Makes 10-12 pieces



Meat is rarely used in sushi but this sweet, dry-cooked minced meat goes well with vinegared rice. It can be eaten as it is, or use it as a stuffing for squid and serve as an unusual party canapé. If you don’t like to use meat, just use the squid flaps and tentacles in the sumeshi mixture, but reduce the cooking juice accordingly.

INGREDIENTS:
2 medium squid, cleaned
3 tablespoons sake
2-3 tablespoons Japanese rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon mirin or sweet sherry
2 tablespoons Japanese soy sauce (shoyu)
50 g minced chicken or beef
2 cm fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2/3 quantity vinegared rice (sumeshi)
Pickled ginger, to serve

HOW TO MAKE:
1. Peel the outer skin off the squid. It comes off easily if you hold the two flaps together and peel down the body. Put the 2 main bodies in a saucepan, add 1 tablespoon sake, cover with boiling water an simmer for 1-2 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain, rub the surface with a damp cloth to remove any marks, then sprinkle with the rice vinegar all over to retain the whiteness. Chop the flaps and tentacles.
2. Put the remaining sake, the sugar, mirin and soy sauce in a saucepan, mix and bring to the boil over moderate heat. Add the minced chicken of beef, the chopped squid flaps and tentacles and the chopped ginger, then stir vigorously with a fork until the meat turns white. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked meat to another bowl, leaving the juice in the saucepan. Boil the juice over high heat for 1-2 minutes until thickened. Stir the meat back into saucepan to absorb the juice and remove from heat.
3. Make the vinegared rice (sumeshi) and while still warm fold in the dry-cooked meat. Tightly stuff each squid body with half the rice mixture and, using a sharp knife, slice crossways into 5-6 pieces.
4. Arrange on plates and serve with pickled ginger.