Onigiri is cooked rice that takes on special shapes such as triangles, spheres, or balls. It has very different shapes due to individual forms.
Can be eaten by hand. A kind of snack, meal to take away
From the same rice as sushi. Unlike sushi, onigiri are not seasoned with rice vinegar. Onigiri are often triangular but can also take a ball shape.
Inside, they often contain a filling such as salmon, tuna, umeboshi paste, shrimp, etc.
Nori: Prevents rice from sticking to the palm of the hand
Convenience Stores
Can also be heated
The main elements that make up a rice ball are shape, rice, ingredients, and packaging.
Just keep in mind the water and fat content of your ingredients, if it's too wet or greasy the rice might lose its stickiness and your onigiri might not hold its shape.
- Mixing - Another easy way to flavour onigiri is to mix the ingredients into the rice before shaping. I use this technique for my [salmon onigiri](https://sudachirecipes.com/flavorful-japanese-onigiri-rice-balls-with-salmon-recipe) and [soboro chicken onigiri](https://sudachirecipes.com/japanese-onigiri-rice-ball-with-chicken-mince-recipe). Just keep in mind the water and fat content of your ingredients, if it's too wet or greasy the rice might lose it's stickiness and your onigiri might not hold its shape.
- Filling - A little bit more tricky to do, but an extremely common way to flavour onigiri is to place a filling in the centre. This is great for ingredients that are too wet to be mixed into the rice. I use this technique for my tuna mayo onigiri recipe.
- Cooking - Cooking the rice with other ingredients such as meat, vegetables or in stock instead of water, adds great flavour to the rice ball! Great flavour, but might be harder to shape.
- Frying - We even have a fried onigiri called yaki onigiri. You can even deep fry them too!
Onigiri is made as follows.
- Soak in lukewarm water, let the water drain off slightly, Salt sprinkle on the hands and take steamed rice in an amount corresponding to a rice ball. This salt is called hand salt.
- First, gently press the outside together and bury the ingredients in the middle.
- Grip it evenly and simultaneously while twisting it several times to shape it. If you hold it many times, it will become hard inside. If it is too soft, it crumbles, but if it is too firm, the texture deteriorates.
It is also a good idea to wrap it in plastic wrap, so that Staphylococcus aureus and the like that stick to your hands, not transferred to the rice balls . If you use a standard plastic "rice ball mold" from a general store, you can easily finish it in the shape of a rice ball simply by filling it with rice.
3 WAYS TO SHAPE A PERFECT ONIGIRI (JAPANESE RICE BALL)
Onigiri is a Japanese rice ball that comes in many different flavours. It's tasty, filling and great for on the go. The best thing about onigiri is how customizable they are! If you want to try making your very own onigiri but don't know where to start, you're in the right place. I'm gonna tell you everything you need to know about onigiri and teach you how to achieve the perfect shape!
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ONIGIRI
WHAT IS AN ONIGIRI?
In short, an onigiri is a rice ball. It's made from sticky Japanese white rice, the same kind that we use to make sushi. Onigiri are most commonly shaped into a triangle with rounded corners, but they're sometimes completely round too.
WHAT FLAVOUR IS ONIGIRI?
Just like a sandwich, onigiri is so customizable and it can be any flavour you like. There's different ways to flavour them too!
- Seasoning - The most basic onigiri of all - salt. And it's one of the most popular types too! The salt helps preserve the rice and adds great flavour. It's easy, no fuss and you could add other seasonings like black pepper, aonori, sesame seeds or herbs!
- Mixing - Another easy way to flavour onigiri is to mix the ingredients into the rice before shaping. I use this technique for my [salmon onigiri](https://sudachirecipes.com/flavorful-japanese-onigiri-rice-balls-with-salmon-recipe) and [soboro chicken onigiri](https://sudachirecipes.com/japanese-onigiri-rice-ball-with-chicken-mince-recipe). Just keep in mind the water and fat content of your ingredients, if it's too wet or greasy the rice might lose it's stickiness and your onigiri might not hold its shape.
- Filling - A little bit more tricky to do, but an extremely common way to flavour onigiri is to place a filling in the centre. This is great for ingredients that are too wet to be mixed into the rice. I use this technique for my tuna mayo onigiri recipe.
- Cooking - Cooking the rice with other ingredients such as meat, vegetables or in stock instead of water, adds great flavour to the rice ball! Great flavour, but might be harder to shape.
- Frying - We even have a fried onigiri called yaki onigiri. You can even deep fry them too!
ONIGIRI FILLINGS
The sky is the limit when it comes to flavouring onigiri. You can keep it simple, you can make it elaborate, it's totally up to you! Here are some popular fillings to give you a few ideas.
- Salmon
- Tuna
- Ikura (salmon roe)
- Pickled plum (umeboshi)
- Kombu (seaweed kelp)
- Shrimp
- Chicken
- Spam
- Edamame
WHAT KIND OF RICE DO I USE TO MAKE ONIGIRI?
As I mentioned earlier, onigiri is always made with Japanese short grain white rice. This rice has a sticky texture so it's easy to make shapes that hold together by themselves. In fact, Japanese people love this rice and we eat it nearly every day.
Because of its stickiness, it clumps together and is easy to eat with chopsticks or shape into rice balls. Not to mention it's the most delicious kind of rice in my opinion!
We usually cook the rice in a rice cooker, but if you don't have one, check out my post on how to cook Japanese style rice on the stove.
CAN I USE BROWN RICE?
If you want to use brown rice, you will need to find Japanese short grain brown rice instead. It's the same type of rice but still has a layer of bran that adds flavour and nutrients to the grain. Japanese brown rice has the same sticky texture as the white variety, but it can be hard to find. Also, it needs 2-3 hours of soaking time.
How to shape?
- Per Hand
- With a stencil
Ingredients:
-
Large shrimp without head and shell, with tail
-
Scallops
-
Salmon and tuna fillet
- Egg Omelette (Tamagoyaki)
- Soured sushi rice
-
a bowl of water and some rice vinegar
-
Pickled ginger
Preparation:
Cook shrimp in salted water for 2 minutes. Cut open on the belly side, but do not cut through. Remove the black vein. Butterfly open.
Halve scallops horizontally, without cutting through. Open them butterfly-style.
Cut fish fillets into sushi-sized pieces.
Put the water together with the rice vinegar into a bowl. Moisten your hands with the vinegar water. This serves both for hygiene and prevents the moisture from making the rice stick too much to your hands.
Give about 1.5 teaspoons of rice into your hands and gently press together so that the rice holds together but is not crushed or pressed too firmly.
Apply a little wasabi paste in the center of the topping.
Take the rice in the right hand, the topping in the left. Place the rice on top of the topping. Press into the rice with the thumb so that it spreads out. This indentation later ensures that the rice falls apart loosely in the mouth.
Flip the sushi with the topping facing up. Gently press the sides of the rice with your thumb and middle finger.
As a result, individual grains of rice may still extend over the topping on the sides, which does not look visually appealing. Therefore, carefully press the sides again with the palm of your hand and lightly hold against the topping on top with your index and middle fingers. Press against the rice at the front with your thumb so that the shape is maintained here as well. Be careful not to press so hard that finger marks remain on the rice.
Repeat this process multiple times if necessary.
Do the same with all toppings.
Arrange on bamboo leaf. Serve pickled ginger and soy sauce separately.
Overview of other types of sushi