10 Characters Made Out Of Rice That Are Cuter Than Cute | HuffPost Life

Nothing beats rice balls with bangs. Nothing.

By

Taste Senior Editor, HuffPost

You may have spotted them before, while clicking through the internet. Maybe you were searching for something to eat, or you were just scrolling through tumblr looking for nothing at all. And all of the sudden, you see it: an adorable panda. A panda so cute it stops you in your tracks. With one more glance, you soon realize that you can EAT this panda because he's made entirely out of rice (and seaweed).

Welcome to the wonderful world of rice characters, where you'll meet kittens, ghosts, pandas and all kinds of adorable creations that you can eat. Most of these rice characters are a creative take on onigiri -- the popular Japanese rice balls. But some of them are just created for the sake of being cute. And almost all of them are made for kids lunches, because of course.

We rounded up our favorite examples for you. Here are all the types of rice characters you can find -- get ready for loads of cute, guys.

Pandas head, of course

Anna Hezel/Food52

Get the Panda head rice recipe from Anna Hezel via Food52

Ones that look like donuts AND cats.

Bento Monsters

Get the donut cat recipe from Bento Monsters

All of the Disney characters

Bento Monster

Get the Mickey, Minnie, Donald & Daisy recipe from Bento Monsters

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Ghostly ones

Flickr: gamene

Get the rice ghost from Happy Little Bento blog

Hipster ones

Flickr: doctor muerte

We don't have a tutorial for this guy, but aren't his bangs awesome?

Entire panda families

Bento Monsters

Did you spot the baby panda in that box?

Get the Panda family recipe from Bento Monsters

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Winky ones

Flickr: katierose95

We don't have a tutorial for this one either, but we're pretty sure you can figure it out ;)

Soccer balls, because everyone loves the World Cup

Bento Monsters

Get the soccer ball recipefrom Bento Monsters

CRAY-CRAY ones

Bento Monsters

Get the Totoro Rice Character recipe from Bento Monsters

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And ones with superhero powers

Bento Monsters

You're looking at Spiderman there, and you can eat him, guys.

Get the Spiderman Bento recipe from Bento Monsters

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Before You Go

Bento Box Lunches For Kids

Back-To-School Bento Box Lunch(01 of10)

Get the Back-to-School Bento Box Lunch from Bento-logyKids will love going back to school with this bento box, complete with a pencil-shaped sandwich. Use colorful silicone cupcake liners to divide the fruit from the veggies. (credit:Bento-logy)

Little Olympian Bento Box Lunch(02 of10)

Get the Little Olympian Bento Box Lunch from Bento MonstersThis summer's Olympics are inspiring for adults and kids alike. These bento boxes have little mascots that are so much cuter than London's. The figures are formed from rice and behind them is teriyaki chicken. (credit:Bento Monsters)

Piglet And Pooh Bear Bento Box Lunch(03 of10)

Get the Piglet and Pooh Bear Bento Box Lunch from Mothering CornerUse creative cookie cutters, in this case of Piglet and Pooh Bear, to create these ham and cheese sandwiches. Pack the boxes with fresh fruit and vegetables cut into small sizes to make them easy -- and fun -- to eat. (credit:Mothering Corner)

Hello Kitty Bento Box Lunch(04 of10)

Get the Hello Kitty Bento Box Lunch recipe from Happy Little BentoThis box is packed with a pizza-wich made with pepperoni, spinach and cheese between two toasted sandwich thins. A cute Hello Kitty face is made from a slice of cheese. (credit:Happy Little Bento)

Circus Animal Bento Box Lunch(05 of10)

Get the Circus Animal Bento Box Lunch from BentoLunch.netTry something new when making sandwiches -- in this case chicken salad is rolled up in a tortilla and cut into little roll-ups. The lunch is finished with a circus theme complete with elephants and colorful fruit. (credit:BentoLunch.net)

Phineas And Ferb Bento Box Lunch(06 of10)

Get the Phineas and Ferb Bento Box Lunch from Hawaii's Bento Box CookbookTake your kids' favorite cartoon character and turn him into a sandwich. In this case it's an easy peanut butter and jelly sandwich packed with sliced cucumber and strawberries. (credit:Hawaii's Bento Box Cookbook)

Old MacDonald Bento Box Lunch(07 of10)

Get the Old MacDonald Bento Box Lunch from Bent On Better LunchesThis box is made with a different kind of MacDonald in mind. Teach kids the song (as well as their farm animals) through this adorable bento box lunch. (credit:Bent On Better Lunches)

Alphabet Sandwich Bento Box Lunch(08 of10)

Get the Alphabet Sandwich Bento Box Lunch from BentoLunch.netThis lunch box features a grilled cheese sandwich topped with cheese letters. It's great for teaching kids how to spell their name. (credit:BentoLunch.net)

Star Wars Sandwich Bento Box Lunch(09 of10)

Get the Star Wars Sandwich bento Box Lunch from WendoloniaIf your kid is a Star Wars fan, they'll appreciate these sandwiches made with the help of special cookie cutters. Pack the bento box with lots of fresh fruit and some gold fish crackers for snacking. (credit:Wendolonia)

Twinkle Twinkle Spaghetti Bento Box Lunch(10 of10)

Get the Twinkle Twinkle Bento Box Lunch from Adventures in Bento MakingLeftover spaghetti makes a great lunch the next day. This box of spaghetti is decorated with cut-out cheese stars. Alongside you'll find little smokies sausages and edamame. (credit:Adventures in Bento Making)

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