Japanese Yaki Onigiri with Miso Vegetables

Ingredients

• 3 cups freshly cooked short-grain rice
• 3 tbsp white miso
• 1 tbsp mirin
• 1 tsp maple syrup or sugar
• 3 cups mixed vegetables such as bell pepper, mushroom, and zucchini
• 3 tbsp neutral oil, divided
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1 tsp freshly grated ginger
• 2 scallions, sliced
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• Salt

Steps

1. Let the cooked rice cool until you can handle it but it is still warm. Cold rice will not compact, and scalding rice cannot be shaped by hand.
2. Wet your hands and rub them with salt, then take a third of a cup of rice and press it firmly into a triangle or a thick disc, turning and compacting as you go.
3. Press hard. A loosely formed onigiri falls apart the moment it hits a hot pan, and this one gets flipped.
4. Set the shaped rice balls on a plate to dry for 10 minutes, so the surface firms up.
5. Whisk the miso, mirin, maple syrup, and ginger together into a glaze.
6. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat and cook the onigiri for 4 to 5 minutes per side, without moving them, until a hard golden crust forms.
7. Only now brush the miso glaze onto both sides and cook for 1 to 2 minutes more per side. Miso burns quickly, so it goes on at the end, never at the start.
8. Toss the vegetables in the remaining oil and char them in a hot pan for 5 minutes, season with the soy sauce and sesame oil, and serve alongside with the scallions and sesame seeds.

Allergen note: Contains gluten, sesame and soy.

Use the listed quantities as a guide, adjust seasoning to taste, and cook proteins to a safe internal temperature.