Easy to cook, convenient to take out without any hassle, impressive to present (for a reception, a picnic, or to dazzle colleagues at lunch), these maki burgers are eaten fresh, which makes that are perfect for summer, and more if you like.
Welcome to this new issue of “Anthony Can’t Stop Talking About His Life When He Talks About Food,” After Red Onion Pickles That Changed My Transit, After My Love For Flowers That Motivated the creation of non-alcoholic cocktails. In short, I tend to forget to eat. I love to cook for others, but I hate to cook just for myself – it makes me deeply sad. So I set alarms on my cell phone to remind me to eat or invite people over for lunch or dinner as soon as possible. My other trick is to cook recipes that I find very playful: Breton pancakes, spring rolls, wraps. My latest find is onigirazu!
What is an onigirazu, this delicious, fresh and easy-to-carry “burger-maki”?
It is a type of Japanese rice sandwich, found in many street food stores in Asia and beyond.which could be roughly summed up as a perfect mix between maki, onigiri and hamburger (I also had my bao-burger period, but it’s much longer and complicated, so I won’t even tell you).
Onigirazu is quick and easy to cook, visually appetizing, can be kept for a few days in the fridge and, above all, practical to transport. for lunch at the office (and show off in front of his colleagues with his lunchbox) or a picnic. Like this cold food, it’s much nicer when you don’t necessarily want to enjoy something hot, which often happens in the summer. for example.
Basically, the result layer by layer gives: nori sheet, rice, side dishes (carrot, cucumber, baby spinach, delicious Taifun curry-mango tofu and pickled red onion, this is what I make all the time for example), re-rice , and re-nori.
Anyway, let’s get to the preparation of the onigarazu.
The basic ingredients for 4 onigirazus
- 400 grams of sushi rice
- 60ml or 4 tbsp rice vinegar (or apple cider vinegar works too)
- 2 tablespoons of sweetener (white, cane, coconut sugar, xylitol, honey, maple syrup or agave: the sweetener that suits you best, what)
- 1 teaspoon salt (or soy sauce or tamari)
- Raw vegetables of your choice (e.g. avocado, carrot, cucumber, red cabbage and lettuce)
- Protein (tofu, white or red beans or crushed chickpeas, or eggs cooked in an omelet, for example)
- Plastic cling film such as cellophane or bee wrap
Get sushi rice, cooking and seasoning easily
First, we choose a good Japanese rice (Easily found in Asian or organic grocery stores, or in the “world cuisine” section of conventional convenience stores): Its high starch content helps it become just the right amount of stickiness. Alternatively, risotto rice can do the trick. Otherwise, basmati rice can help, but don’t cry if it doesn’t hold up well.
Then we wash it at least 3 times. In a large bowl, put the rice and rub it between your hands, pouring water over it, then drain the water, before repeating the operation two more times. People who don’t wash their rice, I can’t trust them, I don’t want to know anything.
Next, the washed and coarsely drained rice is transferred to a saucepan to cover with 400 ml of water. (if too lazy to measure: cover the rice + 1 knuckle of water, or count 4 volumes of water for 4 volumes of rice). Cook covered over high heat. Once it boils, reduce the heat to medium for 15 minutes and then turn off the heat. Once cooked, it’s important to let it rest with the lid on for another 10 minutes!
While the rice rests, take the opportunity to prepare the seasoning. Basically, 4 tablespoons of vinegar (as I am a stingy king of optimization, I take the juice from my pickles, it gives a pinkish tint to the rice, I love it), 2 tablespoons of sweetener, 1 teaspoon of salt (or a tablespoon of soy sauce or tamari) to mix on slow fire for 2-3 minutes.
Next, we decant the rested rice into a large plate (gratin type) or into a salad bowl to pour the vinegar seasoning and mix it with a large flat spatula, while we help it cool, and that’s it! If you have successfully cooked your rice, the hard part is now behind you.
The steps to make onigirazus
Prepare the fillings so that they fit snugly in a flat sandwich. So cut into strips what will benefit from being: your raw vegetables (cucumber, carrots, red cabbage, pickles, avocado), your protein (legumes, tofu, omelette, marinated raw fish or others) and anything you make you want others.
Spread cling film (cellophane) or bee wrap on your work surface slightly larger than the size of your seaweed sheet. Place your nori on top. In the center (about 1/4 of the surface), place a layer of rice, then a little of all your ingredients. Then cover with another layer of rice. Then fold the nori over your rice sandwich. It doesn’t have to be perfectly folded because you’ll be sealing everything up with cellophane or bee wrap later. The goal: that the moisture of the fillings and the rice “seal” the nori, so that it does not unfold once it is unwrapped from the film.
Once you’ve made your little onigirazu, it’s important to let it rest in its cling film for at least 15 minutes. for the magic to work. And it’s ready to eat! All you have to do is remove the film and cut it in half to reveal the inside.
2 videos to better visualize how to cook onigirazus successfully
To better visualize how to cook onigirazusthis video from the vegetarian and gourmet YouTuber is especially instructive and inspiring (see the technique of using a quarter of nori seaweed as a guide to know where our filling can take during the making of the onigirazu).
Otherwise, this Chez Jigmé video goes much faster on the pastry side, but offers other ideas for fillings if you’d like:
Now it’s your turn to enjoy!
Read also:
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Photo credit: © Chez Jigmé YouTube screenshot.