Easy 15-min. Spicy Tuna Kimbap

Easy Korean Spicy Tuna Kimbap. A delicious seaweed rice roll filled with perilla leaves and a spicy tuna mayo filling. This popular Korean dish serves well as a light meal, snack idea for road trips, or in a lunch box.

5 from 4 votes

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Prep Time 10

Assembly time 5

Total Time 15

Course Main Course, Snack

Cuisine Korean

Servings rolls

Calories per serving 447 kcal

Ingredients

2 sheets nori or gim (roasted seaweed)
4 perilla leaves washed and dried with stems removed
½ teaspoon sesame oil to coat kimbap
½ teaspoon sesame seeds to sprinkle on kimbap

For the rice:

2 cups cooked short grain rice
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 teaspoon salt

For the tuna mixture:

5.3 oz canned tuna in oil for best taste, or substitute with canned tuna in water
2 tablespoon green onion very finely chopped
2 tablespoon Japanese mayo aka Kewpie mayo or sub with regular mayo
1 tablespoon sriracha sauce (add another tablespoon if you like it spicier)

Instructions

Drain the canned tuna of it's liquids using a fine sieve. Transfer canned tuna to a medium bowl. Add green onions, kewpie mayo and sriracha sauce to the tuna and mix well. Set aside.
In a large bowl with hot cooked rice, season with sesame oil, sesame seeds, and a bit of salt. Mix well. Cover with a damp towel or lid and keep warm.
Vertically place a nori sheet rough side up on a cutting board. Optionally, if you have a bamboo mat, you can place the nori on top of that.
Take a cup of rice and place it in the center of the nori. Using clean hands or a rice paddle, evenly spread the portion of rice out and create a 1 inch border at the end furthest away from you.
Place two perilla leaves in the center of the rice, overlapping them so they can fit.
Scoop half of the spicy tuna mixture on top of the perilla leaves and evenly shape the tuna mixture into a thick log (See images in blog post for visual aid). Do not spread it out thinly or when you roll it, the tuna filling will spill out from the sides. With enough rolling pressure, the tuna filling should evenly distribute.
Fold the perilla leaves over the tuna mixture, to hold the tuna mixture in. (See images in blog post for visual aid).
To begin rolling, start at the end closest to you. Firmly roll and tuck in the ingredients and be careful not to squeeze the tuna filling out as you roll.
Once you reach the end, let the roll sit on top where the border was so it can stick to the rest of the roll from the residual heat of the rice.
Evenly pour ½ teaspoon sesame oil on the kimbap roll and with clean hands or a brush, spread it all over the seaweed.
Repeat the above steps for the remaining roll.
Rub some sesame oil on a sharp knife. Firmly hold your kimbap with your dominant hand (but don't squeeze) and slice it with the knife into 1-inch-thick pieces. Then garnish with sesame seeds. Enjoy!

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