Garlic Yaki Onigiri is a variation of Yaki Onigiri, Japanese rice balls that are grilled to crisp on the outside. In this recipe, we simply pan-fried the rice balls with oil infused with garlic. Seasoning is quite simple, only with soy sauce, but Katsuobushi bonito flakes mixed in the rice adds so much umami to this simple dish. The flavor combination of fried garlic and rice can’t go wrong, and it’s simply irresistible. You might want to double or triple the recipe as you may need more than a couple once you start eating these rice balls!
Onigiri rice balls pan fried with garlic and soy sauce.
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup Steamed Rice
- 1 tbsp Katsuobushi (bonito flakes)
- 2 tsp soy sauce (divided)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/4 green onion
- 1 tsp oil
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix steamed rice, Katsuobushi, and 1 tsp of the sauce. (save 1 tsp later.) Slice garlic thinly and chop green onion.
- Wet hands with water and place 1/2 rice in one hand, and press and form into a triangle shape onigiri. Repeat and make 2 rice balls.
- Heat a frying pan with oil and sliced garlic at medium heat. Cook the garlic until crispy, and remove them from the pan. Place the onigiri rice balls in the pan, and cook until browned and crispy on one side for about 3 minutes. Flip and cook the other side as well. Add the soy sauce to the pan, turn off the heat, and coat the onigiri with the sauce.
- Serve on a plate and top with the cooked garlic slices and chopped green onions.
