Онигири: японский рисовый шарик и его история

Japanese rice ball

the video game

Onigiri ([[wikt:お握り), also known as omusubi (お結び), nigirimeshi (握り飯), or rice ball, is a Japanese food made from white rice formed into triangular or cylindrical shapes and often wrapped in nori. Traditionally, an onigiri is filled with pickled ume (umeboshi), salted salmon, katsuobushi, kombu, tarako, mentaiko, takanazuke (pickled takana, Japanese giant red mustard greens) or any other salty or sour ingredient as a natural preservative. Because it is easily portable and eaten by hand, onigiri has been used as portable food or bento from ancient times to the present day. Originally, it was used as a way to use and store left over rice, but it later became a regular meal. Many Japanese convenience stores and supermarkets stock their onigiri with various fillings and flavors. It has become so mainstream that it is even served in izakayas and sit down restaurants. There are even specialized shops which only sell onigiri to take out. Due to the popularity of this trend in Japan, onigiri has become a popular staple in Japanese restaurants worldwide. Despite common misconceptions, onigiri is not a form of sushi and should not be confused with the type of sushi called nigirizushi or simply nigiri. Onigiri is made with plain rice (sometimes lightly salted), while sushi is made of rice with vinegar, sugar and salt. Onigiri makes rice portable and easy to eat as well as preserving it, while sushi originated as a way of preserving fish.

On November 12, 1987, lumps of carbonized grains of rice, thought to be riceballs, were excavated from a building belonging to the Yayoi period (2000 years ago) in the Sugitani Chanobatake Ruins in Ishikawa Prefecture. The carbonized rice had traces which revealed that it was formed by human hands, thus it was initially documented as "the oldest onigiri." In subsequent research, it was thought to be steamed and grilled, rather than boiled like today's rice, similar to another dish called chimaki. Since then, it has been academically called the "Chimaki shaped carbonized rice lumps (チマキ状炭化米塊)". In Nakanoto, there is a replica of the relic on display at the roadside station Orihime no sato Nakanoto.

In the 1980s, a machine to make triangular onigiri was invented. Rather than rolling the filling inside, the flavoring was put into a hole in the onigiri and the hole was hidden by nori. Since the onigiri made by this machine came with nori already applied to the rice ball, over time the nori became moist and sticky, clinging to the rice. A packaging improvement allowed the nori to be stored separately from the rice. Before eating, the diner could open the packet of nori and wrap the onigiri. The use of a hole for filling the onigiri made new flavors of onigiri easier to produce as this cooking process did not require changes from ingredient to ingredient. Modern mechanically wrapped onigiri are specially folded so that the plastic wrapping is between the nori and rice to act as a moisture barrier. When the packaging is pulled open at both ends, the nori and rice come into contact and are eaten together. This packaging is commonly found for both triangular onigiri and rolls (細巻き).

Yaki onigiri (焼きおにぎり) or grilled rice balls is first shaped by compacting white rice, then grilling it until brown, then coating with soy sauce or miso, and finally broiling it. Yaki onigiri is also sold commercially as frozen food. Miso onigiri is mainly in eastern Japan. Miso is used as fillings, sometimes mixed with green onion, or spread over and roasted as a variant of Yaki onigiri.

Age onigiri (揚げおにぎり) or fried rice balls is first shaped by compacting white rice, then frying it in a frying pan or wok using cooking oil until it is golden brown. Because of the oil, the flavor is richer than yaki onigiri. If eating it as is, it can be seasoned with soy sauce, miso, or salt. To eat it in a soup, first place it in a bowl. Add condiments such as chives, miyakogusa, wasabi, grated ginger, nori, pickled plum, and pour hot Japanese style soup stock. Eat while breaking up the onigiri that have absorbed the soup stock. There are several variations of the age onigiri. For example, there is a version where the rice being fried has Japanese flavoring, such as takikomi gohan. There is also a Western style variation where melted cheese is used as the filling, the rice is deep fried with western ingredients such as ketchup and curry, and the onigiri is topped with a western style soup.

Pork Egg Onigiri (ポーク玉子おにぎり or おにポー) is a variation from Okinawa Prefecture which combines rice, seaweed, pork, and eggs. It is similar to Onigirazu, which is described later, but this variation came first.

Tenmusu : originally in Tsu, Mie. became famous as Nagoya cuisine. Pork tamago onigiri : in Okinawa. Lunch meat and fried egg as fillings. Samgak gimbap (삼각김밥) — Literally "triangle gimbap". It originates from Japanese onigiri and is sold in convenience stores in South Korea. Fillings vary greatly; the expiration date is one day; it typically provides between of food energy.