Yaki Onigiri (Grilled Rice Balls)

Yaki Onigiri is a Japanese grilled rice ball traditionally eaten during lunch, snack or in a bento. You can grill these onigiri in a Japanese charcoal grill or you can fry on a pan (like me). After grilling or pan-frying, you will get a beautiful golden crust on the rice, which results in crispy and crunchy bites. I made a butter tojang (korean soybean paste) sauce to brush on top after grilling to bring more smoky, bitter and savory notes to the onigiri.

Eat the yaki onigiri fresh off the pan and you will have a delicious and savory treat!

Type Of Filling

The types of filling depends on your personal preference. For this recipe, I added mozzarella cheese for a slightly salty flavor and an epic cheese pull. Fillings are optional but highly recommended! Some delicious fillings ideas:

• tuna and kewpie mayo
• furikake (Japanese rice seasonings)
• salted salmon
• bonito flakes

Type of Rice Is Very Important!

In order to have a delicious yaki onigiri, you will need to use short grain Japanese higher quality rice. The short grain rice is usually soaked in water 30 minutes to 1 hour prior to cooking. Afterwards, add water and cook in rice cooker. I recommend to look at your rice package directions to cook the rice and how much water to add. However, you can always try my magic ratio of water and rice (1:1 ratio) to make the sushi rice.

This type of rice is stickier than jasmine rice or basmati rice. Other types of rice will fall apart when forming in a triangle or circle shape. If you don’t pack it tightly, it might fall apart during the grilling process as well.

INGREDIENTS YOU NEED FOR YAKI ONIGIRI:

I like to make my rice in my rice cooker. If you don’t have a rice cooker, a pot will do great!

Make Rice:

• 2 cups water
• 2 cups short grain sushi rice – follow package instructions for water and rice ratio for the best results!

Sauce:

• 1 tbs tojang (korean fermented soybean paste) or miso paste – I used tojang for my recipe because I love the richer and complex flavor of the Tojang. Miso paste is lighter and has less fermentation so it’s milder in taste
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tbs melted butter – I like to use unsalted butter because the tojang is already salty.
• 1 tbs water – this helps thin out the sauce

Assemble:

• 2-3 cups cooked white rice
• 3 tablespoons vegetable or avocado oil – for frying the onigiri

Garnish

• chives or green onions
• sesame seeds

STEPS TO MAKE THE YAKI ONIGIRI:

• Step 1: Soak Japanese short grain rice for 30 minutes to one hour. Then, cook rice according to package directions in rice cooker or pot.
• Step 2: To make the sauce, mix 1 tablespoon tojang or miso paste, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 tablespoon melted butter, and 1 tablespoon water. Set sauce aside.
• Step 3: Once rice is done, make sure to let it cool for 10-15 minutes until its not hot to touch. Wet your hands with water and a little bit of salt. Add rice and filling of choice. Then add more rice on top of filling. Form rice ball in a triangle or shape of choice. For the rice ball tightly so it doesn’t fall apart. Tip: Use plastic wrap to form in shapes if it’s hard to form by hand. You can also put the shaped onigiri in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to hold the shape after forming.
• Step 4. Heat pan on medium heat. When pan is hot, add avocado oil. Turn heat to low medium. Fry the rice ball for 1-2 minutes on each side until its crispy. Once the sides are crispy, brush some sauce on top.
• Step 5. Eat yaki onigiri when warm and crispy. Garnish with chives and sesame seeds if you like.
• Note: If you want to save for later, leave in room temperature. If you want to save it overnight, I recommend to cover tightly and heat it up with a wet towel the next day. Keep in mind it will be less crispy when its leftovers.

If you’re making a delicious bento, you need to check out these easy recipes:

• Teriyaki Salmon: easy pan-fried salmon with a sweet teriyaki sauce
• Chicken Yakitori: marinated in the most delicious sauce and air fried for a crispy and savory bite
• dak galbi (stir fry spicy chicken) – chicken braised in a gochujang sauce with cabbage and melted cheese on top