Authentic Onigiri Recipe Japan, Asia
JUMP TO RECIPEWe strongly advise you to read the cooking tips before jumping to the recipe though
Introduction & history
Whether enjoyed on its own or as a part of a bento box, onigiri is the quintessential Japanese snack that does not require any tools to make. Simply put, onigiri is a Japanese rice ball, that is typically filled with various ingredients such as salmon, katsuobushi (dried, fermented, and smoked skipjack tuna), umeboshi (sour Japanese plum), and tsukudani (small pieces of seafood, meat or seaweed that has been simmered in soy sauce and mirin). However, an onigiri does hot have to be filled at all. Also, unlike in the case of sushi, the rice for onigiri is just cooked Japanese short-grain rice, which is shaped by hand, typically into balls or triangles. Once assembled and filled, onigiris are often wrapped with nori, but in case they are grilled (yaki onigiri), they are not wrapped but brushed with either soy sauce or white miso as they are broiling or grilling.
Cooking tips
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rice
The rice of choice is Japanese short-grain rice. However, unlike rice for sushi, the rice for onigiri is made by cooking equal amounts of rice and water. Also, salt can be added to water and rice, but this is not a must. Before cooking, the rice should be washed 3-4 times to extract as much starch as possible and left to soak in water for about 30 minutes. Besides plain rice, onigiri can also be made ... Read more -
filling
Salmon, katsuobushi (dried, fermented, and smoked skipjack tuna), umeboshi (sour Japanese plum), tsukudani (small pieces of seafood, meat, or seaweed that has been simmered in soy sauce and mirin) are the typical traditional ingredients. Still, tuna with mayo, shrimp with mayo, scrambled egg, chicken, tarako fish roe, and mentaiko fish roe are also popular filling options these days. -
shaping
The rice should still be warm when you start molding it. The hands should be first dipped in water, then in salt, so it's easier to shape the rice; the salt can also be dissolved in water to make it a more straightforward process. Typically, onigiri is shaped into a triangle but can also be ball-shaped or cylinder-shaped. -
wrapping
Often, onigiri can be wrapped with nori seaweed so that one portion of the rice is visible, while the nori is sealed by wetting it. Thin omelets can also be used as wrapping, but onigiri can be coated in furikake (Japanese seasoning) or have a dressing of grated yam and sesame seeds. If making onigiri with different fillings, it would be smart to put a little dab of filling on top of the onirigi, ... Read more -
fried onigiri
When making fried onigiri, they need to be drizzled with white miso or soy sauce as they grill or broil. It is especially needed to be careful when using white miso as it can burn quite easily.
Recipe variations
Yaki Onigiri
PREP 30min
COOK 5min
READY IN 35min
This recipe is adapted from Amy Kaneko's Let's Cook Japanese Food and accessed via Epicurious.com.
Ingredients
1 tsp salt
1 cup (240 ml) water
1 cup (200g) warm cooked rice
4 tsp cooked flaked fresh salmon or flaked canned salmon, optional
soy sauce or white miso, as needed
Preparation
Dissolve the salt in the water.
Wet your hands with salted water, then take a 1/4 cup (50g) of rice and shape it into a thick triangle.
You can leave it unfilled or fill it with salmon. Make a small indent in the center of the triangle with your finger and put inside it a teaspoon of salmon, then seal it by tapping the rice with your wet hands.
Make three more onigiris this way.
Broil or grill the onigiris, drizzling them with a teaspoon of soy sauce or white miso on both sides in the process until crispy on the surface.
Take care the onigiris don't burn, especially if coating them with miso.
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