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These salmon avocado bowls drizzled with spicy mayo are everything you love about eating out but made healthy at home.

You’re about to learn how to make these salmon avocado bowls the easy way and all my tips to prep them ahead.

a salmon and rice bowl with spicy dressing

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. This way, you can enjoy a balanced family meal packed with flavor, textures, and nutrition. A total win.

Toppings are always my favorite part of salmon bowls, and this recipe does a fantastic job of using everyday ingredients, like avocado and cucumbers, which, in my opinion, go perfectly together to level out the spicy mayo.

Ingredients

Don’t let the ingredient list intimidate you! These bowls are all about rice, salmon, avocado, and cucumber. Then you add seasonings, and everything goes from good to epic! Here’s what you need and why:

Rice: jasmine, sushi, or white rice.
Water: the liquid for cooking our rice.
Salmon fillets: we need them skin-on.
Salt and pepper: to season the salmon.
Olive oil: for cooking.
Rice vinegar: to marinate the cucumber.
Granulated sugar: you’ll mix it with the rice vinegar for the marinade.
Cucumber: you can use English or Persian cucumber.
Soy sauce: adds a classic Asian flavor to this bowl.
Brown sugar: mixed with the soy sauce creates a delicious glaze sauce.
Avocado: add creaminess and nutrition.
Spicy mayo: you make it with mayonnaise, water, and chili paste or Sriracha.

Homemade Spicy Mayo

If you often request extra spicy mayo at your local sushi spot, you’ll agree this version is the best! Excuse my drooling. All you need is a handful of ingredients: mayonnaise, water, and your favorite chili paste or Sriracha.

Whether you use your favorite Asian chili paste, like sambal oelek, which you can find in the Asian section of most grocery stores, or Sriracha, you can easily adjust the level of heat based on what you and your family like by adding more to the recipe below.

How to Make Salmon Avocado Bowls

You’ll find the amounts and steps with details in the printable recipe card, but first, let me show you 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 dry the salmon so the seasonings stick better. Cook them in a pan skin side up first, then on the other side. 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!

overhead view of two salmon and rice bowls

Prep Ahead Tips

Another reason to make these salmon avocado bowls on the regular is that a lot of the items can be prepped ahead and assembled on-demand or also cooked and stored in glass containers and become a delicious recipe as part of your lunch meal prep. To prep ahead, you can either:

Prep the ingredients and refrigerate separately
Cook the rice, make the spicy mayo, and marinate the cucumber. Refrigerate everything in separate airtight containers for up to 2 days.

This method allows you to assemble a delicious meal, in less than 20 minutes, even on the busiest of weeknights. When ready to eat for dinner, all you have to do is cook the salmon, heat the rice, and build your salmon bowl.

Cook, assemble, and store
Along with other meal prep recipes, sometimes I like to prepare this entire recipe from start to finish, assemble the bowls in individual meal prep containers, and refrigerate them for the week. That way, a healthy meal is on hand for me to grab and pack in a lunch bag or to the office. Just be sure to enjoy it within 2-3 days.

More Easy Rice Bowls

Already craving 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

Servings: 4 bowls

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 25

Total Time: 30

These salmon avocado bowls drizzled with spicy mayo are everything you love about eating out but made healthy at home.

5 from 32 votes

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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.