
Recipe Highlights
Chirashi Sushi at all times jogs my memory of celebrations in Japan. It has a fragile stability of tangy and candy flavors that feels festive and comforting on the identical time. We loved it for Hinamatsuri (Lady’s Day), Youngsters’s Day, and different joyful household gatherings.
My mother, who’s from Osaka, known as it barazushi. She taught me learn how to gently fold seasoned greens into the rice earlier than arranging colourful toppings. Many elements might be ready forward, which makes this dish excellent for entertaining.
- A festive dish for Hinamatsuri, Youngsters’s Day, or gatherings with household and pals
- Versatile and customizable with easy-to-find veggies, proteins, and toppings
- Stunning presentation with out rolling particular person sushi
- Should you’re brief on time, make Fast & Simple Chirashi Sushi utilizing store-bought combine
Should you get pleasure from sushi dishes, strive my Vegetarian Sushi Rolls and Sushi Rolls (Hosomaki) subsequent!

What’s Chirashi Sushi?
Chirashi sushi (chirashizushi, ちらし寿司) means “scattered sushi.” As a substitute of shaping nigiri or rolls, we unfold a mattress of seasoned sushi rice on a platter and scatter colourful
substances on high—or typically combine them into the rice. It’s probably the most versatile and approachable types of sushi, loved each at residence and in eating places.
In western Japan, particularly the Kansai area, chirashi sushi usually refers to barazushi. On this model, simmered greens, mushrooms, and typically small items of seafood are blended immediately into the rice. A carefully associated time period is gomoku sushi, which implies “five-ingredient sushi,” although it actually simply suggests a wide range of substances. Each are mixed-style sushi and are generally served for celebrations and household gatherings.
Within the Tokyo space, nonetheless, chirashi often means one thing completely different. At sushi eating places, it usually refers to Edo-style chirashi, the place slices of recent sashimi are fantastically organized over sushi rice somewhat than blended in.
Briefly, the distinction comes all the way down to this: Some chirashi sushi mixes the substances into the rice, whereas others rigorously organize recent sashimi on high.

Components for Chirashi Sushi
Sushi Rice
- raw Japanese short-grain white rice + water + kombu (dried kelp)
- rice vinegar, sugar, salt
Chirashi Combine (a store-bought model)
Toppings (extremely advocate for the colourful look)
- shrimp
- eggs for making shredded crepes
- snow peas
- toasted white sesame seeds
- shredded nori seaweed
Non-obligatory Toppings
Discover the printable recipe with measurements beneath.
How one can Make Chirashi Sushi
- Make the chirashi combine. Soak the dried shiitake and slice. Minimize the gobo, rehydrated kanpyo, and carrot. Simmer with dashi, shiitake soaking liquid, sake, mirin, sugar, and soy sauce till a lot of the liquid is absorbed. Cool fully.
- Put together all of the toppings. Prepare dinner skinny egg crepes and slice into wonderful strips. Blanch the snow peas. Broil the unagi and slice. Boil the shrimp till pink, then peel. Make the pickled lotus root (optionally available). Put together the candy vinegar combination and marinate the blanched lotus root and ginger. This may be made forward.
- Prepare dinner and season the rice. Put together the sushi rice following my How one can Make Sushi Rice methodology. Switch the new rice to a hangiri or tray, gently combine within the sushi vinegar, and fan till shiny and cooled.
- Mix the sushi rice and chirashi combine. Squeeze the chirashi combine to take away extra liquid (in any other case the rice will get too soggy) and add them to the cooled sushi rice. Gently mix with the rice paddle utilizing a slicing movement.
- Assemble. Squeeze extra liquid from the vegetable combine and fold it into the sushi rice utilizing a slicing movement. Scatter the shredded egg on high, then deocrate with the lotus root, shrimp, unagi, snow peas, and optionally available toppings. Take pleasure in!






Variations and Customizations
Seeking to change issues up? Attempt these simple and attractive concepts!
- Modify your selfmade chirashi combine. Simplify the sushi rice mix-ins with what’s obtainable—I like to recommend kamaboko and chikuwa fish cake, bamboo shoots, and Inari age.
- Regulate the toppings. Use avocado, blanched inexperienced beans, imitation or actual crab, octopus, tobiko (flying fish roe), or sakura denbu (pink candy codfish).
- Make it vegetarian. Omit the seafood and concentrate on seasoned greens and egg crepe.
- Make chirashi don. Known as Edomae or kaisen chirashi sushi, this chirashi bowl makes use of assorted sashimi (uncooked seafood and fish) as a topping.
- Flip it right into a cake. Press and layer the rice right into a mildew for a festive presentation like Chirashi Sushi Cake.
- Flip into suishi cup. Merely layer every part in cups for a festive and transportable presentation. Excellent for potlucks and events!


What to Serve with Chirashi Sushi
Gentle sides full a Chirashi Sushi meal fantastically.


Storage Ideas
To retailer: To retailer: Retailer in an hermetic container and refrigerate for as much as 3 days. You may also freeze it for as much as 1 month.
FAQs
What’s the distinction between chirashi sushi and a sashimi bowl?
The important thing distinction is the rice. Chirashi sushi makes use of vinegared sushi rice blended with seasoned substances and topped with garnishes. A sashimi bowl makes use of plain steamed rice topped with uncooked fish.
Can I make chirashi sushi forward of time?
Sure. Put together the vegetable combine, egg crepe, and toppings prematurely. Combine and adorn the sushi rice the day you serve for the very best texture and taste.
Is chirashi sushi uncooked?
Conventional celebratory chirashi sushi usually makes use of solely cooked seafood like shrimp and unagi. Some regional variations could embrace sashimi.
What’s chirashi sushi eaten for?
Chirashi sushi is usually served for celebrations corresponding to Hinamatsuri, Youngsters’s Day, and different particular events in Japan.
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Stop your display from going darkish
For the Toppings (Select What You Like)
For the Non-obligatory Pickled Lotus Root
This is the Recreation Plan
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Home made chirashi sushi could look elaborate, but it surely’s actually simply three elements: seasoned sushi rice, a chirashi combine (simmered greens and mushrooms), and colourful toppings.We’ll work in layers. First, make the sushi rice. Subsequent, put together the chirashi combine. Then, get the toppings prepared. Lastly, assemble every part fantastically on a platter. As a result of many steps overlap, the full lively time is about 1 hour—barely longer when you’re newbie.To make it even simpler, some elements might be ready forward. The chirashi combine might be made 1–2 days prematurely. Even the egg crepes might be cooked earlier within the day and sliced simply earlier than assembling. Should you plan on making the optionally available pickled lotus root, I extremely advocate making it forward of time. Collect all of the substances.
To Make the Chirashi Combine
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Soak 4 dried shiitake mushrooms in ½ cup water till they’re hydrated and tender. Then, squeeze the mushrooms and reserve the liquid (this inventory is named shiitake dashi) within the bowl. Minimize off the stems.
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Slice the caps into skinny items. Pressure the shiitake dashi to take away grit and impurities. Reserve shiitake dashi till you’re prepared to make use of it in Step 7.
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Scrape off the brown outer pores and skin from ⅔ gobo (burdock root) with the sting of a knife. Make a crisscross incision on the backside finish (it helps make shaving simpler). Begin at one finish and shave off a small, skinny piece such as you’re shaving a pencil. Rotate the gobo, then shave off one other piece. Proceed to rotate and shave the remainder of the gobo. Soak the reduce items in water to forestall browning. Change the water 1–2 occasions. Drain proper earlier than you begin cooking in Step 7.Nami’s Tip: This gobo shaving method is named sasagaki (learn extra).
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Convey some water to a boil in a small saucepan. In the meantime, shortly rinse 0.8 oz dried kanpyo (gourd strips) in operating water and drain. Rub the kanpyo with 1 tsp kosher salt. Rinse and drain properly.
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Prepare dinner the kanpyo in boiling water for 3 minutes. Switch to a bowl of iced water to cease the cooking. Then, squeeze the water out.
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Minimize the kanpyo into small items. Subsequent, reduce ½ carrot into julienned strips.
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Within the empty medium saucepan, add the shiitake mushrooms, gobo, and kanpyo. Maintain the carrot apart for now. Add 1¼ cups dashi (Japanese soup inventory), the reserved shiitake dashi, ¼ cup sake, 3 Tbsp mirin, 1 Tbsp sugar, and 2 Tbsp soy sauce. Convey it to a simmer on medium warmth.
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Skim off the froth and scum from the floor of the cooking liquid. Decrease the warmth to a delicate simmer and place an otoshibuta (drop lid) immediately on high of the greens.Nami’s Tip: The drop lid helps preserve substances submerged and permits the flavorful cooking liquid to flow into evenly. To make one with aluminum foil, observe my tutorial.
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Add the carrot whereas there may be nonetheless some liquid within the pot, however towards the top of cooking so it would not overcook and get mushy. Place the otoshibuta on high and proceed simmering till the liquid is sort of gone. The overall cooking time needs to be about 20–25 minutes. Switch the chirashi combine to a plate to chill fully. If there’s any cooking liquid left, it can save you a small quantity to frivolously season the rice later. Nami’s Tip: You can also make the chirashi combine forward of time and retailer it in an hermetic container within the fridge for as much as 1–2 days.
To Prepare dinner the Sushi Rice
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For detailed, step-by-step directions with pictures, please see my submit How one can Make Sushi Rice. Rinse and wash 2¼ cups raw Japanese short-grain white rice (3 rice cooker cups) 3 occasions and drain properly.
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Switch the rice to the internal pot of a rice cooker and add 2¼ cups water. Place 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) on high. Soak the rice and kombu for 20 minutes, then begin cooking. You could have about 1 hour to arrange the remaining substances whereas the rice cooks.Nami’s Tip: For straightforward measuring, use your rice cooker’s Sushi Rice mode and add water to the road for the variety of rice cups you are cooking. Or, use the White Rice mode and add water to just below that line. Should you don‘t have a rice cooker, see learn how to cook dinner short-grain rice utilizing a pot over the range, Instantaneous Pot, or donabe.
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In the meantime, put together the sushi vinegar seasoning. In a bowl, mix ⅓ cup rice vinegar (unseasoned), 3 Tbsp sugar, and 1½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and blend properly.To assist dissolve the sugar, microwave the combination for about 1 minute or warmth it in a small saucepan over medium-high warmth till the sugar absolutely dissolves. Put aside to chill barely.
To Make the Shredded Egg Crepe
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In a bowl, mix 3 giant eggs (50 g every w/o shell), 1 Tbsp mirin, ¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt, and the slurry (premixed with 1 tsp potato starch or cornstarch and 1 tsp water). Whisk properly. For a silky-smooth texture, pressure the egg combination by means of a fine-mesh sieve.
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Warmth a big nonstick frying pan on medium warmth. When it is scorching, grease it with a paper towel dipped in 2 tsp impartial oil and wipe off the surplus oil. Now, scale back to medium-low warmth. Then, pour simply sufficient egg combination to cowl the floor of the frying pan.
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Tilt the pan to unfold the egg combination into a skinny, even layer, then cowl with a lid. Prepare dinner for about 1 minute. When the floor is now not moist, it is achieved.Switch the cooked egg crepe to a wire rack and let cool fully. Repeat till you’ve got used up all of the egg combination. Nami’s Tip: If the pan will get too scorching, briefly take away it from the warmth or set it on a humid, chilly towel for a number of seconds. This helps cool the pan shortly so the egg doesn’t brown.
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Stack the egg crepes and roll them up tightly. Slice into skinny julienne strips, then gently loosen the strands along with your fingers. Put aside.Nami’s Tip: You can also make the egg crepes earlier within the day. You may also roll them up and freeze for as much as a month. Slice simply earlier than assembling for the very best texture.
To Make the Non-obligatory Pickled Lotus Root
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Mix ½ cup rice vinegar (unseasoned), ⅓ cup sugar, and ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt in a small saucepan. Stir and produce it to a boil to let the sugar dissolved fully. Take away from warmth and funky.
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In the meantime, peel and reduce 1 inch ginger into skinny julienned strips (the thinner, the higher). Peel 2 inches lotus root (renkon) and reduce across the edge to make a flower form (for detailed directions and pictures, learn How one can Make Hana Renkon).
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Minimize the lotus root into ⅛-inch (3-mm) slices. Soak in vinegared water (add 1 tsp rice vinegar to a bowl of water) for five minutes to maintain it from turning brown.
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Boil water in a small saucepan. Blanch the ginger and lotus root for 3 minutes. Drain properly and switch them to the cooled vinegar combination to marinate. Nami’s Tip: You can also make the pickled lotus root prematurely and preserve it within the fridge as much as 1 week.
To Season the Sushi Rice
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Begin this step as soon as you’ve got accomplished all of the earlier steps. When the rice is finished cooking, discard the kombu.
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Switch the new rice to a hangiri (sushi oke) that you have rinsed beneath operating water, drained, and wiped with a towel. You could possibly additionally use a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Unfold out the rice evenly with a rice paddle so it should cool quicker.
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Whereas the rice is scorching, pour the cooled sushi seasoning onto the rice paddle over the rice to evenly distribute it. Gently “slice” the rice with the rice paddle at a 45-degree angle to include the seasoned vinegar and separate the rice chunks. Don’t stir or combine as a result of that will break the grains and make it mushy.
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As you fold, fan the rice to chill it to about physique temperature. Use a paddle fan or an electrical fan. Fanning helps take away extra moisture and provides the rice a stunning shine.
To Assemble the Chirashi Sushi
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Squeeze the chirashi vegetable combine to take away extra liquid (in any other case the rice will get too soggy). Add the greens to the cooled sushi rice and gently mix with the rice paddle utilizing a slicing movement. Nami’s Tip: You’ll be able to at all times add a number of tablespoons of the reserved liquid to season the rice when you‘d like (I don‘t often do it).
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Collect all of the toppings you’ve ready.
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Scatter the shredded egg crepe on high of the sushi rice. Then, add the toppings within the following order: Lotus root, shrimp, unagi, snow peas, 4 Tbsp ikura (salmon roe), ½ Tbsp toasted white sesame seeds, and 2 Tbsp shredded nori seaweed within the heart. Take pleasure in!
- Raw Japanese short-grain white rice: 540 ml; yields 6⅔ cups or 990 g of cooked rice
- Unagi: about 5.6 oz (160 g) per fillet
Energy: 419kcal, Carbohydrates: 75g, Protein: 12g, Fats: 5g, Saturated Fats: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fats: 1g, Monounsaturated Fats: 2g, Trans Fats: 0.02g, Ldl cholesterol: 114mg, Sodium: 446mg, Potassium: 242mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 10g, Vitamin A: 1138IU, Vitamin C: 3mg, Calcium: 81mg, Iron: 1mg
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Editor’s Observe: This submit was initially printed on March 9, 2017. It was up to date on March 11, 2024, and republished with extra useful info on February 24, 2026.