Sometimes it can be so simple… The proof of this is these crispy Onigiri with a delicious filling of fresh king oyster mushrooms combined with Japanese Wakame seaweed. This combination is enhanced with red onions and a dash of sesame oil. It goes incredibly well with the freshly cooked sticky rice – topped off with a crispy coating of Nori and toasted sesame seeds!
Onigiri are seasoned, traditional Japanese rice balls. These little rice wonders are real fillers – because, although they look so handy, they’re still really filling 😋.
But do you always have to use salmon, tuna or prawns as a filling for homemade rice balls…? No, not today! Because today, freshly made Onigiri with Wakame seaweed are on the menu. Yes, that’s right, it’s vegetarian again today 🤩!
TOP RECOMMENDATION
Onigiri Kochbox | Reisbällchen selber machen
5-tlg. DIY Set, inkl. 3 Rezeptideen für japanische Reisdreiecke | vegan, Geschenkidee für Anime Fan. Mit dem Onigiri Kochset gelingen dir japanische Reisdreiecke ganz einfach…
In stock
So the star of the show is Wakame seaweed. This is dried seaweed, mainly used in Japanese soups and salads.
Wakame seaweed (im Shop ansehen) is a staple of Japanese cuisine and is also very versatile: it is particularly popular as an ingredient in Miso soup and Japanese seaweed salad! It tastes salty, savoury and pleasantly of the sea, without being fishy. Perfect, isn’t it?
We’ve also chosen fresh mushrooms for this recipe today – king oyster mushrooms, to be precise! Their savoury, nutty mushroom flavour is reminiscent of oyster mushrooms or porcini and goes wonderfully with the oceanic aroma of the Wakame seaweed. We fry the mushrooms in a generous knob of butter and season everything with a little salt and pepper.
For the finishing touch, we’ll add finely chopped red onions and sesame oil to the filling. It actually sounds like a proper main meal, doesn’t it?
The rice balls are ready to serve in 30 minutes and make a lovely, flavourful treat for any occasion – lunch, a snack or dinner, anything goes. Enjoy cooking the vegetarian Onigiri with Wakame 😊.
Onigiri with Wakame
serves 6 | 30 minutes | 242 kcal
🖨️ Print PDF 📌 Save pinSometimes it can be so simple… The proof is in these crispy Onigiri with a delicious filling of fresh king oyster mushrooms and Japanese Wakame seaweed. This combination is enhanced with red onions and a dash of sesame oil. It goes so incredibly well with the freshly cooked sticky rice – topped off with a crispy coating of Nori and toasted sesame seeds!
Ingredients (serves 6)
600 g cooked rice (see recipe):
✔ 300 g loose rice (im Shop ansehen)*
✔ 300 ml water (fresh, cold tap water)
✔ 1 pinch salt
For the filling:
1 tbsp Wakame (im Shop ansehen)*
2 king oyster mushrooms (alternatively other fresh mushrooms)
1 red onion
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp sesame oil (im Shop ansehen)*
1 tbsp sesame seeds (im Shop ansehen)*
a little salt & pepper
For decoration:
1 piece Nori sheets (im Shop ansehen)*
a little sesame
Useful utensils:
Onigiri mould – Rice mould set for rice triangles (im Shop ansehen)*
Japanese Santoku knife (im Shop ansehen)
Preparation (30 minutes)
Step 1
Prepare the ingredients for the Onigiri and get the rice (click here for the recipe in a rice cooker or in a saucepan + leave to cool for 20 minutes).
Step 2
To begin with, place the Wakame in a medium-sized bowl and cover completely with water. The Wakame seaweed will soak up the water, so the bowl should not be too small. Leave to soak for 10 minutes.
Step 3
In the meantime, clean the king oyster mushrooms and chop them into small cubes. Also, peel the red onion and dice it as well.
Step 4
Heat the butter in a frying pan. Once the butter has melted and is lightly foaming, add the king oyster mushrooms and fry well until they are a lovely golden brown.
Step 5
Then add the onion and fry for about 2 minutes until translucent. Then season with salt and pepper. Transfer the contents of the pan to a bowl and leave to cool.
Step 6
Now strain the Wakame through a sieve and leave to drain briefly, or remove the Wakame from the water with your hands and squeeze out the excess water gently.
Cut the Wakame into small pieces with a knife.
Step 7
Add the finely chopped Wakame, sesame seeds and sesame oil to the onion and king oyster mushroom mixture. Mix everything together thoroughly. The filling is now ready.
Step 8
Cut the nori sheet into 6 long rectangles using scissors. Also, prepare a bowl of sesame seeds for decoration.
Step 9
Now take out the rice. Also, fill a small bowl with lightly salted water and set it aside. Dip the onigiri mould (large and small sides) into the water to shape the rice balls and allow them to drain briefly.
Fill the large side of the onigiri mould halfway with about 50 g of the prepared rice and form a small hollow in the centre for the filling.
Place some of the filling into the hollow (but not too much, otherwise it will all spill out).
Step 10
Next, fill the mould with 50 g of rice (but do not fill it beyond the rim, otherwise everything will spill out the sides).
Now place the lid of the onigiri mould onto the rice and press both sides together with light pressure</ strong> into each other. Open the onigiri mould by removing the lid. On the back of the long side of the mould, press the small triangle slightly inwards to remove the rice triangle from the mould.
Step 11
Now wrap the rice triangle with a cut-to-size sheet of Nori around one of the three sides. Dip the other two sides in sesame seeds.
Fill and shape a further 5 rice balls.
Step 12
Once all the Onigiri are ready, they should be eaten as soon as possible. Onigiri are best when fresh, as the rice dries out quickly after a while and the nori sheet becomes slightly soggy. Ready – Itadakimasu!
Are you looking for even more delicious Onigiri recipe ideas from Japan? Here you’ll find my most popular guides:
No post found!
Have you tried the recipe? Let me know in the comments, I can’t wait to hear from you!
