Abalone Inari

I don’t really go on Inari that much to be honest. I find that most Inari that’s available to the general public comes out of a display case at a sushi stall in a shopping centre and are just super sweet and typically topped with some unnaturally green gelatinous seaweed or frozen prawns that went for a swim in some dessert custard. I set out to make my own inari because I wanted to experience the real deal. You know?
Not only this, but living in Tasmania and being a diver, I was always confronted with the problem of having a glut of Abalone and not knowing what to do with it. (What a fucking tragedy right?)
Anyway, I managed to pull these out of my arse and they quickly became a dinner party favourite among my friend group. I even took them along to my partner at the time’s “Meet the family” family dinner - Risky move taking a foreign food into a house of people that you don’t know. Tasmanian’s are either one of two types of people - adventurous or “Can’t we just have sausages on mash?”
Thankfully they weren’t decedents of the latter. Lol
I’m waffling on. Here’s the recipe.

Here’s what you’ll need.

2 Whole abalone
Kewpie Mayo
Gochujang
Sesame Oil
Toasted sesame seeds
Spring onions - Diced
Lemon
Sushi rice
Japanese rice seasoning
Furikake - (The bonito one is my fav)
Inari pockets - You can find all of the above at your local Asian grocer - If you can’t find stuff just ask them!

How to -

Rice

1. Cook your rice, as per the instructions

2. Once cooked, season with rice seasoning and sesame oil and set aside to cool

Abalone

1. Take your fresh abalone and pop them whole into a simmering steamer for 2 hours

2. Once cooked, wrap in glad wrap and place in the fridge - the glad wrap prevent moisture evaporating from the abalone.
3. Once cool, take the abs out of the shell and trim the liver, guts, mouth and skirt from the body.

4. Cut the ab into small cubes - 5mm in size

5. Place into a bowl and incorporate with
1 tbsp Gochujang
1 tbsp Sesame oil
1/2 Lemon - juiced
Diced spring onions
3 Tbsp sesame seeds
A generous squirt of kewpie mayo

6. Reserve in the fridge

To Construct -

1. Open the inari pockets gently and then fill half way with your cool rice - gently push the base against the bench to create a flat shapes base
2. Top with your abalone filling
3. Garnish with fresh spring onions and a sprinkling furikake