Jiro dreams of sushi, but we dream of GIANT sushi.
Walking into Costco is like walking into a new and exciting world, especially for Japanese customers, who are used to small displays and even smaller serving sizes at the local supermarket.
So when our Japanese-language reporter Ayaka went on a shopping expedition to the wholesale warehouse here in Japan, her eyes opened as wide as the aisles in front of her as she took in the enormous array of oversized products available.
It was like nothing she’d ever seen before, and the unusual sight instantly jogged her memory to a time in her childhood when she harboured a dream of one day eating a giant piece of sushi. Wondering if this might just be the store to help her achieve her wildest dreams, Ayaka headed over to the seafood section to cast her eyes over the fresh produce, and it wasn’t long before she saw what she would be taking home with her: a giant piece of salmon that weighed over a kilogram.
▼ In fact, this gorgeous slab of salmon weighed in at 1,262 grams (2.64 pounds), and cost a total of 4,770 yen (US$43.91) including tax.
For an Atlantic salmon fillet from Norway, this was the biggest bargain Ayaka had ever seen. Chuffed with her purchase, she lugged it home like a proud fisherwoman and got started on the next step in her sushi preparation, by cooking up a giant potful of rice.
This was shaping up to be a simple feast in terms of prep, but one thing that tripped her up was figuring out how much rice would suit the proportions of her giant salmon topping. After thinking about it, she decided to play it safe by making 1,230 grams of rice to match the weight of the salmon.
Once that was done, she hunted around in her kitchen for some sushi rice vinegar, but after not being able to find any, she mixed some black vinegar through the rice instead, which worked nicely.
▼ Once she’d shaped it into a mound with a rice scoop, the sushi rice was ready for its neta topping.
Ayaka lifted the salmon out of its tray and placed it carefully on the rice. For a second, she became worried that the whole thing would collapse under the weight of the fish, but the kilo of rice was firm. Standing back to admire her creation, Ayaka placed a regular piece of sushi next to the giant one to really show the difference in size.
▼ From the top, the giant sushi made the regular-sized one look tiny.
To get a greater grasp of the size comparison, Ayaka brought out the kitchen scales. The smaller sushi weighed in at 25 grams, and while the scales didn’t go high enough to measure the big one, doing the math shows that 1,230 grams of rice plus 1,262 grams of salmon would make for a 2,492-gram piece of sushi.
▼ Weighing in at 2.5 kilograms (5.5 pounds), this giant sushi is 100 times bigger than a regular one.
This heavyweight champion of the sushi world was the giant sushi of Ayaka’s dreams. Now all she had to do was lift it to her mouth for a giant bite.
Grabbing it with both hands, she tried several times to raise the whole thing to her quivering lips, but no matter how hard she tried, this giant beauty just wouldn’t budge.
Fragile because of its size and weight, the sushi threatened to break apart with every attempt, so in a very unorthodox move, Ayaka got out a knife and fork to cut the giant in two.
It felt strange to cut into sushi like a cake, but Ayaka actually wanted to do more than just gaze at its beauty — she wanted to taste this beautiful beast as well. However, cutting into it made the structure less stable, and the sushi rice began crumbling under the weight of the fish.
Although the piece now didn’t look as beautiful as it did when it was first made, Ayaka became more interested in its taste, and when she finally got a chunk of giant salmon and sushi in her mouth, she closed her eyes in delight. It was smooth, creamy and delicious.
It was so good that any concerns Ayaka had about not being able to finish the super-large sushi quickly disappeared. She divided the giant piece between herself and another family member, and in two different meals throughout the day, they’d finished the entire thing.
Ayaka highly recommends trying this giant sushi recipe for yourself next time you have a large piece of fresh fish in your hands, but just make sure you have enough people with you to finish every piece of your masterpiece. Because as we all know, leaving rice behind after eating sushi is a giant taboo in Japan.
Photos: ©SoraNews24
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