Asparagus-Wild Onion-Umami

One of my favorite spoils of spring are the wild onions. In the Bay Area, the Allium triquetrum or "three-cornered leek" is the wild onion that abounds and it also happens to be as lovely in flavor as it is in appearance. This wild onion is nicknamed "three-cornered" because of the shape of its stems and has the characteristic allium smell and taste with a delicate sweet note, especially when using its small, white, star-shaped flowers. 

There are many ways to enjoy these "three-cornered leeks", but pairing them with asparagus deliciously highlights the season. In California, not many foods are truly seasonal so when they are I like to indulge. Browning the asparagus and chopped onion stems in butter with umeboshi brings in umami elements then topping with the sweet wild flowers and crunchy bits of sesame really knocks it out of the park. We made umeboshi last year with local wild plums, but store bought umeboshi or even miso can be used as a substitute if you do not have access to umeboshi - either ingredient will contribute the umami flavor that you're looking for. Recipe is adaptable to the amount of asparagus you have preference for strength of flavors. The below recipe will serve 2-4 people (in our house, definitely only 2!)

• 1 pound of asparagus (about 16 spears), tough fibrous stems removed

• 7 wild onion, aka three-cornered leek, stalks with flowers (there will be several flowers on each stalk)

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

• 3 umeboshi, finely chopped, or 1 tablespoon red or brown miso

• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1. For larger asparagus spears: Using a vegetable peeler, peel bottom of spear about 1-inch up from bottom and slice larger asparagus spears in half lengthwise. If you have thin asparagus spears, both of these steps can be skipped.

2. Remove wild onion flowers and dice stalks. Set aside.

3. In a cast iron pan, sauté butter over medium-high heat. Add asparagus, toss to coat, and cook until beginning to soften, about 1 minute. Add umeboshi (or miso in small pieces) and diced wild onion stalks, toss to coat, and cook until asparagus browns, about 3-5 minutes, tossing halfway through. Test an asparagus spear to see if it is flavored to your liking - if not, add more butter/umeboshi or miso/onion.

4. Remove from heat and top with sesame seeds and wild onion flowers. Serve hot.

Wild onion basking in the sun.

Seared onigiri (Japanese rice balls) with pickled plum

The beginnings of umeboshi made from wild California plums.

Last year I was diligent enough to get my hands on some wild plums and turn them into a California-inspired version of umeboshi, the umami-rich pickled plum condiment from Japan. You can find more about umeboshi and how I made it here, but the most important piece of information in this blog post is that as a result of my making umeboshi, I might be invited on an - I kid you not - Japanese game show. "Who Wants to Come to Japan" is a show that essentially, sends people who are interested in a particular aspect of Japanese culture and have never been to Japan and films their experience. They came across my umeboshi post and reached out to me about being a contestant. Naturally, I jumped at this opportunity. I have never been to Japan and have always wanted to go to explore Japanese foodways and the culture in general. Given it's a Japanese game show, there's definitely a high probability of ridiculousness and, although I may be the brunt of the ridicule, YOLO amiright? 

Sometimes you need a little extra umeboshi paste.

So - to honor this momentous occasion (they're visiting tomorrow!) I decided to finally get around to posting my method for umeboshi onigiri, or rice balls stuffed with umeboshi paste - a delicious way to use up leftover rice! I like to sear my onigiri (technically yaki-onigiri), kind in the same vein as aracini, if you've ever had the Italian fried rice ball appetizer, but pan-seared instead of fried.

This recipe, in combination with other umeboshi dishes including asparagus with wild onion and umami and simply a corn-butter-umeboshi sauté, are so good that I am almost out of my umeboshi supply and sadly, didn't get around to pickling any this year. I guess I'll just have to savor what I have left!

The below recipe makes about 8 small onigiri and can be expanded as needed.

• 2 cups cooked short-grained rice (preferably sticky rice), cooled* - great way to use up your leftovers! Especially delicious is using leftover coconut rice either from a restaurant or made at home (cook rice with half water/half coconut milk). 

• 1-2 teaspoons sesame seeds or furikake flakes (Japanese seasoning mix) 

• Sea salt

• 4 pickled plums (umeboshi), pitted and diced or smashed into a paste

• Grapeseed oil, for searing

• Soy or tamari sauce, optional (above photo was plain onigiri with umeboshi paste on the side)

1. In medium bowl, stir sesame seeds or furikake flakes into sticky rice to combine.

2. Wet hands lightly with water then spread a pinch of salt across your palms. Scoop 2 tablespoons of rice mixture from bowl and gently squeeze into ball. Flatten ball then form a well in the center. Add about 1/2 teaspoon umeboshi paste to well, then fold edges of rice over paste to cover. 

3. Gently squeeze into ball then flatten again. Continue process with more rice and umeboshi until rice is gone.

4. Lightly oil a cast iron pan and heat on medium-high. Once oil is hot, add onigiri and sear until lightly brown, about 1-2 minutes on each side. 

5. Serve with optional soy or tamari sauce (though you probably won't need it!)

*If rice isn't originally sticky and/or not sticky enough, you can make it "stickier" (technically, to be sticky rice, it must be a certain variety of rice that's high in a certain time of pasty starch) by heating pre-cooked rice on medium-low with 1-2 tablespoons water for about 5 minutes or until sticky, stirring occasionally. Here's a recipe for sticky rice, but I just cook rice as I always do then make it stickier after with this method.