Chicken Teriyaki & Avocado Sushi

Makes 40-50 pieces of sushi

---

If anyone reading this lives in New Zealand, you'll prooobably know about St. Pierres Sushi. It's pretty much a takeaway sushi chain, nice and westernised for us peasant-folk. Cultural tarnishing aside, the sushi is really fricken delicious, and I say this fully knowing I have only EVER had the double avocado, chicken teriyaki sushi...nothing else. I've had it multiple times in my life and still, it's all I'll ever get. So, because I like to challenge myself to make my favourite takeaway or restaurant foods at home, I decided to give this one a whirl.

It's pretty bang on...

If you're looking for a close replica, look no further. These are morsels of heaven and will hit the sushi-spot. Go on...you know you want to.

PRO TIPS

• Make sure to line up the seaweed and the sushi mat correctly. There is a pretty clear grain on the seaweed that will show you which way to roll it.

• You could easily make this recipe without chicken if you are vegetarian, or substitute the chicken for another protein.

• The teriyaki sauce can sometimes make a lot more than necessary depending on the size of your chicken breasts, so be sparing with it and save some for another meal!

• DO NOT OVERSTUFF THE SEAWEED. Be conservative with your use of ingredients in each roll, a little goes a long way.

Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 chicken breasts

• 1 teaspoon of rice bran oil or canola oil

• 1/4 cup of honey

• 1/2 cup of soy sauce or coconut aminos

• 4 cloves of garlic, crushed

• 3 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar (also known as rice vinegar)

• 1 tablespoon of sesame oil

• 2 avocados, sliced lengthways

• 2 cucumbers, julienned

• 2 red bell peppers, julienned

• 2 cups of sushi rice, cooked according to packet instructions

• 6 sheets of seaweed

• Sushi mat (optional)

• Soy sauce (for serving)

• Pickled ginger (for serving)

• Wasabi (for serving)

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 220℃.

2. Using a rolling pin or meat tenderiser, bash down your chicken breasts until they are about 2cm thick and the same thickness all the way through.

3. Brush your oil over the chicken breast and place it in the oven for 14-18 minutes or until fully cooked through.

4. Whilst the chicken is baking, make your teriyaki sauce by whisking together your honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, and crushed garlic.

5. Place a frying pan over a medium-high heat and pour in the teriyaki sauce. Continually whisk the sauce for 3-5 minutes until slightly thickened up. Remove from the heat.

6. Once the chicken is out of the oven, use two forks to shred it as fine as you can get it (some larger pieces is absolutely fine).

7. Pour the teriyaki sauce over the shredded chicken and let it sit whilst you prepare the rest of your ingredients. When you're ready to use the chicken, drain any excess sauce that the chicken didn't soak up.

8. Mix 2 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar into your sushi rice (make sure the rice has cooled down before using it)

9. Place one piece of seaweed onto your sushi mat. Take about 5 tablespoons of rice and spread it thinly over the entire sheet. Then lay down, in a line, a few tablespoons of chicken, a few pieces of avocado, bell pepper, and cucumber on top of the rice. You'll want to line the ingredients up WITH the grain of the seaweed and therefore with the grain of the sushi mat - and be sparing with them. My best advice for doing this is to place the line of ingredients just off centre.

10. Then roll your sushi tightly with the sushi mat (best way to figure out how to do this is either following the packet instructions or youtube!!). You should now have a log of sushi.

11. Using a sharp knife, slice your sushi into even-sized pieces.

12. Serve with soy sauce, pickled ginger, and wasabi.

13. ENJOY!!

Stay Salty,

Romy xx