Salmon onigiri

Place the rice in a sieve and rinse with running water 3-4 times. Let the water drain thoroughly and transfer the rice to the pan.

Fill the rice with water so that the water is 3-4 cm higher than the rice. Place the pan over medium heat and bring the water to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan with a lid and cook the rice for another 18–20 minutes. During this time, the rice should reach the ideal consistency: the water should evaporate, and the rice should turn out grain to grain, but at the same time sticky.

If using rice vinegar and sugar, mix them together, add to the rice and stir well.

Let the rice cool (it should become slightly warm so that it is easy to work with later).

Divide the rice into 4 parts.

Place cling film on the work surface, place one portion of rice on it and form a round cake so that there is a loose film around the rice.

Cut the avocado, fish and cucumber into small cubes (about 5 mm). Add cream cheese and stir.

Place a quarter of the filling in the center of the rice cake.

Gather the free edges of the film into a knot so that the filling is inside and the film wraps tightly around it.

Use your hands to shape the rice into a flattened triangle.

Unroll the film, being careful not to damage the onigiri. Adjust the shape.

Smooth out any unevenness with your hands (it’s better to wet your hands in water so that the rice doesn’t stick to them). Prepare 3 more onigiri in the same way.

Cut the nori sheet into strips 3 cm thick, then crosswise into pieces 7–8 cm.

Attach nori to each onigiri so that they can be easily picked up by hand. If the nori does not stick well to the rice, wet your finger in water and run it along one side of the nori strip.

You can dip the sides of the onigiri in sesame seeds.

Serve onigiri with soy sauce and sweet chili.