Homemade onigiri (Japanese rice ball) - first time

Back in May, we did a grocery shopping before we left Yamanashi, Tokyo. Of course, I bought a lot of random shit hehe, one of them is furikake, a Japanese seasoning that contains nori, salt, sugar. There were different combinations, and I did buy a couple of them home to try.

Walking around supermarkets is one of my favourite things to do. There are endless cute and interesting things to see, sometimes even to try. Local supermarket and international supermarket hit different, let alone a supermarket in Japan.

My dad recently reminded me the packets of furikake that we bought in Japan are sitting in the shelf, so it’s time to be creative!

I remember walking pass a local store in Tokyo that sold kitchenware. I saw an onigiri mold and held it before me, fighting against the urge of buying it because I never really made an onigiri. I eventually bought a sushi roll mold instead.

This is my first time making onigiri, very simple, nothing fancy.

Prepare rice and fillings

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of rice (use Japanese pearl rice to be more authentic) - rinse well, pop it in the rice cooker, and let it cooooook

• your choice of furikake - I’m using wasabi furikake, dried salmon furikake, and a bit of sesame seeds

• 3 halved nori

• 1/10 cabbage - shredded

• 1 small carrot - shredded

• some green onion and cilantro

• 1 tsp oyster sauce

• 1 tsp sesame oil

• salt and pepper

Portion: 3 palm size onigiri

I start off with the rice. When the rice is cooking, I work on the fillings.

Fillings - cut the cabbage and carrots into shreds, also cut green onion and cilantro to a similar length. Throw everything in a pan and make a little stir-fry. Once it’s heat up, add oyster sauce, sesame oil, a bit of salt and pepper. Set aside.

When the rice is ready, add in your choice of furikake. I’m using wasabi furikake, dried salmon furikake, and a bit of sesame seeds. Give it a mix, and set aside.

Wrap a handful of mixed rice with plastic wrap. Shape it into a triangle. Gently press it onto a flat surface, and make it slightly flat. Dent it a little and place the fillings in. (Photo on the left)

After placing the fillings, put another small amount of rice on top. Reshape the triangle, and tighten it. (Photo in the middle)

Lastly, remove the wrap, and place half a nori around the rice ball. Tadaaaaa! (Photo on the right)

There goes my first ever onigiri. It’s a very simple and tasty lunch idea. Having 2 of them will pretty much fill you up.

It’s also a good idea for snacks, too! The portion isn’t too big, filling yet small. Sometimes, I’d order 2 salmon onigiri from Hana-musubi for brekkie. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so preparing this as the first meal of the day ain’t a bad idea! In fact, it might give you a boost of energy. Give it a try and let me know what you think. You can always switch it up when it comes to the fillings, or even the type of furikake to put in the rice. So much room to explore and play around!

Hopefully I can get rid of the wrap next time, and simply use my wet hands to deal with it. I was worried that the rice would get really sticky to my hands which might make it difficult for me to shape the rice ball.

Now I kind of regret I didn’t get the onigiri mold, ugh. It’