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–+ servings

Mentaiko Mayo Onigiri

Prep Time10 minutes
Total Time10 minutes
Author Yuto Omura
Servings 6 onigiri

Ingredients  

Instructions 

  • Place 50 g spicy cod roe (mentaiko) on a cutting board and make an incision lengthways through the skin using scissors or a sharp knife. Open the mentaiko and use a spoon to scrape out the eggs.
    Mentaiko (spicy roe) scraped out of skin on a wooden chopping board with metal spoon
  • Transfer the mentaiko to a bowl (you can eat or discard the skin) and add 3 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise, ¼ tsp Japanese soy sauce (koikuchi shoyu) and ⅛ tsp dashi granules. Mix until evenly distributed.
    mentaiko onigiri filling in a glass bowl with metal spoon on a white background
  • Divide 720 g cooked Japanese short-grain rice into 120g portions. If shaping by hand, wet your hands and sprinkle them with salt. If using a mold, sprinkle the mold with a pinch of salt.
    two hands rubbing palms with salt
  • To shape by hand, take a portion of rice and flatten it on your palm. Make a dent in the center and add about 1-2 tbsp of the filling. If using a mold, fill with about 50g of rice and press a dent in the center before adding the filling.
    Japanese rice in an onigiri mold with mentaiko filling
  • If shaping by hand, fold the rice over to seal the filling inside, then press and turn to shape into a rounded triangle. If using a mold, top with another 50g of rice and add another pinch of salt. Press the lid down firmly to shape, then remove from the mold.
    sprinkling salt over mentaiko onigiri to flavor the outside of the rice
  • Wrap with nori and enjoy!
    mentaiko onigiri wrapped with nori held up in hand

Notes

  • Onigiri should be made with Japanese short-grain white rice. For best results, use a rice cooker or follow my stovetop cooking method.
  • 2 Japanese rice cup of raw rice (300g) makes enough cooked rice for approximately 6 rice balls. 
  • This recipe uses 120g of cooked rice per rice ball. If changing the size, reduce or increase the filling accordingly.
  • If the mentaiko filling seems too runny, place it in the fridge as it will thicken when chilled. Leftover filling can be stored in the fridge for 1-2 days.
  • To store, wrap each onigiri with plastic wrap (without nori) and store it in the freezer. Defrost in the microwave and wrap with nori just before serving.