Life
It's International Sushi Day, So Celebrate With These Ultimate Next-Level Sushi Fusion Ideas
It seems like almost every day has been dedicated to a particular food or beverage. June alone features celebrations for frozen yogurt, doughnuts, lobster, gin, and many others. If you didn't have it circled on your calendar already, June 18 marks the sixth annual International Sushi Day! To celebrate, I've compiled a comprehensive list of the most creative dishes for celebrating the occasion, as well as for Instagramming. So grab your tiny bottles of Sriracha, because we're about to take a culinary adventure into the deliciously fresh and delightfully spicy world of sushi fusion.
(I'm officially starving!)
Image: YO! Sushi
The Sushi Burrito
The sushi burrito is a west coast dietary staple. This revelation in the consumption of raw fish was created in San Francisco by Sushirrito founder and food genius Peter Yen in 2008. Seven years later, the sushi burrito has exploded in popularity, and is now available from dozens of trucks and brick and mortars up and down the California coast. But don’t worry, New Yorkers, starting June 18, you can indulge as well, because Uma Temakeria is adding its own sushi burrito to its menu, and they deliver.
Chefs that would like to make sushi burritos at home can find a recipe on The Kitchn.
Image: Fotolia
Sushi Pizza
Sushi and pizza, east and west — they shared a taxi, and then they got together on the kitchen counter. Inspired by a food blog challenge to put her own personal spin on pizza, “defined as having a solid base, a sauce and at least one topping,” Liren Baker of Kitchen Confidante came up with this perfect union. Roll on over to Kitchen Confidante to find out how to create these sushizzas for dinner tonight!
Image: Liren Baker/Kitchen Confidante
California Roll Burger
Heads up Angelenos, if you find yourself near Venice today (or ever), pop into 26 Beach for Chef Katsu’s Original California Roll Sushi Burger. It’s a half-pound of Angus beef topped with snow crab and basically every sushi garnish ever. Everyone else, put this place in your Yelp bookmarks for your next trip to L.A., because this thing isn’t on any other menu in the country.
California Roll Nachos
Another DIY creation, this time from I Am A Food Blog, this is the second marriage of Mexican and Japanese cuisine. This is one of those recipes that you see and think, “I have no idea why I never thought of this,” because it is absolutely brilliant in its simplicity. I would only recommend one tweak to this winner: change “Sriracha, if desired” to “pretty much empty the bottle of Sriracha on top, because obviously.”
Image: I Am A Food Blog
Mac & Cheese Sushi Roll
So there’s not really any fish in this one, but are you serious?! The Food In My Beard did not just go there with mac & cheese mock sushi rolls made with taco meat and Sriracha. If you’ve ever met me, you’ll recall my deep and lasting relationship with macaroni and cheese. For further reading, check out the cookbook from Food In My Beard creator Dan Whalen.
This dish could also be adapted to be vegetarian by substituting soyrizo or Trader Joe’s beef-less ground beef in the center of the roll.
Image: Food In My Beard
The J Dog at YO! Sushi
YO! Sushi is a big, huge deal in Europe, and they recently introduced a limited edition sushi-inspired hot dog made from Japanese pork arabiki sausage. This is another fish-free option for sushi lovers who happen to be pregnant on International Sushi Day (is there any other reason not to eat sushi?).
To keep the celebration rolling all year, YO! Sushi will feature a different Japanese fusion dish each month as a part of its aptly named YOLO campaign.
YO! Sushi has two locations in the United States, in New Jersey and Sarasota, Florida.
Image: YO! Sushi
