A Minor Onigiri Project

First onigiri for 2014. Comforting cured, grilled salmon.

The Southernmost Onigiri?

Today I tried (for the second time) the Crab Onigiri from Hikari - one of the better Japanese restaurants offering sushi in Dunedin (the New Zealand version). The sign offering a job in katakana also offered hope, given the pretty awful stuff being passed off as Japanese food in most other places.

The crab onigiri was pretty good - it consisted of leg meat and a bit too much mayonnaise. NZ$3.50

This one was actually wrapped in an onigiri wrapper and would actually be familiar to someone from Japan or someone like me who lived in Japan. I only add this because of the grapefruit-sized monstrosities being sold as onigiri in a few other places in Dunedin claiming to sell Japanese food.

Homemade Okaka Onigiri

I'm thinking about opening a new era in this long-neglected onigiri blog. Due to the very few options here in Melbourne for buying onigiri - I made my own. I had the ingredients at home so I chose to make 'okaka' onigiri - the filling is made from katsuobushi seasoned with soy sauce - a popular style in Japan. The taste was good, although it highlighted the need for a small amount of salt to be sprinkled on the final product.

I bought the bowl in the photo from a gallery in Osaka - it was made in Hiroshima! 

Hopefully in the future I'll make more - with different fillings. Salted salmon is next I think.

Enjoy.

D.

I also found this link to an onigiri map of Japan - fun!

Cod-roe, Chilli and Kelp with Soy Sauce

This limited edition tarako, chilli and kelp onigiri was delicious. Predictibly, though, it was light on the chilli! I'm always amazed at how they must make millions of these tasty triangles every day!160 yen plus a 20 yen discount on the bill!

Shirasu and Eggyolk Onigiri

 This tasty number had rice cooked in a bonito dashi,  tiny white fish and a pretty raw egg yolk. Lots of flavour for 128 yen. How do they do it? The rough translation from the Family mart website is below!


"Fancy rice was mixed with bonito flavor twist, add the ingredients are rice balls whitebait tailored to domestic land of egg yolk nourishment."

Pork-Wrapped Onigiri

This onigiri was friedish-rice wrapped in pork and laced with sweeeeet sauce. I heated this one as per the instructions - 25 seconds in a 500w microwave. It tasted a little sickly  and my mouth watered unaccountably for hours afterwards. MSG in spades methinks. 158 yen from Family Mart

Simmered Pork and Mustard

This pork and mustard number was pretty tasty, but needed heating. Expensive at 178 yen.

Cod-Roe and Butter Onigiri

This cod-roe and butter onigiri was ok, but it would've been better heated. 158 yen.

100% Walleye Cod eggs with, butter and soy sauce together in a Hokkaido-style texture (paraphrased from Family Mart)

Roasted Seaweed Laver Onigiri

A roasted laver onigiri. Sweet and moist. Kind of tasty. Laver is an algae often considered a seaweed.

According to Family Mart: Roasted seaweed laver processed to produce Ariake 仕立Temashita finished with  boiled ingredients while keeping the texture of the seaweed. (baffling)

Whole Egg Yolk Innovation Mortar

This onigiri had sweetish minced chicken with a perfectly poached egg. Sweet, creamy and delicious. How do they do it? The online translater generated this classic from the Family Mart website

"The rice balls are filled with whole egg yolk Innovation mortar. Minced chicken seasoned with sweet and fit to let a good egg and compatibility."

148 yen from Family Mart

Five Classic Flavours

Five open-style onigiri. Mentaiko, Sea-chicken (canned tuna), Prawn and mayo, Ikura (salmon roe) and Seaweed. Classics! 298 yen from Family Mart.

Baked Salmon with Yuzu Pepper

  

An incredibly tasty onigri with a couple of pieces of baked salmon flavoured with a yuzu flavoured miso paste. Amazing but a little steep at 168 yen.

Hanshin Tigers Onigiri

This Hanshin Tigers onigiri appeared in my local Family Mart today. Behind the yellow and black veil was a heavily sauced tonkatsu and cheese combination. If I had followed the heating instructions, it may have been more palatable.

Here's the online translation of the Family Mart spin:
"By the cheers of fans, players and Merton Korabomenyu according to euphony and Matonkatsu. Awasemashita the use of this mature cheddar and pork tonkatsu Hara Takashi Andes. Range even more delicious served warm. NB: Treatment and only four Shikoku and Okayama Prefecture and the Kansai area."

Jade Green Onion Beef Rice and Egg Mortar Innovation

This onigiri had the nice surprise of a soft-boiled egg in the middle. It tasted great, but I can't help wondering how it got from the factory to the shop unharmed. 148 yen from the trusty Family Mart up the road. The translator on dictionary.com told me it was called 'jade green onion beef rice and egg mortar innovation'.

Tarako Onigiri

This tarako onigiri was a little dry but very tasty. Tarako is the salted roe of the Alaskan Pollock - a kind of cod. 125yen from Family Mart.