Mazegohan Onigiri (Mixed Rice Balls)
混ぜごはんおにぎり · Mazegohan Onigiri
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Mazegohan means "mixed rice": plain rice folded together with separately simmered ingredients, as opposed to takikomi gohan, where everything cooks in the pot with the rice. Here the rice gets a little of the seasoning in the cooker, then is tossed with dashi-simmered chicken tenderloin, carrot, and enoki mushrooms plus a scatter of green peas before being shaped into onigiri. Small children love anything they can hold in their own hands, and the mild, savory-sweet flavor means even the vegetables disappear without a fuss. Everything is cut small and simmered soft so it fits easily in a little mouth.
Wheat-free, but uses soy sauce (made with wheat). Japanese school-lunch allergy menus usually allow it, so check with your doctor. How to read the labels
Added. Open the recipe helper (bottom right) → ☰ Menu → 🛒 Shopping list to see the ingredients for your family size.
Printing uses the number of adults and children set under Ingredients, so set those first.
Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 60 griceJapanese short-grain white rice (japonica), which cooks up soft and slightly sticky. The amount listed is for uncooked rice. Substitute: Sushi rice, or another short-grain or medium-grain rice such as Calrose.
- 21 gchicken tenderloin
- 12 gcarrot
- 12 genoki mushroomsLong, thin, white mushrooms with tiny caps sold in a bunch, with a mild flavor and slight crunch. Substitute: Thinly sliced button mushrooms.
- 6 gfrozen green peas
Seasonings
- 21 gdashi stockJapanese soup stock, usually made from kombu (dried kelp) and/or bonito flakes; the base of most Japanese soups and simmered dishes. Substitute: Instant dashi granules dissolved in water, or a mild unsalted chicken or vegetable stock.
- 1.7 gsugar
- 1 gsoy sauce
- 0.4 gsalt
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- rice (米)
- Japanese short-grain white rice (japonica), which cooks up soft and slightly sticky. The amount listed is for uncooked rice. Substitute: Sushi rice, or another short-grain or medium-grain rice such as Calrose.
- enoki mushrooms (えのきたけ)
- Long, thin, white mushrooms with tiny caps sold in a bunch, with a mild flavor and slight crunch. Substitute: Thinly sliced button mushrooms.
- dashi stock (だし汁)
- Japanese soup stock, usually made from kombu (dried kelp) and/or bonito flakes; the base of most Japanese soups and simmered dishes. Substitute: Instant dashi granules dissolved in water, or a mild unsalted chicken or vegetable stock.
Directions
- 1
Add the usual amount of water to the rice and let it soak for at least 30 minutes. Combine the seasonings (dashi stock, sugar, soy sauce, and salt), stir one-third of the mixture into the rice, and cook the rice.
- 2
Remove the tendon from the chicken tenderloin and cut it into 1 cm cubes. Cut the carrot into short, thin strips and the enoki mushrooms into 1 cm lengths.
- 3
Put the dashi stock and carrot in a pot and bring to a boil. Add the chicken tenderloin, enoki mushrooms, and the remaining seasonings, and simmer until everything is tender. Boil the frozen green peas briefly in a separate pot.
- 4
Mix the cooked rice from step 1 with the simmered mixture and green peas from step 3, then shape into onigiri.
The salt in the seasonings keeps the rice from absorbing water properly, so always soak the rice first and stir in the seasonings only just before you start cooking.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 247.5 kcal | 495 kcal | 247.5 kcal |
| Protein | 9.5 g | 18.9 g | 9.5 g |
| Fat | 0.8 g | 1.5 g | 0.8 g |
| Carbohydrates | 51.3 g | 102.6 g | 51.3 g |
| Fiber | 1.7 g | 3.3 g | 1.7 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.6 g | 1.2 g | 0.6 g |
| Calcium | 9 mg | 18 mg | 9 mg |
| Iron | 0.8 mg | 1.5 mg | 0.8 mg |
| Potassium | 249 mg | 498 mg | 249 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 247.5 kcal | 9.5 g | 0.8 g | 51.3 g | 1.7 g | 0.6 g | 9 mg | 0.8 mg | 249 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 495 kcal | 18.9 g | 1.5 g | 102.6 g | 3.3 g | 1.2 g | 18 mg | 1.5 mg | 498 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
Ingredients in this recipe
You might also like
All recipes →
Koya-dofu Ankake Don (Freeze-Dried Tofu Rice Bowl)
Mushroom Onigiri (Rice Balls)
Tuna Takikomi Gohan (Japanese Mixed Rice)
Snack-Time Takikomi Gohan (Japanese Mixed Rice)
Chikuzenni (Simmered Chicken and Root Vegetables)
