• 500g sushi rice
• 520ml water
• 60ml Japanese rice vinegar
• Three tablespoons sugar, give or take
• Salt

First, make your sushi seasoning vinegar by combining the rice vinegar, sugar and a generous pinch of salt in a small saucepan. Warm over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved, but don’t let it come up to anything like a boil. Taste and adjust the seasoning – it shouldn’t be too sweet or sour, we’re looking for a balanced flavour. Set to one side in a bowl to cool down.

Next, thoroughly wash your rice. Traditionally, it’s washed through with ten changes of water. You need to wash it until the water runs clear. Then, put the rice in a saucepan with a well fitted lid and add the water. Place over a medium-low heat and bring up to a bare simmer, then put the lid on and reduce the heat to low. Cook undisturbed for 12 minutes, then turn the heat off and let sit for another ten.

Decant the cooked rice into a tray. I use Pyrex cookware for this step. Take your seasoning vinegar and sprinkle about one quarter of it over the rice. Cut a wooden spatula through the rice, turning and mixing. Repeat until all the sushi vinegar is used. Taste, adjust seasoning and let cool until you can handle it – about ten minutes or up to two hours if you cover the container with a wet tea towel. The rice is now ready to use.