Super Easy Japanese Onigiri Rice Balls Recipe おにぎり
Japanese Onigiri Rice Balls are super easy to make and very versatile, You may add any of your favourites to the rice balls.
I have some leftover salmon the night before and viola~ Salmon Onigiri for breakfast the following day! How amazing is that?
Onigiri is made from cooked sushi rice ( you may use plain steamed rice too), and rice seasonings, wrapped with nori seaweed wrappers. I sometimes add pork floss in the fillings, but this time I used salmon, some people like tuna. I mean, you can literally add whatever you like.
Onigiri is very popular in Japan, you may find it in Konbini (convenience store), and in their bento box. Japanese love to bring it to school, work, and picnics. Onigiri comes in different shapes, such as triangular, cylindrical, round, or creative shapes like animals. I love seeing how the Japanese could make them look like cartoon characters.
Onigiri is just so easy to make at home and super comforting and delicious, I hope you will give it a try!
BTW, I have also filmed a video on Instagram of how to make these Japanese Onigiri rice balls, go check out my Instagram account under reel tap to find out.
What will you need for Japanese onigiri rice balls?
Jump to RecipeJump to Video- Rice
- Water
- Rice seasonings
- salted salmon
- seaweed nori sheets
How to make Japanese onigiri rice balls?
Cook rice using a rice cooker, mix the rice seasonings with the cooked rice and set aside.
To prepare the fillings: the salmon was pan-seared with salt, then break the salmon into flakes and set aside.
Cut Nori sheet into stripes.
Wet your hands with water to prevent sticking. grab a small proportion of rice, and press the center with two fingers from the other hand to create a curved swoop shape for the filing. in the center. Put some salmon flakes in it.
Cover the filling with another small proportion of rice, then gently press the rice to form a ball. Do not squeeze the rice ball too hard, just press it until it doesn’t fall apart. You may shape the rice balls to your desired shape.
Wrap the precut nori around the rice balls.
Enjoy these Japanese Onigiri Rice Balls with your loved ones! You may also make onigiri to put into the bento box as I did, If you haven’t checked already, here are some of my bento ideas:
Pro Tips For Making These Japanese Onigiri Rice Balls:
- Wet your hand to prevent the rice from sticking. I always have a bowl of water next to my station, or I will work next to the sink.
- Use different rice seasonings to flavour the rice. I love getting rice seasonings for this purpose. but you may add salt to the rice only to keep it simple.
- Use plastic onigiri wrappers to keep the nori crispy if you would like.
- Use Good quality nori sheets. I have tried some cheaper ones that are not crispy but chewy. I now only buy the ones imported from Japan. I have found one below for you.
- Use white sushi rice for onigiri, brown rice is not as sticky and the rice balls may fall apart.
- You may serve onigiri warm or at room temperature.
Super Easy Japanese Onigiri Rice Balls Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
- Cook rice using a rice cooker, mix the rice seasonings with the cooked rice and set aside.
- To prepare the fillings: the salmon was pan-seared with salt, then break the salmon into flakes and set aside.
- Cut Nori sheet into stripes.
- Wet your hands with water to prevent sticking. grab a small proportion of rice, and press the center with two fingers from the other hand to create a curved swoop shape for the filing. in the center. Put some salmon flakes in it.
- Cover the filling with another small proportion of rice, then gently press the rice to form a ball. Do not squeeze the rice ball too hard, just press it until it doesn’t fall apart. You may shape the rice balls to your desired shape.
- Wrap the precut nori around the rice balls.
- Enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
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