Homemade Senbei (Japanese Rice Crackers)

Ahoy Foodies!

  I once worked for a chef who, when faced with a dish that would not sell, would add the word crunchy or crispy to the menu description. "Prawns with Persian Saffron Rice"? Nada. But call the dish "Crispy Prawns with Persian Saffron rice," and he had a best seller.  

I loved the crisping and crunching of his menu, one, because it's terribly clever, and two,  I am an avid snack-tooth (as opposed to sweet-tooth). Crunch adds another dimension eating--sure, you taste sweet, salty, savory, la-la-la everything is just okay, and then CRUNCH, and the meal is way more interesting. Crunchy things satisfy our need to chew, and grind, and have some sound above all our masticating and talking. I probably order more items that say "crunchy" than not. I think most of us do.

When it comes to crunchy snacks,  some go for greasy thick-cut "kettle" potato chips glistening with oil and salt crystals. Others dig dessicated pretzels. Others virtuously nibble nuts. I prefer something a bit more exotic...and expensive: Japanese rice crackers, also called senbei. 


Sold in fancy little bags and boxes, individually wrapped, and lined up in rows like little snack soldiers, senbei vary in size and come seasoned with all sorts of salty goodness, from bits of nori seaweed to sesame seeds, soy nuts, and even dried shrimp. They're light, lovely, and beyond any other crunchy snack out there.  Sadly, they cost from $4-$7 a package. The way I tear through them, other arrangements had to be made.


After much experimentation, I've sorted out a nice, easy recipe that makes highly addictive rice crackers for much, much less than I was paying for those pretty little boxes.  Here's a little step by step photo essay (many thanks to Mr. Tofu) for making your own senbei; you're welcome to share my addiction. The recipe is at the end of the page.

Process Sweet Rice Flour+ Cooked Sushi Rice+ Oil+ Water

Add Furikake (Japanese rice seasoning)

                                                     

Press between 2 sheets plastic...

Until very thin indeed

Bake until crisp, and then brush with honey-soy glaze

Dry in oven 3 minutes with oven off, watching very carefully

Stack o Crack-ers.

Homemade Senbei- Japanese Rice Crackers

Makes 30 crackers

3/4 cup sweet rice flour (such as Bob's Red Mill Sweet Rice Flour)

1/3 cup cooked white rice

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

2 tablespoons canola oil

4 tablespoons water

5 teaspoons furikake- Japanese seaweed rice seasoning condiment

1 tablespoon aged soy sauce

1 tablespoon tupelo honey

   Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a food processor, combine the rice flour, white rice, salt, and oil. Pulse until finely ground. With the machine running, slowly add the water. Transfer to a bowl, add the furikake, and knead to combine. 

Press hazelnut-sized balls of the dough between 2 ziplock bags into 2 1/2-inch disks (I use a flat-bottom brulee dish); the dough will be very thin. Bake on rimmed baking sheets for 5 minutes. Flip the crackers with a spatula and continue to cook until they are dry and starting to brown, 4 to 5 more minutes. Remove from oven. Turn off oven..

Combine the soy sauce and honey in a small bowl. Microwave for 25 seconds. Brush the tops of each cracker with the soy mixture. Place crackers in turned off oven and allow them to dry for 3 minutes. Allow crackers to cool for 15 minutes; they will crisp up considerably. Store in airtight container.

Recipe Ivy Manning, photos Gregor Torrence, 2011. All rights reserved.