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You’re about to learn how to make these salmon avocado bowls the easy way and all my tips to prep them ahead.
Salmon Avocado Rice Bowls
There’s so much to talk about these salmon avocado bowls, but I’ll keep it simple: salmon is good for you, and when cooked well, it’s flaky, delicious, and never dry. In this recipe, I'll show you how to cook the salmon in a pan, but you can also bake it in the oven.
When I build rice bowls, I add veggies, protein, and something to drizzle to enjoy a balanced family meal packed with flavor, textures, and nutrition. A total win.
Ingredients
The base of these bowls is rice (jasmine, sushi, or white rice), skin-on salmon fillets, avocado, and English or Persian cucumber. To infuse them with flavor, you’ll need olive oil, salt, and pepper for the salmon, and rice vinegar and granulated sugar to marinate the cucumber. Plus soy sauce and brown sugar for the glaze, and spicy mayo to drizzle.
Homemade Spicy Mayo
If you often request extra spicy mayo at your local sushi spot, you’ll agree this version is the best! All you need is mayonnaise, water, and your favorite Asian chili paste (like sambal oelek) or Sriracha. You can easily adjust the level of heat to your liking by adding more to the recipe below.
How to Make Salmon Avocado Bowls
Here’s how these salmon avocado bowls are made:
- Cook the rice.
Cook the rice in the rice cooker or on the stovetop al dente (not mushy). - Cook the salmon.
Pat the salmon dry so the seasonings stick better. Cook them in a pan, skin-side up first, then flip them over. You'll know when salmon is done when the internal temperature reaches 145F. - Marinate the cucumber.
Mix rice vinegar and white sugar to infuse the cucumber for 10 minutes. - Make the spicy mayo.
Whisk mayonnaise, water, and chili paste together. - Make the glaze.
Add Asian flavor to this bowl by mixing soy sauce and brown sugar to create a soy glaze sauce. - Assemble.
Make a rice base and top it with shredded salmon, avocado, marinated cucumber, and spicy mayo. Enjoy!
How to Store Salmon Bowls
Whether you have leftovers or make this meal ahead, you can refrigerate the assembled bowls or the cooked rice, the spicy mayo, and the marinated cucumber in separate airtight containers for up to 2 days.
More Easy Rice Bowls
More tasty and easy rice bowls? Make these buffalo chicken rice bowls or these Thai chicken bowls! You can also swap regular rice for cauliflower rice and make these salsa chicken bowls. For Mexican food lovers, these pupusas and curtido rice bowls are a must!
Salmon Avocado Bowls with Spicy Mayo
Ingredients
- 1 cup sushi rice or jasmine rice, or white rice
- Pinch of salt
- 2 cups water
- 4 salmon fillets, skin-on
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 medium English cucumber, diced small
- 3 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 avocado, diced
For the spicy mayo:
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon water
- ½ to 1 teaspoon chili paste or Sriracha
Instructions
Cook the rice:
- In a medium pot, combine the rice, a pinch of salt, and just under 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook, without stirring, for about 17 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed and the rice is tender. Turn off the heat and fluff with a fork. Rice should be al dente, not mushy.
Cook the salmon:
- While the rice cooks, pat the fish dry with paper towels; season with salt and pepper on both sides.
- In a large non-stick pan over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Place the salmon, skin side up, and cook, for for 6 to 8 minutes, or until lightly browned. I find it helpful to loosely half-cover the pan with a lid to reduce kitchen splatter.
- Flip the salmon and cook for an additional 4 to 6 minutes, until it’s cooked through, about 145F. Remove from heat and transfer the salmon to a large bowl.
Marinate the cucumber:
- In a medium bowl, combine the rice vinegar and white sugar. Place the diced cucumbers inside and stir to combine. Let it sit for about 10 minutes, while the salmon cooks, tossing them in the sauce a few times.
Make the spicy mayo:
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon of water, and chili paste.
Make the glaze:
- In a small bowl, combine soy sauce and brown sugar to create the soy glaze sauce.
Combine:
- Remove skins from salmon, drizzle the soy glaze over the salmon pieces and with two forks, shred the salmon meat and combine with the sauce.
- Assemble the salmon bowls by adding a base of rice, topped with fish, diced avocado, cucumber slices, and a drizzle of spicy mayo.
Cathleen says
I am making these ASAP!! They look fantastic, thank you so much for sharing. Put all the ingredients on my shopping list 🙂