Making this amazing vegan sushi rice ball sandwich (vegan onigirazu) is easier than you think. This is a vegan version of the chicken katsu onigirazu recipe!
Who doesn't like sushi? I honestly can't think of anyone who is not a sushi fan. Personally, I am a HUGE sushi fan. I grew up in Korea and I had my fair share of fresh seafood. When I became a vegetarian, I thought I'd miss meat like crazy but I actually struggle more with seafood. Of all the deliciousness from the sea, I'd say sushi is probably what I miss the most.
But I am on a mission here to take better care of my mental and physical health and I made a conscious choice to become a vegetarian. So what a girl do? Vegan-ify or vegetarian-ify the sushi I used to love! That's right, I'm going to share a vegan sushi rice ball sandwich (vegan onigirazu) recipe that will rock your world today!
What is Sushi?
First thing first, what is sushi? Sushi is not a piece of raw fish or the rolls that you order for your dinner. Sushi actually means 'vinegar/sour rice.' So by definition, sushi is VEGAN! Whaaaat???!!!
I think many people are intimidated to make sushi at home without realizing that it's pretty easy to make. Especially this sushi rice ball sandwich, also known as onigirazu, is simple to make.
How to build the sushi sandwich:
- Place some rice in the middle of a seaweed paper.
- Pile whatever ingredients you desire as toppings. I am making a vegan version of the 'chicken katsu/chicken cutlet onigirazu' so I used vegan chicken nuggets, spicy vegan mayo, and vegan eel sauce.
- Top it off with more rice.
- Wrap it up!
Ta-da!!! DONE! See, it's not hard at all. The pictures above are how I piled the ingredients but honestly, the order does not matter. As long as the first and the last thing is rice, you are good to go.
"But George, How do you wrap it??" I got you! Here is how.
How to wrap/make the onigirazu:
- Close the corners of the opposite side of a seaweed paper. You can secure it using a small amount of cooked sushi rice. They are sticky and perfect for gluing your onigirazu.
- Gently tuck the seaweed paper around the rice ball.
- Fold the bottom corner of the seaweed paper and secure it using some rice.
- Close it by folding the remaining corner. You can wrap the onigirazu tightly with plastic wrap and let it sit for 5-10 minutes.
You don't have to be a vegetarian or a vegan to enjoy my vegan sushi rice ball sandwich (vegan onigirazu). This vegan onigirazu can make a debut on your next meatless Monday. And if you are a vegan or vegetarian, guess what? You can still enjoy sushi! That's right! I promise you that I'm not done inventing more vegan and vegetarian sushi recipes. They are coming! But until then, satisfy your sushi craving with my vegan onigirazu!
Happy eating, my friends.
Vegan Sushi Rice Ball Sandwich (Vegan Onigirazu)
Making this amazing vegan sushi rice ball sandwich (vegan onigirazu) is easier than you think. The vegan version of the chicken katsu onigirazu recipe!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 5 to 6 onigirazus 1x
- Category: Main course
- Method: Assemble
- Cuisine: Japanese
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
For Sushi Rice:
- 2.5 cups cooked sushi rice
- 4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 4 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
- 4 teaspoons sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
For Spicy Mayo
- 1 tablespoon vegan mayo
- 1 teaspoon sriracha
For Sushi Rice Ball Sandwich (onigirazu)
- 5-6 sheets of seaweed paper
- ⅓ English cucumber, sliced
- 1 small avocado, sliced
- 1 lime
- 1 small carrot, shredded
- Eel sauce
- Lettuce leaves (3 large leaves)
- 12 chick'n nugget, baked according to the directions on the package
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together apple cider vinegar, rice wine vinegar, sugar, and salt. Microwave the mixture for about 20-30 seconds until sugar and salt are dissolved.
- In a large mixing bowl, transfer the rice and pour over the sushi rice seasoning. Mix with a wooden spoon and let it cool until it is room temperature.
- On a seaweed paper, place a slightly larger golf ball size amount of the sushi rice in the middle. Flatten with your hand (wetting your hand with water or wearing plastic gloves will help the rice not sticking to your hand).
- Carefully pile up all the ingredients. The order I did is shown above in the pictures but this order is not absolute. As long as you can pile the ingredients neatly on top of each other, it won't matter.
- Grab about slightly larger than a golf ball size amount of the sushi rice and flatten with your hand first then place on top of all the other piled ingredients.
- Close the corner of the opposite side of seaweed paper. And wrap the remaining corners.
- Once all the corners are wrapped/folded, secure the rice ball sandwich/onigirazu by wrapping it with plastic wrap and set it aside for 5-10 minutes.
- You can slice the onigirazu in half and remove the plastic wrap first before enjoying it.
Keywords: vegan onigirazu, onigirazu, vegan sushi, sushi rice ball sandwich, sushi sandwich, sushi
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