Rilakkuma Inari

In 1967, John Lennon wrote a song called “All you need is love”. He also admitted hitting women, “any women”, he said, and abandoned one of his children. He was a diligent peace activist, and wrote many songs about love and peace. He explained, “This is why I am always about peace, you see. It’s the most violent people who go for love and peace”.

When I read those words, my emotions simply broke through my “good girl” façade, and with a painful sensation of flash-backs, I went into regression. Perhaps I saw myself in John Lennon’s story; I don’t much remember hitting women in the past or anyone in my life, but I remember being hit. I remember the color of my blood. I remember trying all my best to unremember the pain I was carrying all these years by doing the exact opposite. John Lennon chose “love and peace” song-writing, and I chose “cute and healthy” recipe-writing.

Perhaps I wanted to talk about this on this post, as “Rilakkuma Inari” was the very first recipe I wrote on Yukitchen.com. This was the beginning of my new door to unknow, and it meant the world to me. I received so many nice comments about this food from some of you, which you have no idea how much they encouraged me. I kept making more and more recipes, because it was so nice to get likes, so reassuring to get validations, and they made me hate my life a little bit less. You became the air, and I never knew I was suffocating without it until I was finally allowed to breathe. For that, I am forever grateful.

It’s 2020 May, and I’ve already started to rewrite some of the posts I posted before. I will probably lose so many followers! -I am aware of it, and terrified of it. But I need to live my life in truth and transparency, even more than I need privacy, or safety, or your approval, or understanding, or just about anything else. Truth and transparency not only make my life more ethical, but also easier. We all know how to pretend and smile like nothing ever happened. But pretending makes you so shallow and confused, and it’s a lot of work. I don’t want to do that kind of work anymore.

So, wow! There you go. This is the infamous “Rilakkuma Inari” that I wrote back in 2013. Inari Zushi is a type of Japanese sushi, a rice-ball wrapped with a deep-fried Tofu called “Abura-Age”. I made it look like Rilakkuma, because I spent a little bit too many hours crying with him on his stomach when life was slapping me in the face. He is a good friend of mine. I hope you like this recipe.

 

1: Make sushi rice.
Cook rice with 3 cups of water with steamer or pan and wait until ready. Add rice vinegar to the cooked rice and mix well. This is what we Japanese call “Sumeshi(酢飯)”, meaning sushi rice.  Now you know how to prepare rice when you cook sushi! *thumbs up*

2: Prepare the Inari.
Make sure the color is exactly like Rilakkuma 😉

3: Shape the Rilakkuma head.
Scoop the sushi rice into a plastic wrap like this, and squeeze it tight! If you don’t squeeze tight enough, it will look strange and also difficult to eat. I find it much easier using plastic wrap rather than my own hands to make a real tight rice ball.

4: Make the ears.
This is the hard part! First, scoop a little amount of rice with a small spoon and place it on both corners of Inari. Then push it with the back of the spoon to make it look like an ear. Inari is real fragile. If you push too hard, it might break apart, so be very careful!

5: Close the inari sheet. 
Tuck the bottom of the inari underneath the rice and hide the edge by shaping it nice and round. Now you have a beautiful bear shape right in your kitchen!

6: Make the facial part. 
Use the Nori(seaweed) puncher for Rilakkuma’s eyes, nose, and mouth. You can use scissors if you don’t have a puncher. Then shape the cheese into Rilakkuma’s mouth. I used a cookie cutter.

7: Make a thin omelet for the ears. 
I used the edge of a boba(tapioca) straw to cut out. It was the perfect size for the ears I found in my kitchen.

8: Place all your hard work on the plate. 
This part is super fun! Sometimes I screw up and make one of my Rilakkumas looks like he just had a shot of tequila, which made me laugh so hard! This is the moment where you can feel all the little effort is finally coming together. So don’t forget to have fun 🙂
Here you go, the “cutest sushi in the world”, Rilakkuma Inari. It’s absolutely fun to make, and I’ll guarantee that you can make everyone on the table smile.

Personally, I made this recipe alone, and ate it alone. You might be thinking that’s sad, and I used to think that too. But if you ever ask me now what I could add one thing in this food that day, it would not be someone to share with; -it would be “self-acceptance”.

For some of us, eating alone is an inevitability; -because when you cook for a long time and spend so much time with yourself over a meal, you become no one else but you. Not someone’s friend, not someone’s daughter, not someone’s girlfriend. Ask yourself a question, cultivate the answers with yourself over regression and introspection. This is how you nourish yourself; this is how you heal.

“Self-acceptance” may not be the recipe you hear on “cute and healthy” vegetarian food website, but I wonder if you can just imagine. -Imagine all the people, living life in peace. You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.

Thanks for reading.
-Yuki

p.s. If you are so kind and curious to know more about my regression phase, please read my “about me” page. x