A Note on This Recipe
This is the folded tortilla trend, reimagined as kimbap: seaweed and rice instead of a tortilla, no rolling required, just the same fold-and-layer approach.
The trick is in how the ingredients are arranged before folding. Rice goes on two of the four sections, so once folded, the fillings sit sandwiched between layers of rice rather than loose in one spot, keeping everything more secure and giving you a better rice-to-filling balance in every bite. A quick-pickled cucumber stands in for the pickled radish you’d normally find in kimbap, ready in minutes instead of days, and it adds the same bright acidity to balance the richer ingredients.
How to Make It
Quick-Pickled Cucumbers
Cut the cucumbers into thin sticks and place them in a jar or airtight container. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the brine ingredients and microwave until just boiling, about 1 minute. Stir, then pour over the cucumbers while hot. Cover and refrigerate while preparing the other ingredients.
Cook the Egg Sheet
Whisk the egg with soy sauce until smooth. Heat vegetable oil in a nonstick pan over medium heat. Pour in the egg mixture and quickly spread it into an even layer. Cook until the bottom is set and the top is still slightly moist, then gently flip and cook briefly on the other side. Trim or fold the edges to form a square.
Prepare the Fillings
Slice the avocado lengthwise into thin pieces and trim the ham into squares. Take the pickled cucumbers out of the brine and pat them dry. Arrange the avocado, ham, cucumbers, and egg sheet together in one dish or on a tray so everything is within reach and ready to assemble.
Assemble
Cut a slit from the bottom edge of the seaweed sheet to the center. Place the egg in the bottom left quadrant and the avocado in the top left, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper.
Spread half the rice over the top right quadrant and season with salt, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Top with the ham, then spread the remaining rice over the bottom right and season again. Finish by adding the pickled cucumbers on top.
Fold and Serve
Fold the bottom left corner over the top left, then continue folding each section over the next, working clockwise to form a compact wrap. Serve immediately before the seaweed softens.
Ingredients
- 3 mini cucumbers
- ¼ cup rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- A dash of soy sauce
- Vegetable oil for cooking
- ½ cup steamed rice room temperature
- 1 seaweed sheet
- 2 slices deli ham
- ½ avocado
- Sesame oil
- Sesame seeds
- Salt
Instructions
- Start by making the quick-pickled cucumbers — pour hot brine over cucumber sticks and refrigerate while you prepare everything else.
- Cook the egg sheet by whisking egg with soy sauce, spreading it thin in a nonstick pan, flipping briefly, then trimming into a square.
- Slice the avocado and trim the ham into squares.
- Cut a slit from the bottom edge of the seaweed sheet to the center, then arrange each filling in a quadrant — egg, avocado, seasoned rice with ham, and pickled cucumbers.
- Fold the sections over each other clockwise to form a compact wrap and serve immediately.
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