The Halloween mummies aren’t always scary, but they can be irresistibly delicious with an Asian twist! These adorably spooky mummy face rice balls have kimchi mixed brown rice snugly wrapped in a nori sheet. They’re an easy, delectable recipe perfect for packed lunches, snacks, picnics, or adding a touch of whimsy to your seasonal celebrations. Making cute rice balls is such a fun activity, enjoy it with family and kids!

What is Onigiri?

Onigiri, also referred to as Japanese rice balls, is a beloved staple of Japanese cuisine! The rice has been the center of Japanese food and it’s transformed into a portable form so that people can enjoy it on the go. Also, rice balls are extremely versatile, everyone can find their favorite choice of fillings!

Ingredients for Kimchi Rice Balls

Cooked rice: using Japanese short-grain rice is the best so that rice is sticky enough to form into a rice ball. I love using brown rice but white rice is perfectly fine too.
Kimchi: finely chop up the kimchi so that kimchi is evenly distributed through the rice.
Toasted sesame oil
Tamari: use gluten-free tamari to make this recipe gf. Regular soy sauce works perfectly if you’re not sensitive to gluten.
Maple syrup
White sesame seeds: toast them before use for the maximized nutty flavor.
Nori sheet
Daikon radish: for eyes and mummy bandage wrap.
Sea salt to taste

How to Make Rice Balls

Start with cooking some rice! You can use leftover rice or store-bought microwavable rice. Warm up the rice before use so that rice absorbs the flavor nicely.

In a bowl toss rice, kimchi, sesame oil, tamari, maple syrup, and sesame seeds. Add salt to taste.

Let cool the rice slightly. Once the rice becomes cool enough to touch, shape the rice into a round ball. Wet your hands and shape your hands or use a piece of cling wrap as a mess-free method.

Place a nori sheet on a work surface with a shiny side down. Place the rice ball in the center and wrap it up. At first, the nori sheet is crunchy so it won’t stick around the rice balls easily. Wrap in cling wrap to help the nori sheet soften.

Not it’s time for the decoration to make your onigiri look like a mummy. Let’s start with making mummy bandages. Use a peeler to slice the daikon radish into thin ribbons. Cut 4 6-inch-length ½-inch-width strips out of daikon ribbons.

Slice a ⅛-inch-thick disc out of the remaining daikon and cut out 2 rounds for eyes(I used a 1A-size round cake decorating tip). Cut 2 rounds out of a piece of nori sheet for the inner part of the eyes. I use a 12-size round cake decorating tip to emboss and cut along the embossed line using scissors.

Unwrap the onigiri. The nori should be soft and fit nicely around the rice ball. Decorate the mummy’s bandages and eyes.

Need more Halloween rice ball ideas?

Same delicious kimchi flavor but a different cute face.

Halloween Black Cat Kimchi Onigiri Rice Balls https://yokoskitchen.com/halloween-black-cat-kimchi-onigiri-rice-balls/

Try different flavors!

Halloween Frankenstein Onigiri with Matcha and Black Olive https://yokoskitchen.com/halloween-frankenstein-onigiri-with-matcha-and-black-olive/

Halloween Pumpkin Curry Onigiri with Creamy Avocado Filling https://yokoskitchen.com/halloween-pumpkin-curry-onigiri-with-creamy-avocado-filling/