Introduction: Egg-Wrapped Onigiri and Onigirazu

I got both of these recipes from Cooking Haru, a Korean Youtuber with great cooking skills and equally admirable editing skills. I would actually recommend that you visit and view all of their videos instead of continuing on with this post. For one thing, I had to make do without certain ingredients, so the quality and taste using the recipe below would definitely not be the same. For another, my execution is also less than inspired. Still proud of it, though.

The egg-wrapped onigiri is essentially a rice ball wrapped in a thin layer of egg, meant to look like a sushi roll (complete with a belt of nori). When I first saw the video, I was immediately excited to try it out. As my other posts would attest, I love any recipe involving the creative use of egg. But because I didn’t have a flat skillet, I found it harder to get my egg wrap looking as neat as Cooking Haru’s. It’s a learning curve.

Because of its deceptive nature, I made it for April Fool’s Day. Something like that.

Onigirazu is a type of rice ball or onigiri that is shaped into a flat rectangle, making it a “sandwich” with the nori or seaweed as the bread. It’s apparently been all the rage for YEARS now, and I’m only just catching on. Because of how it’s made, it’s actually super easy to do (it really belongs in this blog series). But I still personally had a problem with ensuring structural integrity… Again, it’s a learning curve.

It can also be called an onigiri sandwich or a gimbap sandwich.

Egg-Wrapped Onigiri Recipe

Ingredients: Egg-wrapped Onigiri

• 180 g of canned tuna flakes
• 3 tbsp of mayonnaise (preferably Japanese mayo, but we didn’t have any in the house)
• 1 1/2 cups of steamed rice
• 4 medium-sized eggs
• 1 sheet of seaweed, cut into 15 cm x 1 cm strips
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• Vegetable oil
• Salt to taste

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes (or longer)

1. Mix tuna with mayonnaise for the filling.
2. Beat the eggs in separate cup. Add salt to taste.
3. Add a pinch of salt and the sesame oil to the rice. Mix gently.
4. Flatten a spoonful of rice in one hand. Put tuna mayo in the center, then cover with the rice. Press and shape into an oval shape. Repeat until you’ve finished the tuna mayo mixture and the rice. [B]
5. In a lightly-greased skillet, lay down a strip of seaweed and pour a thin layer of egg mixture on top. [C]
6. When the egg is mostly done, add the rice ball on top and roll it until fully covered by the cooked egg mixture.
7. Let the end of the roll cook a little longer to keep it closed.
8. Serve and enjoy!!!

Spam Onigirazu Recipe

The name of the game is “put whatever fits” and then fold. Though the spam might resist…

Ingredients: Spam Onigirazu

• 1 can of spam lite, sliced
• 4 sheets of seaweed, cut into a square shape (if possible)
• 4 medium-sized eggs
• 1 cup of steamed rice
• Sliced cheddar cheese
• Sesame oil
• Salt to taste

Prep time: 15 minutes

Assembly time: 10 minutes

1. Over low heat, cook the eggs sunny side up. Add salt to taste.
2. Over medium heat, cook the sliced spam until golden brown.
3. Cut the sheet of seaweed halfway in the middle. Lay it down with the rough side facing up.
4. In one quarter, add 1 to 2 tbsp of rice. Spread the rice thinly. Add sesame oil (and other spice/garnish) to taste.
5. Add two slices of spam in another quarter, thin slices of cheddar cheese in another, and finally the fried egg.
6. Fold one quarter of the seaweed sheet over the next until you make a sandwich.
7. Wrap in cling wrap and cut in half for easy serving. Enjoy!

This has been a very satisfying (if messy) culinary adventure.

Until next time!

❤️ Your resident kitchen gremlin

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