Kimbap (Seaweed Rice Rolls) in Various Shapes
Lunchbox-ready kimbap rolled in different styles, from the classic version to nude kimbap, filled with colorful ingredients like cucumber, carrot, and imitation crab stick.
Translated from Korean by AI and not yet checked by a native speaker. Amounts and numbers are taken directly from the original recipe. Read the Korean original →
This kimbap is packed with seasoned pickled vegetables, lightly sautéed imitation crab stick, and egg garnish. Cooked rice is lightly seasoned with toasted sesame oil and salt, then rolled into fun lunchbox styles—wrapped inside perilla leaves or a large egg crepe, or rolled inside-out with plastic wrap as nude kimbap.
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Spiciness
- Not spicy
Ingredients
Kimbap Ingredients
- Dried seaweed sheets (gim)
- Cooked rice
Filling
- Cucumber
- Carrot
- Imitation crab stick (or ham)
- Yellow pickled radish (danmuji)
- Egg garnish (jidan)
Inner Wrap Ingredients
- Perilla leaves
- Egg garnish (jidan)
- Discard the cucumber seeds, slice lengthwise, and salt for about 20 minutes.
- Ham or fish cake works well in place of imitation crab stick.
Steps
1. Discard the cucumber seeds, slice lengthwise, and salt. About 20 minutes
2. Julienne lengthwise and salt.
Discard the liquid released while salting the cucumber and carrot, and pat them dry with paper towels.
I lightly sautéed the carrot in a frying pan.
3. Cut the imitation crab stick in half and lightly sauté in a frying pan.
Ham or fish cake is also good instead of crab stick.
4. Fry the egg garnish and slice it to the same size and length as the other ingredients, and slice the wrapping garnish to roughly the size of dried seaweed sheets.
I also prepared a few perilla leaves.
5. All the fillings are ready.
6. Cook the rice so it turns out slightly dry and firm.
The standard ratio of rice to water is 1: 1.2, but adjust the amount of water depending on how dry the rice is.
Season the cooked rice with toasted sesame oil and salt.
7. This is the basic way to roll kimbap.
8. Trying nude kimbap: spread the rice over the dried seaweed sheet and cover it with plastic wrap...
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9. Flip the dried seaweed sheet, rice, and plastic wrap all at once in one big turn.
While flipped, place the fillings on the seaweed and roll it up using the plastic wrap.
I failed my first attempt at this, so this is my second one.
10. Lay perilla leaves over the dried seaweed sheet and rice...
11.
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11. Place the fillings on top of the perilla leaves and roll it up.
Instead of perilla leaves, I also rolled one using an egg garnish fried to the size of a dried seaweed sheet. (I forgot to take a photo)
12. All the rolled kimbap.
The rolled kimbap looked really clumsy at first, but once sliced,
it actually looks pretty decent.
Ppunwife's tips
- Cook the rice so it turns out slightly dry and firm. The standard ratio of rice to water is 1: 1.2, but adjust the amount of water depending on how dry the rice is.
FAQ
Can I use other fillings instead of imitation crab stick?
Depending on your preference, adding ham or fish cake instead of imitation crab stick also works very well.
What is the proper water ratio when cooking rice for kimbap?
Use a ratio of about 1:1.2 of rice to water as a baseline, but adjust the water amount based on the dryness of the rice to cook it slightly firm and fluffy.
How do you prep the cucumber and carrot after salting?
Discard the liquid drawn out from salting, pat them dry with paper towels, and lightly sauté the carrot in a frying pan.
