Challenge: Part 1 of 3 in Dinner for six for under £30

I promised a dinner party… and here’s the first.

I was initiated into the pleasures of sushi making at a young age (no Japanese heritage; rather, I babysat for a hip foodie family) and make-your-own sushi is one of my favourite party tricks. What’s more, it hits a satisfying note in terms of affordability and impressiveness. Naturally, this makes it a prime candidate for an oola dinner party.

The supplies…

Ingredients for a sushi feast: five of your best girlfriends, and the following:

my most photogenic ingredients -- see full list below

2 packets nori (sheets of dried seaweed)

1 kg bag short-grain sushi rice (I used half brown and half white, cooked separately)

couple of glugs rice wine vinegar

splash olive oil or sesame seed oil

1 bottle soya sauce

1 tube wasabi

1 packet pickled ginger

2 packets assorted Japanese pickles

1 cucumber (or half a large one)

2 avocados

1 bunch spring onions

4 peppers: two red and two yellow

6 carrots

1 packet (supermarket standard size) each mange tout and sugar snap peas

about 2 handfuls cooked prawns

tuna sashimi (a slice the size of a deck of cards = 3 or 4 rolls, so adjust to suit)

2 mangoes

2 boxes Lotte chocolate biscuits

1 sushi mat (cheap to buy, made of skewers and string)

I also bought two bags of frozen edamame but completely forgot to make them up; bit of a sushi fugue. Further, I had two bottles of wine on hand and my guests brought the rest.

I bought all my Japanese-type ingredients (including the sashimi, which was a bit of a splurge at £4.50) and my veg at the Japan Centre, but you should be able to find them at most large supermarkets. If not, the Japan Centre delivers. I bought my prawns, mangoes and wine at a large chain supermarket.

Technical note: do not, do not, do not cost-cut with raw fish. You want to buy ‘sashimi-grade’ fish and you want to use it the day of purchase, if at all possible. Not speaking from experience here, but I would wager it’s better to scrimp on wine and send guests home sulky than it is to scrimp on the swimmy stuff and send them home ill.

Total cost: £20.73 at Japan Centre + £10.82 at grocery store = £31.55

The how-to… sushi and a Japanese-inspired salad

First step is prep. Wash your hands and your prep surfaces, and start to cook your rice. I estimated about 1 cup cooked rice/person, and I had a bit left over. Just cook the rice according to the instructions on the packet, and once done, scrape it into a bowl, splash some rice wine vinegar on it (about 1 teaspoon/cup of cooked rice), stir and let cool.

Meanwhile, the salad: grate your carrots into a bowl, and add in some shredded spring onions (three did it for us), julienned sugar snap peas and mange tout, and a finely-sliced pepper of each colour. Whisk up a dressing of equal parts olive oil (I would have used sesame seed oil but I was all out) and rice wine vinegar, throw in some sea salt and toss it all together: your salad is done and into the fridge.

Technical note: had I had a mandoline slicer, that would have taken my salad from “looks lovely!” to “you vegetable maestro, you”… so if you have one, use it!

Next, the sushi fillings: Slice your cucumber, avocado, remaining peppers and spring onions into the longest, thinnest strips you can, and set them out on plates. Rinse your prawns and set them in a bowl, and thinly-slice your sashimi if it’s not already done.

Final step: set it all out on the table with the pickles, a chopping board, a sharp knife, a couple hand towels and a large bowl of water (for rinsing rice-ified hands).

Rolling the sushi…

Step one: starting position. Lay your sushi mat on a chopping board, skewers horizontal to you. Lay a sheet of nori on top, shiny side down, and spread some rice on top. Leave about a baby finger’s width of paper bare at the end closest you, and spread the rice about 2/3 the way up the nori.

Now lay your choice of fillings along the edge of nori closest you.

Step two: start to roll. Wrap your thumbs round the back of the mat and use your fingers to tuck the fillings into the roll.

Step three: roll over. This is the tricky bit. You want to use the mat as an aide to rolling, but instead of rolling it in with your sushi (not so tasty), roll the back (the shiny side) of the nori that was closest you, into the roll. The back of it should stick to the rice, sealing your roll together.

Step four: wrap it up. Once you’ve rolled until there is no more rice to roll onto, time to trim the excess nori (real sushi chefs don’t need to do this, but we Moolas are the Renaissance People to their Monocuisine Afficionados: a little trim is fine) with your knife or a pair of scissors. Then set that bad boy in front of you and slice it up: into halves, then each half into three or four more slices.

Step five: take a minute to admire your work. Eight rolls of sushi, each (a little im)perfectly formed, and all very delicious. Share with your guests, wash down with soya sauce, wasabi, ginger and wine, and feel rather pleased: you’ve just pulled off a very memorable and tasty dinner party for just over £5/person.

The result…

Some seriously impressed and well-fed guests. Also, rice and salad-type leftovers for a stir-fry dinner the next night.

Tempted to try it? Bon appetit, and tell me how you fare…