Mini Kimbap - Perfect Lunch To Go!

5 from 1 vote

Wash 2 cups of short-grain, white rice in your rice cooker bowl. Rinse the rice until the residual water turns clear (3-4 washes). Then carefully pour out as much water as you can from the soaking rice. Next, add-in 1.75 cups of fresh water into the bowl.
Place the bowl back into the rice cooker and press cook.

Peel 2 carrots. Trim-off the ends. Then use a peeler and carefully peel off thick strands from the carrot.
Stack these thick strands and julienne them into fine strips.
Next, place a frying pan on medium heat. Place some oil in. Once its hot, place the carrot strips in. Season them with a few pinches of salt. Stir-fry it for 2 minutes, or until the carrots start to sweat. Then turn off heat and place the carrots into a bowl - set aside.

Grab 2 large handfuls of spinach. Trim off the ends from the spinach (if any). Then thoroughly rinse the spinach in water - get rid of any dirt.
Fill a pot with water and bring it to boil. Once its boiling, add-in the spinach for only 30 seconds. Use a timer. Then drain and cool the spinach down in cold water.
Afterwards, use your hands and squeeze the water out of the spinach.
Detangle the clumps of spinach in a mixing bowl. Then season it with Minced Garlic (½ teaspoon!), Soy Sauce (1 teaspoon!), Sesame Oil (½ teaspoon!). Give it a thorough toss with your hands. Place into a bowl and set it aside.

Take out 4 sheets of Korean Eomuk. Fold a sheet in half and carefully cut them into long strips. Repeat for each sheet.
Then place a frying pan on medium heat. Add a little bit of oil. Once its hot, add the eomuk strips in. Stir-fry around for 1 minute. Then add in Soy Sauce (1 Tablespoon) and Oligodang Syrup (1 Tablespoon). Stir-fry for 15-20 seconds. Then follow-up with Sesame Oil (small drizzle) and Sesame Seeds (few shakes).
Stir-fry for 1-2 more minutes. Place into a bowl and set aside.

Cut ham into long strips. Then place into a frying pan with a little bit of oil. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Place onto a plate and set aside.

Cut the long Danmuji in half. Then split them in half again. If you see any large pieces, split those in half again. Set aside for next step.

Take our 5 seaweed sheets. Use a pair of kitchen scissors and cut them into 4 rectangle pieces. Set aside for next step.

Before we begin rolling, pour a little bit of toasted sesame oil into a small bowl - along with a small kitchen brush. Set aside some sesame seeds as well. We'll apply both to each finished kimbap roll.

Place 5 cups of cooked rice into a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle 3-4 large pinches of Salt. Then add-in Rice Vinegar (1 Tablespoon) over the rice - pour it over a rice paddle for better distribution (reference video). Next add-in Sesame Oil (1 Tablespoon) - pour it over the rice paddle as well. Then sprinkle on some Sesame Seeds.
Carefully fold the rice so all the ingredients are evenly mixed together. Then cover the bowl with a damp (moist) towel - so it doesn't dry out.
[Note: If you want to make ~10 rolls (instead of 20+), scoop out only 2.5 cups of rice. Then use 1-2 large pinches of salt, ½ Tablespoon of Rice Vinegar, ½ Tablespoon of Sesame Oil and a few sprinkles of Sesame Seeds]

Put on a pair of plastic gloves - makes it easier to spread rice. Then place one rectangle gim sheet on a kimbap (sushi) rolling mat. Spread the rice evenly over the entire sheet.
Then place a little bit of each ingredient in the middle. The ingredients can spill over the edges - it actually looks prettier when it's rolled.
Then carefully grab one edge and roll it until it meets the other end. Take the rolled kimbap and roll it again with the kimbap (sushi) rolling mat - this will make the roll feel compact!
Next dab your kitchen brush in the sesame oil and pat it against the edges of the bowl - you don't want too much. Then brush the sesame oil over the roll. Finish each roll with a sprinkle of sesame seeds.
Repeat until you finish all of the ingredients.
Cut the mini kimbap rolls in ½ or ⅓. Eat by itself or dip into mayak dipping sauce below.

Thoroughly Mix Soy Sauce (1 Tablespoon), Mirim (1 Tablespoon), Oligodang Syrup (1 Tablespoon), Vinegar (1 Tablespoon), Hot Mustard (1 teaspoon!).
Dip the mini rolls into the mayak sauce and... Bon Appetit!