Table of Contents
Welcome to my blog about Musubi Chicken! I am so excited to be sharing my knowledge about this delicious dish with you. We all know that Chicken Musubi is the perfect bite-sized snack, but what you may not know is that there’s a lot more to it than just chicken wrapped in rice. In this post, I will discuss how to make it, and some tips for perfecting your own version. I hope you enjoy it!
What is Musubi?
Musubi is just a block of rice with chicken breast or spam on top. Before being wrapped in nori seaweed, the meat is spooned or coated with teriyaki sauce. To dip your musubi after eating, it is typically provided with soy sauce or Japanese mayonnaise.
Given that it resembles sushi or onigiri so much, I could assume that it is a Japanese or Korean meal when I see the texture of the rice and the nori seaweed. But, they told me that it is traditional in Hawaii, Guam, and other Pacific Islanders. Additionally, the Asian American community enjoys its popularity.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons of Rice vinegar
- 5 whole Sushi nori sheets
- 3 cups of Short-grain rice
- 2 tablespoons of Sugar
- 3 to 4 Chicken thighs
- ¼ cup of Soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon of Salt
- 1 bowl of Water
- Musubi press
Instructions
- Wash the rice thoroughly with cold water and keep washing until the water becomes clear. You will need to repeat this step between 3 and 5 times. Cook the rice in a rice cooker or pot.
-
When cooked, add rice vinegar, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and salt and stir until fully combined. Put it aside and let it cool.
- Wash the chicken thighs and shape them to a thickness of ½ inch. Cut them into 10 pieces, about 2 inches wide, and set them aside.
- In a large wok or sauté pan over medium heat, warm sake, soy sauce, and the remaining 2 teaspoons of sugar. Let boil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until it begins to thicken.
- Cook the chicken and soy sauce mixture for about 3 minutes per side, or until thoroughly done.
- Remove the chicken to a dish to cool.
- After the chicken and rice have cooled to a warm temperature, you can begin assembling the musubi. Place one nori strip vertically in front of you. Place the musubi mold horizontally on top and in the center of the nori.
- In the mold, you want to add ¼ cup of rice. Use your bowl of water to keep the top of the mold wet, then press it firmly on the rice. You may sprinkle furikake as needed.
- Add a piece of chicken and additional furikake if needed.
- Scoop another ¼ cup of rice into the mold and squeeze it again. But this time, use both hands to push the musubi and top to bottom to remove the middle area of the mold.
- Fold over the nori on both sides.
- From here, you can cut it in half or eat it whole.
Notes
- Add a bit of oil to your plastic wrap to prevent the rice from sticking when assembling the musubi
- When cutting nori, it’s always best to cut your sheets vertically as opposed to horizontally. It’s much easier to wrap your meat and rice this way. Moreover, you should cut your nori into 10 pieces, as this will give you plenty to work with.
- We recommend eating the musubi immediately after preparing it. At the most, it should be consumed within just a few hours after prep.
- Before using the nori sheet, make sure the rough side is facing upward while the shining/smooth side is facing downward.
- If you want to eat it later or give it to your loved ones, wrap the musubi using the plastic food wrapper shown in the picture above.
- Because sushi or Japanese rice is very sticky, wetting your hand with water will help prevent the rice from sticking to it
- You can add the teriyaki sauce when pan-frying the chicken breast or during assembling the musubi. To me, I prefer the latter since the teriyaki sauce will still make the chicken moist.
- To save time, you can just purchase a ready-made teriyaki sauce from a grocery store instead of making homemade sauce
Why is Chicken better than Spam?
I know that spam musubi is far more well-liked than chicken musubi. But for two reasons, I prefer the chicken’s flavor better.
- Compared to Spam, it is healthier since it is not processed meat. It is not junk food, to put it another way.
- Since the chicken is just pan-fried in a small amount of non-fatty oil, it has a minimal cholesterol content.
Sides & Pairings
Musubi is best served with sides of vegetables or soup. Because chicken or spam musubi is so full on its own, you won’t need hearty sides to complete your dinner. Depending on whether your musubi is cooked with chicken or Spam, you might need to make a few slight alterations to the vegetables you choose.
>>> Related post:
FAQs about Musubi Chicken
Why is my rice falling apart during molding the musubi?
If this occurred to you for one of the following 2 reasons:
A. Rice has to be heated in order for it to stay together. Rice that is too cold will come apart because it is getting too dry.
B. Because short-grain rice is sticky and can assist keep together, you should choose sushi rice or Japanese rice.
When serving or eating later, how can I warm the chicken musubi?
You may reheat it in the microwave by heating it for 15 to 30 seconds on medium.
What can you serve with this musubi?
You can serve either with Soy Sauce or Japanese Mayonnaise.
How long can it last in the fridge?
Because this is a cooked chicken, this recipe can only last between 3 to 5 days in the fridge.
Does it matter how the nori is cut?
You may easily roll up your rice and meat by slicing the nori vertically into long strips. Because of how nori is made, cutting vertical strips will yield the greatest results.
Why do I need to use a musubi mold?
Your nori rolls must be made using the musubi mold. As you layer on ingredients, the mold helps to keep the rice and meat perfectly in place. Without the mold, your food would spill all over the place, leaving you with an extremely messy musubi.
Conclusion
The Musubi Chicken was tasty, filling, and a fun dish to eat. The chicken was wrapped in rice and seaweed, and it was a nice change of pace from traditional chicken dishes. The dish was also easy to make, and it would be a great option for a quick and easy meal. Liliana Kitchen hopes you enjoyed this recipe. If you have any questions about the recipe or would like to share your own version, please leave a comment below. Thanks for reading, and be sure to check back soon for more recipes and cooking tips!
