Mentaiko Onigiri (明太子おにぎり, chili-cured cod roe rice ball)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Rice cooker or heavy pot with lid
• •Rice paddle (shamoji), or a flat wooden spoon
• •Small grill rack or broiler tray
• •Bowl of water for shaping

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the rice

   Cook the short-grain rice and keep it covered for ten minutes after cooking. That rest lets the moisture settle evenly, so the grains cling without turning wet at the surface. Fluff it with a rice paddle using cutting motions, not mashing ones.

2. 2

   Prepare the mentaiko

   Brush the mentaiko with the sake, then grill or broil it briefly, one to two minutes per side, until the outside turns pale and firm while the center stays moist. The sake softens the salt edge and helps the surface set cleanly. Don't cook it hard. Dry roe tastes louder but says less.

   If your mentaiko is very fresh and you plan to eat the onigiri right away, you may leave it raw. For carrying or packing, lightly grilled mentaiko is neater and steadier.
3. 3

   Portion the filling

   Split the mentaiko sacs open and divide the roe into six small portions, about a teaspoon each. Keep the filling modest. Onigiri is rice with a center, not roe wrapped in a polite excuse.

4. 4

   Salt your hands

   Wet both hands, then rub a small pinch of fine salt across your palms. The water keeps the rice from sticking, and the salt seasons the outside where your tongue meets it first. Too much salt here will fight the mentaiko, which already knows how to speak.

5. 5

   Shape the onigiri

   Put about 1/2 cup hot rice in one palm, make a shallow hollow, set in one portion of mentaiko, and cover with a little more rice. Shape it into a triangle or a round by turning and pressing lightly three or four times. Stop as soon as it holds. The air between the grains is part of the texture.

   Hot rice shapes cleanly because its starch is still supple. Cold rice cracks and asks you to press harder, which is how good onigiri becomes heavy.
6. 6

   Wrap with nori

   Wrap each onigiri with a strip of nori just before serving if you want it crisp, or wrap earlier if you like the seaweed softened against the rice. Add a few sesame seeds only if you want a quiet nutty edge. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Chef Tips

• •Buy mentaiko from a shop with quick turnover, and look for sacs that are glossy, plump, and evenly colored, not leaking liquid or smelling harsh. Sourcing first, always.
• •Use Japanese short-grain rice. Long-grain rice will not cling properly without crushing, and crushed rice is not onigiri, only a small defeat in your hand.
• •Keep a small bowl of water and salt beside you before shaping. Once the rice is ready, the work is quick, and searching for salt with sticky fingers is a comedy best avoided.
• •For bento, cool the shaped onigiri before closing the box. Trapped warmth makes condensation, and condensation makes the rice surface wet.

Advance Preparation

• •Cook the rice just before shaping if you can. Onigiri is best while the rice is still warm and supple.
• •The mentaiko can be lightly grilled up to one day ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator. Bring it close to room temperature before filling so it doesn't chill the rice center.
• •For packed lunches, shape the onigiri the morning you plan to eat them and keep the nori separate until serving if crispness matters.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 185g)