Tuna mayo onigiri (Japanese rice balls)
Soft, lightly salted rice wrapped around a creamy tuna filling, the Japanese convenience-store lunch you can make at home for pennies.
- 45 min total
- 20 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 2
- About $1.81 a serving
- 560 calories
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Most of the time here is hands-off, so you can sit down while it cooks.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 1 cup sushi rice
- 1 can canned tuna, drained
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 cucumber, thinly sliced
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
From your pantry
- ¾ tsp salt, divided
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
Each serving has about 560 calories, 21 g protein, 87 g carbs and 13 g fat, and costs about $1.81 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No canned tuna? Canned salmon works.
- No cucumbers? English cucumbers or mini cucumbers work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the rice in a bowl of cold water, swishing and pouring off the cloudy water 3 or 4 times, until it runs almost clear.
Rinse. Rinsing means running cold water over rice or canned beans in a strainer while you swish them around. It washes off loose starch and can liquid, so rice cooks up fluffy and beans taste clean.
How you’ll know: The water running out goes from cloudy to mostly clear; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
Put the rice and 1¼ cups of water in a and on high.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
Cover, turn the heat to low and cook 15 minutes. Move it off the heat and leave the lid on for 10 minutes.
Low heatTimer: 25 min
Meanwhile, mix the tuna with the mayonnaise and of the salt.
Pinch. A pinch is what you can hold between your thumb and two fingers, less than an eighth of a teaspoon. It’s a small, forgiving amount, so there’s no need to measure.
How you’ll know: It’s a light sprinkle you can barely see on the food, not a little pile.
Food safety: Rotisserie chicken, deli meat, canned tuna and cooked shrimp are already cooked. Keep them cold until you use them, and heat them until steaming hot if the recipe warms them.
the cucumber with the rice vinegar, sugar and of salt for a quick side salad.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Pinch. A pinch is what you can hold between your thumb and two fingers, less than an eighth of a teaspoon. It’s a small, forgiving amount, so there’s no need to measure.
How you’ll know: It’s a light sprinkle you can barely see on the food, not a little pile.
Spread the rice on a plate for 5 minutes, until it is warm but cool enough to hold.
Timer: 5 min
Wet your hands, rub a little salt over your palms, and scoop about ½ cup of rice into one hand. Press a dent in the middle and spoon in some tuna.
Dolly’s tip: Wet, salty hands keep the rice from sticking to you and season the outside of each ball.Cover the tuna with a little more rice and press it with cupped hands into a firm triangle or ball, turning it a few times. Repeat to make 6.
Dolly’s tip: Press firmly enough to hold, not so hard it turns to paste. A little crumbly on the first one is normal.Sprinkle the rice balls with sesame seeds and eat with the cucumber salad.
Dolly’s tip: For lunch, wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap in the morning and keep it cool with an ice pack. Rice turns hard in the fridge, so they are best made the same day.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
