Description
These Soy-Glazed Seared Salmon Rice Bowls with Namasu are the perfect quick & easy Japanese-inspired dinner! Complete with sticky-sweet-savory seared salmon, tangy pickled veggies, & a comforting pile of rice, these bowls use just a few simple staple ingredients & they turn out perfectly every single time.
The star of these bowls, of course, is the salmon. Look for the highest quality wild-caught salmon you can find. Cube it up & soak it in a quick-yet-flavorful marinade made of soy sauce, brown sugar, & mirin. Salmon sears to perfection after cooking just a couple of minutes per side, which is just the right amount of time for the marinade to transform into a perfectly sticky-sweet glaze that clings to the fish.
We like to enjoy this soy-glazed salmon with freshly cooked rice & namasu (Japanese-style quick pickled veggies). As is the case with any bowl-style meal, a little bit of prep is involved to pull together all of the components. Feel free to take or leave any component depending on how much time you have (e.g. skip the namasu pickled veggies, opt for just rice or just greens, etc.). This is a flexible recipe – have fun with it!
Be sure to check the Recipe Notes, below, for easy variations & meal prep tips!
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked short grain white or brown rice
- cucumber & carrot namasu (Japanese pickled vegetables), below
- 1 pound fresh wild-caught salmon, skin removed & diced into 1-inch cubes
- 2 green onions, ends trimmed & thinly sliced
- ¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup soy sauce (can sub tamari if gluten-free)
- 1 tablespoon mirin (see Recipe Notes)
- 1 teaspoon grapeseed oil or high smoke point vegetable oil of choice
- kosher salt & white pepper, to season
- for serving, as desired: furikake (Japanese nori seasoning), toasted sesame seeds, thinly sliced green onions, etc.
for the cucumber & carrot namasu (Japanese pickled vegetables):
- ½ English cucumber, sliced in half lengthwise & cut into very thin half-moons
- 1 small carrot, peeled & grated
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- kosher salt, to season
Instructions
- Prepare the pickled veggies: Place the sliced cucumber & grated carrot in a medium bowl. Season with 2 teaspoons kosher salt & stir to combine well. Let stand for 15-20 minutes, during which time the salt will draw excess moisture out of the vegetables. Rinse the vegetables well, draining any excess water, & use paper towel to pat the vegetables as dry as possible. Meanwhile, prepare the pickling liquid. Combine the sugar & rice vinegar in a small bowl or jar, seasoning with ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Microwave for 30 seconds to dissolve the sugar. Pour the warm pickling liquid over the seasoned cucumber & carrot. Mix gently to combine. Cover & chill before serving, or transfer to an airtight container & store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. [gallery columns="2" size="full" ids="27653,27654"]
- Marinate the salmon: Meanwhile, as the pickled veggies soak, prepare the salmon. Add the brown sugar, soy sauce & mirin to a medium bowl. Stir to combine well. Transfer half of the marinade to a small bowl & reserve for serving. Add the cubed salmon & sliced green onion to the medium bowl with the marinade. Stir to coat. Set aside to marinate for 20-30 minutes.
- Sear the salmon: Once the salmon is marinated, it’s ready for its quick sear. Add the oil to a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot & shimmering, add the salmon to the skillet, shaking off & discarding any excess marinade. Cook 2 minutes, then flip & cook 90 seconds – 2 minutes longer, or until your desired doneness is reached. Work in batches as necessary & resist the temptation to mess with the salmon as it cooks to ensure you achieve a beautiful golden sear. Transfer the seared salmon to a plate & set aside for serving.
- Build bowls & serve. Add the rice to a large, shallow bowl, then top it off with the namasu pickled vegetables & seared salmon. Drizzle some of the reserved soy marinade over top. Finish as desired with a generous sprinkling of furikake (Japanese nori seasoning), toasted sesame seeds, &/or thinly sliced green onions. These bowls are great as-is, though you can definitely add in extra veggies as desired. We like quick sautéed bok choy (pictured) or thinly sliced cabbage, though roasted broccoli, asparagus, or even just a handful of your favorite greens would be great too. Enjoy!
Notes
- Ingredient Notes:
- Protein: We like making these salmon rice bowls using wild-caught salmon, though the marinade is very flexible & works well with a number of different proteins – shrimp, thinly sliced chicken or steak, you name it! Feel free to use whatever you love most or already happen to have on hand.
- Mirin is a sweet Japanese rice wine, a staple ingredient in Japanese cooking. Mirin is similar to more well-known sake, though it tends to have a higher naturally-occurring sugar content (from fermentation) & lower alcohol content. You can find mirin in the “international” aisle of most conventional grocery stores these days, though it’s also readily available at Asian grocery stores. Imperfect-yet-quick substitutes for the mirin in this recipe include dry sherry or dry vermouth.
- Storage & Reheating: Store leftover soy-glazed salmon, namasu, & rice in individual airtight containers in the refrigerator. The namasu & rice are best within 4-5 days, while the salmon is best within 2 days of cooking. I like leftovers best cold, though you can reheat the salmon & rice in the microwave until warmed through & assemble a bowl with namasu veggies for serving.
- 10-20-Minute Meal Prep: Nearly all of the active prep work for these salmon rice bowls comes from prepping the namasu & salmon marinade. Prep either or both in advance to cut down on active prep at dinnertime – it’ll take 20 minutes, tops:
- Prepare the namasu pickled veggies according to Step 1 of Recipe Directions above. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. (~10 minutes active prep)
- Prepare the salmon marinade according to Step 2 of Recipe Directions above. Rather than marinating the salmon as described, transfer the marinade to an airtight container & store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. At dinnertime, simply pour half of the marinade over the cubed salmon, let it soak for 20 minutes, then sear as directed above. (~10 minutes active prep)