The Beauty of a Hawaiian Poke Bowl Is Its Simplicity
Ahi Poke Bowls are one of the first things I crave when visiting family in Hawaii (right alongside Spam Musubi, of course!). Even though poke has gone global, it’s still surprisingly hard to find real-deal Hawaiian poke outside of the islands.
In Hawai‘i, a poke bowl is almost always simply fresh poke spooned over warm rice. There aren’t elaborate toppings or sauces drizzled over top – just really good fresh fish doing its thing, with the rice there to soak it all up. The toppings-loaded versions you see at restaurants and food trucks outside of Hawai‘i are a fun riff, but they’re a different thing entirely.
When my O‘ahu-born-and-raised Mom and I started making poke bowls together here in the Midwest, we learned pretty quickly that working with fish far from Hawaiian waters calls for a slightly different approach. When the fish isn’t pulled straight from the ocean that morning, a few thoughtfully chosen toppings go a long way – not to bury the poke, but to support it.
It’s simple, intentional, and the closest thing we’ve found to bringing a taste of Hawai‘i to wherever you are.💜
A Taste of Hawaii at Home
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Seek out your local fishmonger for the highest quality ahi tuna! Some people always look for “sushi-grade fish,” but this term isn’t actually regulated in the US. Instead, focus on finding ahi tuna that is a bright, deep red color with a firm texture. Let your fishmonger know you’ll be eating the tuna raw and they’ll make sure you get the freshest fish.
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‘Alaea Salt (Red Hawaiian Salt)
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Buy Now → The Star of the Show: Shoyu Ahi Poke
For this poke bowl, I use my mom’s classic Shoyu Ahi Poke Recipe—raw tuna, sweet onion, scallions, and just enough seasoning to let the fish shine.
Once you have your ingredients, all it takes to bring this Hawaiian poke to your table is a quick mix-then-marinate with no cooking at all!
🌺 A quick note! You’ll notice a few specialty Hawaiian ingredients listed here – check out Mom’s Shoyu Ahi Poke recipe for detailed sourcing and substitution notes on ingredients. But if you can’t get your hands on them, the optional ingredients are truly optional – you can still make a really delicious poke bowl without them.
Building Your Ahi Poke Bowl with Rice and Toppings
Calrose rice is the classic base for poke bowls on the islands – and my personal favorite. Its medium grain is light and just a hint sticky, allowing it to hold onto the ahi tuna and soak up the savory shoyu sauce. This is different from a sushi bowl that uses short grain rice seasoned with rice vinegar and sugar. I find seasoned sushi rice competes with the ahi tuna’s flavor, and we can’t have that!
🍚 When it’s time to serve, use your rice paddle to gently scrape the rice out of the pot – don’t dig! Digging into the rice compacts it, undoing all the work you put in it to make it light and fluffy.
While your rice cooks, take a minute to slice up your favorite toppings.
Our house poke bowl includes: Mom’s shoyu ahi poke served over perfectly sticky Calrose rice with 4 complementary toppings: cucumber for fresh crunch, avocado for creaminess, furikake for a little oceanic umami, and wasabi mayo for punch.
I can’t wait for you to try this Ahi Tuna Poke Bowl! If you do, be sure to let us know! Leave a comment with a star rating below. You can also snap a photo and tag @playswellwithbutter on Instagram. We LOVE seeing your PWWB creations! ♡ Happy cooking!
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Mom’s Shoyu Ahi Poke Bowls (Hawaiian Family Recipe!)
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: serves 3-4 1x
- Category: Main Dishes, Entree Salads & Bowls
- Method: No-Cook
- Cuisine: Hawaiian
Description
Straight from the kitchen of my O’ahu born-and-raised mom, this Ahi Tuna Poke Bowl delivers a true taste of Hawai‘i wherever you are! 🌺🤙🏼
Raw, cubed ahi tuna marinates in a classic shoyu sauce made with sweet onion, scallion, and sesame oil. Serve over a bed of sticky white rice with simple toppings like cucumber, avocado, and furikake seasoning. Fresh, balanced, and absolutely perfect – just like what you’d find on the islands!
A quick note! You’ll notice a few specialty Hawaiian ingredients listed below – check out Mom’s Shoyu Ahi Poke recipe for detailed sourcing and substitution notes on ingredients like limu, inamona, and Hawaiian sea salt. They add authentic flavor and texture, but the optional ingredients are truly optional – you can still make a really delicious poke bowl without them.
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry Calrose rice
- Mom’s shoyu ahi poke (below)
- optional: 1 avocado, thinly sliced or diced
- optional: ½ English cucumber, peeled as desired & diced into ½-inch cubes
- optional: ¼ cup furikake
- optional: ⅓ cup wasabi mayo (⅓ cup mayonnaise + 1-2 teaspoons wasabi paste)
for Mom’s shoyu ahi poke:
- 1 pound good-quality ahi tuna, diced into ¾-inch cubes (see Recipe Notes)
- ¼ large sweet onion, thinly sliced (about ¼ cup)
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced (about ⅓ cup)
- optional: ¼ cup fresh or rehydrated ogo or limu (Hawaiian seaweed, see Recipe Notes)
- 2–3 tablespoons shoyu or low-sodium soy sauce (see Recipe Notes)
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon Hawaiian sea salt (see Recipe Notes)
- optional: 1 teaspoon finely chopped inamona or macadamia nuts (see Recipe Notes)
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
- ¾ teaspoon crushed red pepper
Instructions
METHOD OVERVIEW:
Cook the rice in a rice cooker according to manufacturer’s directions. Meanwhile, prepare the ahi poke by gently mixing all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate briefly to allow the flavors to meld. To serve, spoon the rice into bowls, top with chilled poke, and finish with toppings as desired.
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS:
- Rinse the rice: Transfer the rice to a pot or the rice cooker’s inner cooking pan and rinse well: cover with warm water, give it a good jostle with your hands to agitate the dust off the rice’s surface, then carefully drain the water. Repeat rinsing until the water runs clear – this takes a good minute or two; be patient!
- Cook the rice: Following the ratios provided on the package or in your rice cooker’s directions, add water to the rice and cook according to your preferred method. Once the rice is done, let it steam and rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
- Mix the ahi poke: In a medium bowl, combine the cubed tuna, sweet onion, green onion, ogo or limu (if using), shoyu, toasted sesame oil, Hawaiian sea salt, inamona or macadamia nuts (if using), toasted sesame seeds, and crushed red pepper. Gently stir to combine.
- Marinate: Cover the poke and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to chill and allow the flavors to meld.
- Build your poke bowls: Use a rice paddle to scrape the rice out of the pot rather than digging in, which compacts the rice – we want it light and sticky! Spoon the chilled poke over the rice, along with your desired toppings. Enjoy!
Notes
Ingredient Notes:
- Ahi tuna: As the star of this recipe, it’s important to use the best quality fish you can find. Since poke is a raw preparation, source your tuna from a fishmonger you trust. It’s worth noting that labels like “sushi-grade” or “sashimi-grade” are not regulated – instead, I suggest letting your fishmonger guide you to their best selection for a raw dish. If you’re local to the Twin Cities, I love Coastal Seafoods (east metro) and Brookies (west metro). If you can’t find good-quality fresh ahi, this recipe also works well with salmon.
- Specialty Hawaiian ingredients: Check out Mom’s Shoyu Ahi Poke recipe for detailed notes on sourcing and substitutions for traditional Hawaiian ingredients like ogo, limu, inamona, shoyu, and Hawaiian sea salt. As Mom always says, these ingredients add great flavor and texture, but they’re not a deal-breaker. The optional ingredients are truly optional – you can still make a really delicious poke bowl without them.
- Best rice for poke bowls: For best results, use short- or medium-grain white rice. Calrose is the variety most commonly used in Hawai‘i (my family’s preferred brands are Botan and Kokuho Rose), though sushi-style short-grain rice works well too.
- Poke bowl toppings: In Hawai‘i, poke bowls are much simpler than the colorful, toppings-heavy versions popular here on the Continent – often just poke spooned over warm rice. If you prefer a more loaded bowl, go for it! My family loves the toppings listed: cucumber for fresh crunch, avocado for creamy richness, furikake for oceanic flavor, and wasabi mayo for a kick of heat.
Storage and Reheating:
- Storage: Once assembled, these ahi tuna poke bowls are best enjoyed fresh. Store any leftover poke, rice, and toppings in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. Reheat the rice in the microwave, then spoon the chilled poke on top.
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I don’t think I’ve ever left a comment on a recipe before, but this is fantastic. Great when it’s too hot to cook, flavours are amazing, really grateful you shared this!
Thanks so much for leaving your first recipe comment here, Michaela! We’re so happy you loved the poke bowls as much as we do!
I have been scouring the internet for a recipe that looks anywhere near what I was having in Hawaii, and this is so close! Question for you. Because I have a gluten allergy, they were serving me a version where the “sauce” was only sesame oil and salt. It was unbelievably good! Do you have a variation of this recipe for that type of poke?
Hi Jessica, our standard Ahi Poke recipe is the one we use for these bowls, and we don’t have a different recipe that’s gluten free, but you can substitute gluten-free soy sauce to adapt this recipe to be gluten free! Hope that helps, make sure to let us know if you give it a try!
I didn’t have everything right, but the ahi marinade was so good that it didn’t matter that much. I sliced the tuna and used a Japanese rice. The avocado and cucumber were great. I will make it again.
We couldn’t agree more – you can’t go wrong with this marinade! So glad you enjoyed, thanks for taking the time to leave a review!
Hey Jess!
I don’t do poke often, more of a sashimi or ceviche guy, but I keep finding myself back at this post. I use it as a my base and if I’m lucky enough to have everything then great if not improv is required. Regardless I super appreciate you putting this up!
So glad to hear that this has been a helpful base recipe for you, John! Thanks for the review!
These are so delicious and immediately transport me back to the islands.
Woooo hooo that’s the goal! 🙌🏼
Best Supporting poke bowls ever
We couldn’t agree more, thanks Mary!! 🙂
Looks incredible, can’t wait to try it out.
Thank you, Chanel! Hope you are able to try soon!!