This Spicy Salmon Maki Bowl is sushi inspired and has everything we all love deconstructed into a fabulous, healthy and wholesome bowl. Sushi rice, a zippy cabbage slaw, sliced avocado, cool crisp cucumbers and broiled marinated salmon. Sprinkled with crushed nori, sesame seeds, a crunchy panko topping and drizzled with an incredible spicy mayo. This recipe serves 4 and is also great for meal prep!
Think Deconstructed California Roll.
Sushi, sashimi and maki are definitely one of my all time favorite things to eat. Some of my most favorite moments in life include friends, family and platters of different types of each. And I always stop to pick up an order crunchy spicy California rolls after I get my hair done. It’s become a thing.
So I decided to turn my love of the California roll into a bowl featuring salmon, spicy mayo and a crunchy garlicky topping. Which to me is the best part.
And this bowl is quite possibly the best thing I have ever made.
To Make These Spicy Salmon Maki Bowls You Will Need:
for the spicy mayo
- Japanese mayo
- sriracha
for the salmon
- salmon
- coconut aminos
- rice vinegar
- toasted sesame oil
- sriracha
- green onions (light green/white parts)
for the quick pickled slaw
- shredded cabbage
- green onions (dark green parts)
- tamari
- rice vinegar
- toasted sesame oil
- ginger
- garlic
for the crunchy topping
- toasted sesame oil
- panko breadcrumbs
- garlic powder
- onion powder
for building the bowl
- cooked sushi rice (2 cups or more if desired)
- avocado
- mini cucumbers
- nori (about 1/2 to 3/4 of a sheet)
- toasted and/or black sesame seeds
Ever wondered how they make that spicy mayo that zigzags your favorite rolls? It’s simple, you need equal parts Japanese mayonnaise and sriracha. Since it’s hard for me to find Japanese mayo where I live, I order it online. But it’s a must if you want to recreate that sauce. For this recipe, I mix 2 tablespoons of each together.
As for the salmon, you will want 1 pound skinless (wild caught is best) salmon. I just so happened to go shopping on a Monday morning and all I could find were these salmon steaks. So I cubed them into 1 to 1-1/2 inch cubes. Worked great!
Next whip up the salmon marinade. It consists of 1/4 cup coconut aminos, 1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, 1 tablespoon sriracha and the light/white parts of 3 green onions. Whisk to combine.
Add your salmon to a re-sealable bag.
Pour the marinade over top.
Squeeze out as much air as possible and seal to close. I like to place it on a small tray or pan just incase the bag leaks. Pop this into your fridge to marinated for 30 to 45 minutes.
This is when I start the rice.
First rinse your rice until the water runs clear. Then follow the package instructions for preparing the rice or use your rice cooker. I always make rice in my rice cooker. With that said, I used the rice cooker cup to measure 2 “cups” and added it to my rice cooker, filled it up to the 2nd line and let the cooker work its magic. I also measure my cooked rice before serving.
If using the stovetop method, use a standard 1 cup measure. That should yield 2 cups sushi rice.
While rice is cooking and salmon is marinating, prepare the cabbage slaw. Add 4 cups thinly shredded cabbage plus the dark green parts to the onion (reserved from making the marinade) to a bowl.
Make the dressing by whisking together 2 tablespoons tamari, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, 1 teaspoon both grated ginger and grated garlic.
Pour in all of the dressing.
And then toss to combine.
Moving on to the crunchy topping. Add a teaspoon of toasted sesame oil to a small non-stick skillet. Measure and add 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs and 1/4 teaspoon each garlic and onion powder.
Stir over medium-low heat until golden brown. Remove off of the heat and set aside.
Preheat your oven to 400℉ (or 200℃).
Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, lightly spray with olive oil and arrange the marinated salmon. Discarding any leftover marinade.
Slip the salmon onto the middle rack and bake 6 to 8 minutes. Then remove and (using oven mitts) move the oven rack to the highest position. Turn on the broiler on high and broil until crispy, about 1 minute or so. Watch carefully, rotating the pan as needed to ensure equal browning.
FYI as for reheating leftovers, this salmon crisps and reheats beautifully in the air fryer. (4 minutes or so at 390°)
Build your bowl!
Divide rice among 4 bowls and top with slaw, salmon, avocado and cucumbers. Sprinkle with crush nori, toasted sesame seeds and the crunchy panko topping.
Lastly, drizzle with the spicy mayo
The flavors!! Oh my goodness the flavors of this bowl are exceptional. The sushi rice and salmon with the creamy avocado, cool cucumber and spicy mayo are out of this world. The crunchy panko hits this dish out of the park.
Prepare to fall in love.
Enjoy! And if you give this Spicy Salmon Maki Bowl recipe a try, let me know! Snap a photo and tag me on twitter or instagram!
Spicy Salmon Maki Bowl
Ingredients
FOR THE SPICY MAYO:
- 2 tablespoons Japanese mayo
- 2 tablespoons sriracha
FOR THE SALMON:
- 1 pound skinless wild caught salmon, cut into 1 to 1-1/2 inch pieces
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon sriracha
- 2 to 3 green onions, light green/white parts
FOR THE CABBAGE SLAW:
- 4 cups shredded cabbage
- reserved dark green parts from 2 green onions
- 2 tablespoons tamari, or low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh garlic
FOR THE CRUNCHY PANKO TOPPING:
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
FOR BUILDING THE BOWL:
- 2 cups cooked sushi rice
- 1 small avocado, quartered and sliced
- 2 mini cucumbers, sliced
- 1/2 to 3/4 sheet nori, crushed
- 2 teaspoons total toasted and/or black sesame seeds
Instructions
TO MAKE THE SPICY MAYO:
- In a bowl, combine Japanese mayo with sriracha. Cover and keep refrigerated until ready to use.
TO MAKE THE SALMON:
- Prepare the marinade by combining; coconut aminos, rice vinegar, oil, sriracha and the light/white parts of the green onions. Place salmon in a bowl or resealable bag and pour marinade over top. Squeeze out as much air as possible and refrigerate for 30 to 40 minutes.
- While the salmon is marinating I prepare the rice (following the package directions, or like me, use a rice cooker), the slaw and crunchy topping.
- Once marinated (and the rest of the prep is done for the rice, slaw and crunchy topping) remove the salmon and preheat your oven to 400℉ (or 200℃). Line a rimmed sheet pan with foil, spray with olive oil and remove and arrange the salmon pieces. Discard the marinade.
- Once the oven is preheated, slip the salmon into the oven and cook for 6 to 8 minutes. Then (using oven mitts) remove and move the oven rack to the highest position. Turn on the broiler and broil until crispy, about 1 minute or so.
TO MAKE THE CABBAGE SLAW:
- Make the dressing by combining the tamari, rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, ginger and garlic. In a large bowl add the cabbage and green onion. Pour in the dressing and toss well to combine.
TO MAKE THE CRUNCHY TOPPING:
- Add toasted sesame oil, panko, garlic and onion powder to a small non-stick skillet. Heat over medium-low toasting the panko until golden. Remove off of the heat and set aside.
BUILD YOUR MAKI BOWL:
- Divide rice among bowls (about 1/2 cup each) and top with cabbage slaw, salmon, avocado and cucumbers. Sprinkle with crush nori, toasted sesame seeds and the crunchy panko topping. Lastly drizzle with the spicy mayo.
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I have been lusting after this recipe since it came across my feed, so today I made a window of time to make it. Oh my God!! This was even better than I expected and the family are seriously fans!! Thank you so much for sharing!
This looks amazing! I’ll definitely be making this some time this coming week!
Delicious!! Good, contrasting flavours and textures all around.
This looks so good! What a great lunch meal prep for the week!
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
This was amazing… I followed recipe exactly and just wow!… exactly what I was craving!!
Loved this recipe so much! Super easy and delicious.
Will definitely make again and again and again.
This was so delicious and very easy to make!
Will be making this all the time now.
Yum 🙂
Beyond perfection! Simply perfect! Yum!
This recipe is so amazing! I’ve made a handful of times now and it’s always a hit, thank you so much for sharing! Tonight I used French fried onions because that’s all I had on hand and it was great with that too. If you like Unagi sauce a drizzle of that is always a great addition too. Thank you again!
I made this for my family last night and everyone loved it! I was anticipating a large amount of leftovers, as there are only 3 people in my family, but we ate all of it. I can’t wait to make this again. It is definitely a new family favorite. Thank you!
Already made this twice, very delicious. Doubled the sauce and slaw!!
My wife gave it 10/10, my son gave it 8/10 because he wanted brown rice instead, and my daughter gave it 9/8.
Do you add rice vinegar, sugar and salt to the rice or just leave it plain?
I serve it plain (one less step lol!)
Hi Brenda! I leave it plain. Enjoy!
This was fantastic! I didn’t have sushi rice on hand so used reg par boiled rice and added a chunk of ginger to it while cooking (removed before serving) I added a little extra ginger, pinch of sugar and squeeze of lime to slaw dressing! Husband doesn’t like crumb toppings so I topped with Furikake instead. This dish was a hit and will be made many more times. Salmon was so flavorful and moist and fast to cook.
Thanks so much for sharing
Love this recipe! Curious, do you think the salmon could be cooked in the air fryer?
Absolutely!
Amazing!!! Even my 7 and 10 year olds request it.