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How The Best Rice Balls Are Being Manufactured

By Steven Carter


One of the favorites of Japanese people when it come to food is the onigiri, which is considered very popular. This is a special kind of rice formed in either triangle or cylinder and wrapped in sea weeds or the nori. Onigiris are often filled with salted salmon, katsuobushi, kombu, tarako, pickled ume, and other ingredients which are salty or sour for its preservatives.

Nowadays, many stores are already putting up some stocks of different varieties of flavors and of fillings since it became much more popular in many different places. The popularity has grown into many parts in the world, most especially best rice balls in Long Island. Even those small stalls and stores are now offering and selling take out for onigiris.

There are a lot of people who have made misconceptions about onigiri, in which they said is one type of sushi, but it is actually not. An onigiri is made of plain rice that is lightly salted and a sushi is made of rice containing salt, vinegar, and sugar. An onigiri also can make rice portable and easy to eat while a sushi is made originally as a way for the preservation of fishes.

Since in history, a lot of people also have said that it may be difficult for onigiris to be produced in mass production since the most common technique used is hand rolling, in which is considered as one difficult for a machine to do. But in the later years, there are many manufacturers already who have successfully invented such machines that could shape a rice ball into a triangular form. And in this manufacturing process, fillings are done by placing a hole hidden by the nori instead of rolling it inside.

But the disadvantage of making use of machines is that the nori easily becomes sticky and it moist easily as well since it is attached to the onigiri already when forming it. But improvements now have been implemented where in the nori is separated from rice. Before the diner eats it, he or she must open first the nori packet and wrap it around onigiri.

One of the important advantages of limitations of machines is that it helps in producing new flavors easier because of using holes when filling instead of filling it when rolling. And also, it makes the production a lot easier because the process of cooking does not require any changes of ingredients from time to time. The modern onigiris now are wrapped with a special plastic wrapping that would act as a barrier of moisture.

Usually, these rice balls are boiled white rice and some of its varieties are the okowa or the kowameshi. This is a type of glutinous rice that may be cooked or steamed with vegetables, and one popular vegetable is red beans. Another variety is the mixed rice or mazegohan that may be mixed and cooked with ingredients according to preference.

People before believed these food is originated in samurai rice balls that are wrapped with the leaves of bamboo. And they also believed that most of Japanese food also is originated in the samurai innovations. But from the historic battlefields, it became available in stores.

A lot of convenience stores right now are making onigiris available. It may be in other countries and cities like Long Island. A lot of people also are love to make these foods at home. Other popular variations are mentaiko, tsuna mayo, salmon and mayonnaise, ikura, nikumaki, etc.




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