Kombu Onigiri / Musubi

Method9 steps · about 10 min

1. 1

   Step 1: Fluff the six cups of freshly cooked Japanese short-grain rice and transfer the one warm cooked-rice batch to a large bowl.

   Uses 6 cups freshly cooked Japanese short-grain rice, still warm

2. 2

   Step 2: Gently fold the three tablespoons each of roasted white sesame seeds (3 tbsp) and shio kombu (3 tbsp) into the one warm rice batch until evenly distributed. Shio kombu softens in the warm rice without pre-soaking. If refreshing older roasted sesame seeds, dry-toast them just until fragrant before this mixing stage; do not burn them.

   Uses One fluffed warm cooked-rice batch · 3 tbsp roasted white sesame seeds · 3 tbsp shio kombu

3. 3

   Step 3: Wash the onigiri mold and set it on a clean plate or board. Put the one teaspoon of sea salt in a small dish beside the mold, along with the mold-wetting water. Keep these supplies for the whole batch.

   Uses 1 tsp sea salt for lightly salting the mold, divided · Water as needed to lightly wet the onigiri mold

4. 4

   Step 4: For the first piece, lightly wet the mold with an actual small splash of water, shake out the excess, and sprinkle a little salt from the prepared dish inside. Keep the remaining salt and water for later pieces.

   Uses Actual small water and salt draw from the prepared molding station

5. 5

   Step 5: Draw the actual amount of prepared sesame-and-kombu rice needed to fill the damp, lightly salted mold. Pat it in gently with a rice paddle; do not crush the grains. Keep the remaining seasoned rice for the other pieces.

   Uses Actual prepared seasoned-rice draw for the first mold · Damp lightly salted mold

6. 6

   Step 6: Use the mold’s lid to press the first filled mold gently into a cohesive onigiri.

   Uses First mold filled with prepared seasoned rice

7. 7

   Step 7: Invert the closed mold and press its back gently to release the first formed onigiri onto a clean plate.

   Uses First gently pressed molded onigiri

8. 8

   Step 8: Repeat the wetting, light salting, filling, gentle pressing and release with the actual remaining seasoned rice and molding supplies. Use the one batch to make about six standard onigiri OR twelve mini onigiri, depending on your mold size. Do not make both complete yields from the same batch.

   Uses Actual remaining prepared sesame-and-kombu rice · Actual remaining water and sea-salt molding supplies

9. 9

   Step 9: Serve the first formed onigiri and the remaining pieces from the same completed batch while warm.

   Uses First formed onigiri · Remaining formed onigiri from the same batch