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Restaurants›Sakana Sushi Bar and Lounge | Japanese›Spider Recipe

Spider Recipe

Name: Sakana Sushi Bar and Lounge | Japaneses Spider Recipe
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: 4 each soft-shell crabs (cleaned); 1 cups all-purpose flour; 0.25 cups cornstarch; 1 tsp fine sea salt; 0.5 tsp black pepper; 1 cups vegetable oil (for shallow frying); 4 each lemon wedges; 2 cups sushi rice (cooked, seasoned); 4 each nori sheets (full size); 1 cups imitation crab or picked crab meat (shredded); 1 each ripe avocado; 0.5 each english cucumber (seeded, cut into long strips); 2 tbs mayonnaise (Japanese/Kewpie preferred); 0.5 tsp sriracha or hot sauce (optional); 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds; 4 tbs unagi (eel) sauce; 0.5 cups crispy tempura flakes or panko crunch; 2 tbs microgreens or scallion (thinly sliced); 0 to taste soy sauce (for serving); 0 to taste pickled ginger (optional, for serving); 0 to taste wasabi (optional)

Inspired by Sakana Sushi Bar and Lounge | Japanese

Time45m

Serves4

soft shell crab, avocado, cucumber, crab, topped with eel sauce and crunch

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Ingredients

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Soft-Shell Crab

4 each soft-shell crabs (cleaned)

1 cups 00 bread flour

1/4 cups Cornstarch

1 tsp fine sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 cups vegetable oil (for shallow frying)

4 each lemon wedges

Roll Filling

2 cups sushi rice (cooked, seasoned)

4 each nori sheets (full size)

1 cups imitation crab or picked crab meat (shredded)

1 each ripe avocado

1/2 each english cucumber (seeded, cut into long strips)

2 tbs mayonnaise (Japanese/Kewpie preferred)

1/2 tsp sriracha or hot sauce (optional)

1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Toppings & Sauces

4 tbs unagi (eel) sauce

1/2 cups crispy tempura flakes or panko crunch

2 tbs microgreens or scallion (thinly sliced)

Assembly/Finish

0 to taste soy sauce (for serving)

0 to taste pickled ginger (optional, for serving)

0 to taste wasabi (optional)

Method

Soft-Shell Crab

Prepare and dry

Rinse cleaned soft-shell crabs under cold water and pat thoroughly dry with paper towels, including inside the body cavity and legs. Trim the mouthparts if present and tuck legs if necessary so crabs hold shape.

Dredge

Combine the all-purpose flour, cornstarch, sea salt, and black pepper in a shallow dish. Lightly coat each crab on all sides in the flour mixture, shaking off excess.

Shallow fry

Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat and add enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom about 1/4 inch (about 3–4 tbsp; reserve remaining oil). When oil is hot (a pinch of flour sizzles), add crabs, cooking 3–4 minutes per side until golden brown and crisp. Work in batches to avoid crowding. Transfer to a paper towel-lined tray and keep warm. Squeeze lemon over crabs just before assembly if desired.

Roll Filling

Prepare sushi rice

If not already done, cook sushi rice and season with rice vinegar, sugar and salt to taste. Cool to room temperature. Spread rice evenly when assembling so it’s slightly sticky but not wet.

Prepare fillings

Halve and pit the avocado. Slice into long thin slices. Seed the cucumber and cut into matchsticks. In a small bowl, mix shredded crab meat with mayonnaise, sriracha (if using), and toasted sesame seeds; taste and adjust seasoning.

Toppings & Sauces

Prepare crunch and sauce

Have the unagi sauce at room temperature or gently warmed. If using packaged tempura flakes or panko crunch, lightly toast panko in a dry pan for 1–2 minutes until golden for extra flavor. Set aside.

Assembly/Finish

Assemble roll

Place a bamboo sushi mat on plastic wrap. Lay one nori sheet shiny-side down. With wet hands, spread about 1/2 cup of sushi rice evenly over the nori, leaving a 1-inch strip at the top edge. Flip the nori so rice faces down on the plastic (optional for inside-out roll). On the nori’s center line, arrange a strip of avocado, a few cucumber matchsticks, and about 2–3 tablespoons of the crab-mayo mixture lengthwise. Place one fried soft-shell crab on top of the fillings, legs extending slightly if desired.

Roll tightly

Using the bamboo mat, lift the near edge and roll away from you, pressing firmly but gently to form a tight cylinder. Seal the edge with a little water on the exposed nori strip. Let seams rest seam-side down for 1 minute.

Top and finish

Brush the top of the roll with unagi (eel) sauce. Sprinkle crispy tempura flakes or toasted panko generously across the top so some adheres to the sauce. Slice into 8 pieces with a very sharp wet knife, wiping the knife between cuts. Arrange pieces on a plate, garnish with microgreens or sliced scallion and an extra drizzle of eel sauce. Serve immediately with soy sauce, pickled ginger and wasabi as desired.