These ball-shaped Temari Sushi are cute, festive, and easy to make! Perfect for a party or a fun activity to do with kids.
Today is Hinamatsuri, or Girl’s Day in Japan. Households with young daughters decorate by putting up Hina Ningyo (Hina Dolls) to pray for prosperity, health, and successful marriage. Festive foods, like this temari sushi, are also enjoyed around Hinamatsuri! (You can see my past YouTube video for more info about Hinamatsuri and Hinamatsuri food).
What is Temari Sushi?
“Temari” in Japanese is a type of traditional embroidered ball which used to be played with but now are more often used as decorative ornaments. Like it’s namesake, Temari Sushi, are round and colorful ball-shaped sushi!
There are essentially only 2 components to making Temari Sushi: the sushi rice and the toppings.
Tips for making the sushi rice
For this recipe, you will want to use traditional Japanese sticky white rice (sometimes labeled as sushi rice) so the rice can stick together when forming the balls. When making the rice, you want to make the rice slightly drier than normal. I recommend taking out 1-2 tbsp of water for every cup of rice you use. The reduction of water is necessary because seasoned rice vinegar will be added, which means more liquid is added. If you make the rice as normal, there will be too much liquid for the rice to hold the ball shape.
Make sure when you mix the vinegar into the rice, you mix very gently and in a slicing and scooping motion. If you mix it in circles or aggressively, it will cause the rice to mush together. I also recommend mixing it in a wide bowl so the steam and liquid can escape to prevent the rice from retaining too much liquid and getting mushy.
What kind of ingredients should I use for toppings?
The fun of Temari Sushi is you can use almost anything! Not a fan of raw fish? Use cooked materials or vegetables! Typically as it’s a festive dish, colorful and complimenting colors are recommended. Colorful and textured garnish such as ikura or nori, are also a great way to add interest. Here are some ideas for topping combinations:
- Salmon + Shiso
- Tuna + Avocado
- Cucumber + Ikura
- Shrimp + Lemon
- Egg + Nori
- Radish + Masago (or Tobiko)
- Sakura Denbu + Shiso
- Egg + Ikura
- Uni + Ikura
My recipe will use specific ingredients that you can see in my photos but you can use any ingredients and combinations you like!
Don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter and keep up with all the latest updates on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Pinterest, and TikTok!
Temari Sushi / 手まり寿司
Equipment
- plastic wrap
Ingredients
- 2 rice cooker cups rice Japanese white rice, cooked
- 5 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
- salmon sashimi grade
- tuna sashimi grade
- cucumber
- radish
- sakura denbu
- cooked shrimp
- ikura (salmon roe)
- masago (capelin roe)
Instructions
- Take your cooked white rice and in a wide bowl, carefully mix in the sushi vinegar (see tips and notes in my blog post above). Cover with a paper towel or towel and set aside.
- Prep your topping ingredients. Slice sashimi into small pieces, the cucumber and radishes into rounds or long thin slices, etc.
- Place a small amount of rice (about 1 heaping tablespoon of rice) onto a piece of plastic wrap. Twist the wrap and roll the rice into a small ball. Make sure not to press it too much or it will make the rice mushy – just enough for the rice to stick together. Remove from the plastic wrap and set aside. Repeat until all the rice is used up and set aside.
- On a separate piece of plastic wrap, select and place your first topping selection (like salmon and shiso). Place one rice ball on top of the toppings, and then use the plastic wrap to mold the toppings around the ball. Remove from the plastic wrap and set aside.
- Place the balls onto a serving dish. Add garnishes as desired (like ikura or sliced shiso).
- Enjoy immediately.
Notes
Shop this post:
More items can be shopped in my Pantry, my Tools, or my Amazon shop.
*Links and products on this page may be affiliate links. There is no extra cost for you and it allows me to keep creating free content for you!
