The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.
© Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.It's not as world-famous as ramen or sushi, but the humble onigiri is soul food in Japan
By YURI KAGEYAMA TOKYO©2025 GPlusMedia Inc.
19 Comments
Login to comment
Moonraker
It's the equivalent of a sando, with rice instead of bread, except it's mostly bland and strangely sweetened rice with one, maybe two, tastes of the filling. Mostly to be avoided, unless you are really hungry and can't find any other fuel in the konbini.
browny1
Hardly tasteless at all - where'd you guys go to eat?
Most good conbinis like 7-11 or any number of supermarkets will have a wide variety available.
An assortment of fillings such as salmon, tuna, egg, pork, vegetables, beef, tempura, unagi, beans etc with a number of sauces/mayo/seaweeds to boot.
Recently wider varieties of rice, barley and other grains are also available often with distinctive seasonings.
Onigiri - always a good fall back when hungry on the run.
wallace
One of the comfort foods.
wallace
I like fried rice balls.
Moonraker
Well, Japan is a haven for the most boring food. I am always surprised it got so popular. Maybe reflects how people are becoming in the world today. How many people would have been happy in a western country to be offered a chunk of bland rice with a tiny, salty flavouring in one corner when they were back home. But call it a Japanese delicacy with a Japanese name and people somehow find it delectable.
Chico3
That's definitely my "go to" food when I'm in a hurry. It's great, healthy, satisfying, and easy to carry. No complaints. It also feels wholesome just enjoying it.
Moonraker
Sushi, yes sometimes but onigiri are their debased cousins and food for a bland age. There are so many spheres of life that are overhyped and totally dull. Maybe people have forgotten how nice food and drink should taste as their whole nervous systems have been dulled. Like the old Hobgoblin ad: "What's the matter lagerboy, afraid you might taste something?"
bass4funk
I couldn’t agree more. Japan has some decent food, but it’s nothing like Korean, Greek, Turkish or Mexican food.
Seal
Great article, I really enjoyed it. I've loved onigiri since childhood when my mother would make it and I've since learned to make it on my own because in America, we can't run and buy it at the 7-11. I'm biased but I think the Japanese do comfort food the best. No disrespect to the other great world cuisines.
Carlyn Short
My DIL brings me an onigiri when I set foot in Japan. I love them in all of their iterations.
Moonraker
Well, I can't rule that out either but that is not me. I rarely eat processed food except in restaurants (where we mostly have no idea what we are eating) and cook almost all my food from scratch. And I am a great cook, as anyone who has eaten my food will attest.
Moonraker
I am happy we have found something in common, Bass. Cheers.
Entuojo