Abalone is known as awabi in Japanese. It is a sea snail, and when fresh, has a great texture. When it’s a little old but still edible, you will find that it will become rubbery, so make sure it’s as fresh as possible!
Awabi is in a shell, so first sprinkle the flesh with salt. This will make it shrink within the shell.
Stick a flat utensil, such as a spoon or spatula, between the flesh and shell to pry the flesh off the shell.
Carefully remove the flesh only, as it will seperate from the entrails and filaments.
Rinse thoroughly with a stiff brush and pat dry.
Place with the part that holds the flesh to the shell up, and slice keeping the blade parallel to the table in a horizontal slice. The cut should be done by a slightly wavy motion.
After that is cut off, proceed to slice the remainder into 1/10 inch (3mm) slices, cutting down onto the table. The coloured edge of the abalone will be a little tough, so make a few incisions so it is easier to chew.
Now it’s ready for serving as sashimi, or move onto making the nigiri!