Grains

Free-form kimbap/onigiri

October  4, 2022
4
1 Ratings
  • Serves 1
Author Notes

For me, lunch is more about the art of compilation than cause for any actual cooking.

This assembly line meal combines the best of a Japanese rice ball (onigiri) with the bright, robust flavors of Korean maki (kimbap). A single-serving package of toasted laver provides for fresh seaweed that retains its crispiness without having to resort to the fancy sheets of laver that come individually wrapped in plastic with origami instructions. And the free-form style allows you to top it with whatever you please, in this case spicy tuna with a vegetal punch from perilla leaves and pickled daikon. (This lunch owes a lot to the spicy tuna kimbap at Emo's in NYC's Koreatown.) - nightkitchen —nightkitchen

Test Kitchen Notes

If you’re looking for a lunchtime change of pace, this could be it. It is fresh and light, with a bit of a kick. The herbs go nicely with the pickled daikon and toasted laver, and the rice and fish fill you up without weighing you down. It helps to cook your rice so that it is sticky. Instead of the single-serving package, you could cut larger sheets of toasted seaweed into smaller pieces. This lunch can be prepared quickly, and if packed carefully travels well. The act of putting together as you eat will slow you down, and make for a nice break. – SallyCan —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 cup cooked rice (I like white short grain mixed w/barley, and brown rice is good too)
  • 1 small can of tuna packed in olive oil
  • 3/4 tablespoon mayonnaise
  • sriracha to taste
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1-2 Korean perilla leaves (sometimes labeled as "wild sesame leaves")
  • pickled daikon
  • 1 single-serving package of toasted seaweed
Directions
  1. Drain tuna from oil, mix with mayonnaise and sriracha, season with salt and pepper.
  2. Cut pickled daikon into slices less than 1/4 inch thick. Chiffonade or tear strips of perilla.
  3. When ready to eat, put some rice on one square of toasted seaweed, top with a portion of the spicy tuna, daikon, and perilla. Fold like a taco and eat!
Contest Entries

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • SallyCan
    SallyCan
  • Sagegreen
    Sagegreen
  • nightkitchen
    nightkitchen

4 Reviews

nightkitchen October 8, 2010
Hi SallyCan, I'll take a look at home and come back with a response.
 
SallyCan October 7, 2010
Hi nightkitchen, is there a particular brand of the seaweed you prefer?
 
nightkitchen October 9, 2010
ChoripDong is a very common brand and their basic line is good. But I would avoid their fancier looking line that touts different kinds of oils like sunflower and olive. I find it too fishy tasting. (It has cuter packaging with a French translation and you can barely see their brand name.)

I also like one in a green package. The only English words on it it are "Korea Seaweed" and on the bottom, "www.westshopping.net," but this may be available only on the West coast. --I do think, aside from the line I mentioned above, which I really did not like, most brands are similar. Thank you so much for offering to test my recipe! I do hope you like it.
 
Sagegreen October 1, 2010
I love the sound of this!