto recommends finding creative expression in their accompaniments.

He says, "There are a few seasonings that can add interesting twists to your dipping sauce." Soy sauce and wasabi paste are the most common condiments that provide extra umami and a spicy complement. But chef Morimoto suggests that you "try adding a light touch of yuzu juice or even truffle oil for a unique sushi experience."

Truffle oil and yuzu offer earthy and tangy flavors respectively to enhance the oceanic umami of fish and nori. A light drizzle of each ingredient is all you need for a flavor upgrade that won't change the minimalist aesthetic or melt-in-your-mouth texture of sushi. However you can add a trifecta of flavor, texture, and color to homemade sushi with numerous other ingredients.

Yuzu is an important part of Japanese cuisine, its juice often found in bottled soy dipping sauce. But you can also use its colorful zest to adorn sushi for an even more intense flavor and pop of color. A sprinkling of fresh herbs like cilantro, dill, sweet basil, or chives will bring unique herbal flavors and deep green speckling to contrast the white rice. Flavored salts like smoked salt, truffle salt, or porcini salt will all enhance umami notes, too. Furikake is a multi-ingredient Japanese seasoning that features all the salty, fermented, and oceanic flavors sushi contains, making it the perfect sushi garnish.

Toasted sesame seeds are another easy garnish with a robust nutty taste and a subtle crunch. Diced pickled jalapeño and radish would give a sushi roll crunch and a tangy, spicy element. If you want to stick to playing around with dipping sauces, you could blend a hot sauce like sriracha with mayonnaise for a spicy and creamy pairing. A blend of miso, honey, and ginger powder would also be a sweet and savory complement for fish.