Is there a food you particularly hate? Something you really can’t abide eating? For me it’s eggs and bananas, but when I cook for myself, it’s no big deal because I can easily avoid those foods. When it comes to making food, though, you always want people to eat and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Nothing is more disheartening than when you offer up something you’ve been slaving away on only to have the person go, “Oh, no thanks. I don’t like [insert food ingredient here].” This very thing happened to me today!
Of course, it’s understandable—not everyone likes everything. Yuki, from Fruits Basket, grows many fruits and vegetables and shares them with Tohru to cook with. To show her appreciation, she makes some leek onigiri to share with the family! Imagine how surprising it must have been for her when Kyo spit out her food and complained about the leeks. Tohru worked so hard to take Yuki’s leeks and turn them into something really tasty!
As much as I understand Kyo’s dislike for leeks, but Tohru’s onigiri probably weren’t that bad! Leeks have a nice mild onion flavor, and I’ve never had them in onigiri before, so I decided to try and remake them for us to enjoy. To complement the sweetness of the leeks, I added in some shiro miso to add a salty contrast, and butter, so smooth the two flavors together and make the filling a little creamy.
Even if you don’t like leeks much, these rice balls are really tasty! You definitely won’t have to force yourself to eat them. These salty-sweet onigiri were a hit in my house—they didn’t last long, that’s for sure. Make them today to see for yourself!
Watch the video below for step-by-step instructions!
Leek Onigiri
This leek onigiri is featured in Fruits Basket, and while it is Kyo's least favoite food, it's still pretty good.
Course Snack
Cuisine Japanese
Servings 4
Ingredients
2 tbsp Butter
1 Leek chopped
Salt and Pepper
1 tbsp Shiro Miso
1/4 cup Chicken Stock
2 cups Uncooked White Rice Cooked
Nori Wrappers
Instructions
1. Dissolve miso in chicken stock. Melt butter down in a pan that's on medium heat. Add in leeks and saute until softened, about three to four minutes. Season with salt and pepper, turn heat to medium-low, and add in miso and chicken stock. Simmer one to two minutes, or until some of the liquid has dissolved.
2. To form the onigiri, get some plastic wrap. Make a rice "patty" on the plastic wrap, making sure the center is a little thinner than the edges. Place filling on the middle, and then, using the plastic wrap, close the edges up over the filling. Then, using your hands, form the rice ball into a triangle shape. Adjust plastic wrap as you go to make sure the shape comes out all right.
3. Remove plastic wrap, and wrap the bottom of the onigiri with nori. Eat the same day!
Keyword onigiri
I hope you enjoyed this post! Check in next week for another recipe, and to check out more anime food recipes, visit my blog. If you have any questions or comments, leave them below! I recently got a Twitter, so you can follow me at @yumpenguinsnack if you would like, and DEFINITELY feel free to send me food requests! My Tumblr is yumpenguinsnacks.tumblr.com. Find me on Youtube for more video tutorials! Enjoy the food, and if you decide to recreate this dish, show me pics! 😀
What other famous anime dishes would you like to see Emily make on COOKING WITH ANIME? Let us know in the comments!
