Japanese Umeboshi Rice Balls (Onigiri) with Vegan Ponzu Sauce

I thought life would be less busy after my exam.

Instead, I was immersed back into work and fun at a break-neck pace.

It wasn’t entirely conscious, but I definitely kept myself well distracted as I waited for my results.

I had to ramp up for that big bike ride. (And I so want to give that bike ride a post it deserves)

We saw friends we hadn’t seen since I went into exam hibernation. Rob and I had dates that included musicals and concerts.

On the errands that are still fun, Rob and I mapped out our road trip; booking our accommodations and figuring out which cities have Trader Joe’s (HA!).

The list of things to do for our move never ceases. Book movers and pods, obtain visas, social security numbers. Get a US dollar bank account, flip cash into American funds, change addresses, suspend gym memberships. Make sure we both have benefits. Become officially common-law. Get everything ready to import our car.

Oh, and pack.

Nothing that is too difficult on its own, simply time consuming.

Death by a thousand paper cuts, as Rob puts it.

I haven’t been cooking too much, either. Pulling out freezer meals and eating out a bit more. Cooking up simple grains and tossing with a random assortment of veggies. Discovering fun sauces in the fridge.

This was a fun snack/side I made with some leftover rice. Basically it is a ball of sushi rice, seasoned with rice vinegar and filled with a touch of umeboshi paste, a Japanese spread from pickled plums. I squished the rice into a hard ball with the help of plastic wrap and kept it wrapped until I ate them for lunch. For your viewing pleasure, I played around with strips of nori to make fun faces, although the rest of my balls used wider strips of nori more practically, to keep my hands clean. Use a simple soy dipping sauce, or go all out with a homemade ponzu sauce which has citrus notes to the salty base.

Happy faces, all around, I must say.

I can now add 5 more letters to the end of my name: FRCPC.
(Fellow of The Royal College of Physicians of Canada)

Japanese Umeboshi Rice Balls (Onigiri)

2 cups cooked short-grain Japanese brown rice
1-2 tsp rice vinegar
1-2 tsp umeboshi plum paste
nori sheets
sesame seeds, toasted

ponzu sauce, for dipping

1. Allow rice to cool slightly. Mix in rice vinegar.

2. Place a piece of plastic wrap overtop a cup. Add 1/4 cup rice and make a well in the middle. Add a touch of the umeboshi plum paste (a little goes a long way, I added around 1/4 tsp per onigiri). Add a bit more rice and squish into a ball, twisting the plastic wrap together. You can press it into different shapes if you like. (A good photo tutorial is here). Remove from plastic wrap and cover with strips of nori, decorating as you see fit. Sprinkle and press in toasted sesame seeds.

3. Dip into ponzu sauce and enjoy.

Serves 4 as a side.