I came up with this recipe as a vegetarian alternative to my Trout Tartare recipe.

Pickled Cucumber

Peel the cucumber and cut into 1cm dice using only the flesh and not the seeds. Line a plate or tray with baking parchment, spread the cucumber cubes and sprinkle with sea salt and put in the freezer for an hour or so.. Once frozen, put in a bag and either store in the freezer or use immediately.

To make the pickled cucumber, allow the cucumber to defrost. Whisk the rapeseed oil with white balsamic and white pepper to make a dressing. Add the defrosted cucumber, cover and keep in the fridge until you are ready to use.

Sushi rice

Place the rice in a fine mesh sieve and rinse under cold running water for a couple of minutes until the water runs clear. Tip the rice into a bowl, cover with plenty of water and leave to soak for 30 minutes. Drain. The rice is now ready to use.

Add sushi rice to 175ml of cold water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10 minutes with the lid on. Turn off the heat but leaving the lid on, leave to stand for another 15 minutes. Important: Don’t open the lid during the 15 minutes.

While the rice is cooking, put the vinegar, sugar and salt in a small pan, gently heat whilst whisking to dissolve the sugar and salt. Remove from the heat.

Once the rice is cooked, transfer immediately to a large mixing bowl and drizzle the vinegar mixture over the rice. Use a spatula to gently fold the rice using a slicing and lifting motion so you don’t squash the rice, until the vinegar is evenly mixed through. Keep folding to help the cool the rice. Once cooled, cover the bowl with a damp cloth (the cloth should touch the rice as this will help it stop drying out). Let it cool to room temperature. Just before serving the rice, stir through the furikake seasoning.

Wasabi cream

Mix the wasabi into the créme fraiche add a couple of pinches of salt and a pinch of caster sugar. Keep in the fridge until ready to use.

Avocado

When you’re ready to serve, cut the avocado into 1cm dice and put in a bowl along with the tomatoes. Pour over the lime juice, season well with salt and pepper.

To serve

Place a chefs ring in the centre of a plate. Divide the sushi rice into 4 and press it down in the ring with the back of a spoon. Next top with diced avocado. Remove the rings, arrange the cucumber and a few dots of wasabi cream and an extra sprinkle of furikake. You want to be able to get some wasabi and cucumber in every mouthful.