Here on Love at First Bento, we feature an all new onigiri recipe every month in a series called Monthly Onigiri. This month, we’re going to learn how to make classic onigiri – a bento box staple! Plus, an easy onigiri filling that will take you less than 10 seconds to prepare.
To kick-off our first EVER onigiri post, we’re going to dissect, reassemble, and admire the classic, triangle-shaped onigiri. Before we dive head-first into that, however, there’s one thing we should probably clear up: what, exactly, is onigiri?
Known as “rice balls” in English (and also sometimes called musubi), onigiri are those cute triangular bundles of rice ubiquitous with the Japanese lunch scene. They come in all shapes and sizes, and can be filled or sprinkled with all sorts of mouth-watering goodies. So, why are they called rice balls if they’re actually rice triangles? Just chalk it up to a translation thing.