Prepare white or brown rice and divide between two deep bowls.

Bring 1/2 cup water to boil in small saucepan.  Briefly boil peas, drain, saving the water if you live in drought-parched land,  and divide over the rice bowls. Blanch snow peas in saved water, divide.  Repeat with remainder of ingredients.

Prepare dipping sauce by mixing ingredients. Start with one tablespoon rice vinegar and taste; if you like it, stop.  Or add more.  Use caution when slicing hot peppers; don gloves if your hands are sensitive. Avoid touching eyes, mouth, or nasal membranes.

Just before serving, remove fish from refrigerator. Using a thin-bladed, sharp knife, slice fillet into small, slender slices; think sushi, not hunks.  Depending on the fish, your cuts may fall apart a bit. That’s okay.  Don’t expect to be Jiro Ono. He’s devoted his life to the art of sushi.  We’re just rank beginners.

About ginger: I’ve used three kinds.

–fresh, which I store in a jar of white wine in the fridge

–homemade pickled ginger, made using a David Tanis recipe from One Good Dish

–purchased pickled ginger, which I found fresh at my market near the fresh fish counter.

Serve with dipping sauce and small dishes of soy sauce, wasabi, and pickled ginger. After reading Nancy Singleton Hachisu’s Preserving The Japanese Way, I bought a bottle of Ohsawa Nama Shoyu Soy Sauce. Ten ounces of this stuff will set you back $10, and it’s worth every dime.

Consider this recipe a template: tweak it to suit your taste, area, and budget. If you aren’t fond of sushi, use chicken, fish, tofu, or even thinly sliced steak. Or leave out the protein entirely.  Skip the dipping sauce and serve only the soy sauce.  Add a little fish sauce.  It’s hard to go wrong.