how to make rice balls

[otaku4life]

could anybody tell me what i need to make rice balls can i use whole grain brown rice or do i have to use white rice and do i have to use a electric rice steamer or will a ordinary on the stove rice steamer work
TIA

[steven]

You could always look this kind of stuff up on google. When I've made them/seen them made, salt is usually mixed in with the rice. It's a good idea to wash your hands before you start. Even if you do wash your hands, it's a good idea to use saran wrap to ball the rice up with. Most rice "balls" are actually triangular in shape. If you want, you could put something in the middle, too. For example, people put umeboshi, salmon, mayonaise, hamburger, or pretty much whatever you can think of in rice balls. Umeboshi is probably the most "traditional" (besides plain) that I can think of. There are also mixes of things that you can put in the rice.

The ones I've eaten are made with white rice made with a regular old rice cooker. If you want to eat them with seaweed, you should put the seaweed on right before you eat it, as contact with the rice will cause that to go soggy. There are other things you can cover your rice with, too. You can also have no cover if you want (I'm talking about edible covers). you can wrap up your finished rice ball in saran wrap to protect them from flies and stuff. I think they taste better when they are not refrigerated... but I don't know how long they last without refridgeration.

PS: Be careful when handling hot rice that you've just taken out of a rice cooker as it can burn your hands.

Hopefully that helps you.

[otaku4life]

thanks for the info

[princeknight11]

Cooked Japanese rice is sticky, so it is easy to make rice balls. Round or triangular rice balls are called onigiri. They are usually wrapped in nori. You can put various fillings inside onigiri

[evanny]

well ive got some rice questions so do you mind if i use your topic?

so...here in shops we have 2 kinds of rice mostly - defolt 6 package box for some 3$ and then there are 1kg bags for some 10$ whith a bit larger grains in "japanese section" of the shop. there really is so much of a difference in rice kinds? in japan rice shops are like coffe shops with some 20 options?

also..i dont think that we have a machine like rice steamer over here. we simply boil the water and drop a package of rice in it...so, is there a difference?

yea..thats it .. i think

[Columbine]

Originally Posted by evanny

well ive got some rice questions so do you mind if i use your topic?

so...here in shops we have 2 kinds of rice mostly - defolt 6 package box for some 3$ and then there are 1kg bags for some 10$ whith a bit larger grains in "japanese section" of the shop. there really is so much of a difference in rice kinds? in japan rice shops are like coffe shops with some 20 options?

also..i dont think that we have a machine like rice steamer over here. we simply boil the water and drop a package of rice in it...so, is there a difference?

yea..thats it .. i think

A japanese rice cooker heats the rice and water up at the same time so it's a little different from what you have.

The rice for onigiri should be short-grain rice, but not glutinous. You'll have to check the packaging I'm afraid as I can't tell from your description what it is. There are indeed, lots of types of Japanese rice!

[yuujirou]

Originally Posted by Columbine

A japanese rice cooker heats the rice and water up at the same time so it's a little different from what you have.

The rice for onigiri should be short-grain rice, but not glutinous. You'll have to check the packaging I'm afraid as I can't tell from your description what it is. There are indeed, lots of types of Japanese rice!

yeaaa... boiling water first then adding rice... i've never heard of that kinda tech in a recipe before >.>'''

so far that i know there are 3 ways of cooking rice
first way is to boil rice and water at the same time for 30 minutes
second way is to brown the rice and then add water, boil, then simmer for about 20; this makes a pilaf i believe
and the third way is to slowly add water(though usually a broth) to teh rice while stirring; this is for risotto >.>''

as for the rice cooker thing... yea i think it's a 'japanese rice cooker' because no other culture was smart/lazy enough to make an automatic rice cooker, lolz

as for actual nigiri... if you can squeeze a handful of rice together to the point where it won't fall apart too easily, then you can make nigiri out of it.
i've actually made nigiri out of jasmine rice before, which is a medium grained rice.
if your doing it by hand, keep a bowl of water next to you so you can moisten your hands with. rice doesn't stick to water.
in this way, you don't need plastic wrap, and imho, it looks better when it's made by hand >.>'

as for filling.... as long as you feel it'll taste good w/ the type of rice that your using, then by all means. just make sure the filling is as dry as possible though so that it doesn't leak through the rice

the nori is used so that the rice doesn't stick to your hands while eating >.>''

hope this helps

[AnnaJapana]

seaweedとおにぎりを食べたいよ～

でもseaweedがないT_T

[jimeshten]

Hello ! Freinds I talk about the how to make the rice balls. First of all Cooked Japanese rice is sticky. so, It is easy to make rice balls. Round or triangular rice balls are called egges. They are usually wrapped in nori. You can put various fillings inside the bucket and You need to the materials be white rice and the autoclaving enter Pot Way Water and after 5 to 10 min make the rice balls.

[chiuchimu]

If you never done Japanese rice then I suggest buying a rice cooker. The cheap ones are like $25 and that's all you need.( expensive ones are $200+)

Buy Japanese rice. A few cups is all you need say 4


Bascaily, follow instruction on cooking rice. let rice cool an hour after done.
Wet hands to keep rice from sticking to hands and grab a handful of rice and shape into a ball(or other shape of choice) about the size of a tennis ball.

Press a bit firmly but not too firm. I like my rice balls to be just firm enough to not fall apart while eating but if you're are taking them on a trip, I make them firmer to handle the bumps from the ride.

That's it!

Usually something is stuck in the middle as filling or the outside is wrap or covered with something.

Fillings can be bits of meat,fish,Japanese pickles:
Ground beef cooked with soy sauce and sugar, salted salmon shredded, Japanese mustard greens pickles(takanazuke). or anything you like.

Outside covering:
Nori:seaweed paper, sesame seeds, or anything you like.

finale variation: Yaki Onigiri: grilled riceballs my favorite:
Usually these are non filled simple rice balls in a triangle shape so they lay flat. oil a grill or griddle and get hot. put rice balls on and watch carefully. when slightly brown turn over. Get a basting brush and a small plate with soy sauce. Bast the riceball surface with soysauce. when the bottom is just brown turn over so soy sauce side is now bottom. bast the top side with soy sauce like before. Be very careful about timing. When the bottom is just a tad burned, turn over a finale time. when this side is also a tad burned remove and eat. The reason to based immediately after turning is to give time for the sou sauce to be absorbed into the rice. you want the rice surface to be moderately dry before placing over the fire. If its still wet with soy sauce, it will not roast over correctly.

Grilled rice balls are delicious!