These teriyaki salmon rice bowls are the perfect healthy dinner with SO much flavor! The salmon gets a quick marinade and while the rice cooks and veggies are prepped before getting seared and sauced to perfection and served over fluffy jasmine rice. The marinade has approachable ingredients like tamari (or soy sauce), mirin, lemon, maple syrup, garlic and ginger. This is a quick and easy 30 minute dinner, with each bowl customizable so the whole family can enjoy the meal!
This teriyaki salmon bowl recipe is a satisfying weeknight dinner that is simple to make and full of flavor! Tender pieces of salmon slathered in a homemade teriyaki sauce served over rice with veggies for dimension, texture and flavor. It just might be your new favorite dinner.
I tested the recipe a few different ways but wanted to keep the teriyaki sauce ingredients to a minimum to keep the recipe simple. It’s pretty low in sugar too with just a couple tablespoons of maple syrup for sweetener. It’s enough to add that characteristic teriyaki sweetness without a lot of extra sugar.
Plus the marinade time is short so you can reuse it to make the teriyaki sauce, no waste needed. Serve with my quick and easy teriyaki noodles instead of white rice for even more teriyaki goodness!
Ingredients
The ingredients are simple. The sauce is the same as the one used in my teriyaki salmon bites recipe. It’s served over rice (or quinoa, brown rice, cauliflower rice -whatever you want). Add other bowl toppers like crunchy carrot, cucumber and creamy avocado. Edamame make the meal more filling with garnishes on top.
How to Make the Salmon Bowls
You start by prepping your rice then salmon, letting it sit in the marinade while you peel and dice the veggies so no time is wasted. They’re simple and here’s how you do it:
- Start cooking the rice first. Make sure to rinse it well to remove any excess starch. I like to add a splash of oil to the rice pot to help keep it from overflowing.
- Mix the teriyaki sauce ingredients together and marinade the salmon cubes for about 15 minutes while you prep the veggies.
- Prepare all of the veggies by peeling the carrot, slicing the cucumber, avocado and green onion. I buy pre-cooked edamame from Trader Joe’s but if your edamame need to be cooked, do it now. If the rice finishes, you can go ahead and prep the bowls now, leaving a space on top of each rice bowl for the salmon to nestle in next to the veggies.
- Bring a skillet up to medium-high heat and add avocado oil, tilting the skillet to make sure it spreads. Add the salmon pieces to the hot pan and let them sear for 2 minutes.
- Flip the salmon cubes over, starting with the ones you placed in the pan first. Immediately pour the marinade into the pan. Let them cook another minute or two while the sauce comes to a simmer and then brush or spoon the sauce over the salmon.
- Remove the salmon from the heat and assemble those rice bowls by adding a scoop of rice to each bowl and placing the veggies and salmon on top.
- The sauce will most likely still be runny so you can return the pan to the heat for another couple minutes to thicken and then spoon it over the salmon.
- Garnish with sesame seeds, green onion and chili crisp oil or sriracha or whatever your favorite hot sauce is. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
Recipe Tips
- Move quickly so the salmon doesn’t overcook. It only needs a few minutes to sear and cooks quickly so you’ll need to move fast.
- Use a large based skillet and don’t crowd the pan or the salmon will steam instead of searing.
- Use a thin metal spatula for flipping so the seared edge doesn’t stick to the pan.
- Want to switch up the toppings? Choose veggies with some crunch and texture variety.
Mouthwatering Teriyaki Salmon Rice Bowls (30 Minutes)
Equipment
- 1 Medium bowl
- 1 Large rimmed skillet
- 1 Spatula for sautéing and flipping
- 1 Peeler
Ingredients
- 1 lb. salmon filet skin and bones removed and sliced into 1 inch cubes (2.5cm)
- 2 Tablespoons avocado oil divided (can substitute sesame oil)
- 1 cup jasmine rice
Teriyaki sauce
- 1/4 cup low-sodium tamari or soy sauce see notes for coconut aminos
- 2 Tablespoons mirin
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice fresh squeezed (can sub rice vinegar)
- 2 Tablespoons maple syrup can substitute honey, coconut sugar or brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon minced or grated ginger
Bowls
- 1 cup edamame beans pre-shelled and cooked
- 1 cup cucumber sliced and quartered
- 2 carrots peeled and then julienned (I use a julienne grater
- 1 avocado sliced
- 1 teaspoon Sesame seeds
- ¼ cup Sliced green onion scallions
- Chili crisp oil sriracha or garlic chili sauce (optional)
Instructions
- Start rice, cooking according to package directions. Add one Tablespoon avocado oil to the rice to help keep it from boiling over (optional).1 cup jasmine rice, 2 Tablespoons avocado oil
- In a medium bowl mix teriyaki sauce ingredients together.1/4 cup low-sodium tamari or soy sauce, 2 Tablespoons mirin, 1 Tablespoon lemon juice, 2 Tablespoons maple syrup, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon minced or grated ginger
- Add salmon cubes and marinate for 15 minutes on countertop while rice cooks (can marinade up to 2 hours maximum but must refrigerate if more than 30 minutes).1 lb. salmon filet
- While rice is cooking and salmon is marinating, prepare all vegetables and set aside. When rice is done cooking, scoop it into bowls arranging the veggies along 3/4 of the top of the bowl, leaving room for the salmon. Save green scallion and sesame seeds to add later as a garnish.1 cup edamame beans, 1 cup cucumber, 2 carrots, 1 avocado
- Bring a large rimmed skillet to medium-high heat and add remaining 1 Tablespoon avocado oil, tilting pan to cover the skillet. Oil should be warm enough to spread easily across the pan without smoking.
- Place salmon cubes into the pan, reserving marinade. Let sear for about 2 minutes.
- Flip each salmon cube over using a flat thin spatula. Pour teriyaki marinade into pan and let come to a simmer while salmon cooks (1-2 minutes). During this time, move quickly using a basting brush to baste salmon cubes with the sauce or use a spoon to drizzle it on top.
- Remove salmon from heat using a thin spatula and add to the top of each rice bowl next to the edamame, carrot, cucumber and avocado.
- If sauce is still thin, return pan with sauce to heat and let simmer for 1-2 minutes to thicken. Spoon any leftover sauce onto the salmon cubes.
- Garnish each bowl with sesame seeds, green onion and chili crisp oil and serve right away.1 teaspoon Sesame seeds, ¼ cup Sliced green onion, Chili crisp oil
Notes
- To prep salmon, remove any bones with tweezers and use a sharp knife to peel the skin away.
- It’s best eaten fresh but leftover salmon and rice can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Add a few drops of water to the rice and cover to reheat in the microwave, air fryer, or in a skillet on the stovetop.
- Substituting coconut aminos will make it sweeter and less salty. Make sure to taste and adjust the saltiness of the sauce at the end.
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
So very good. I followed the air fryer directions (which oddly showed up on my phone but not on my iPad) and 4 minutes cooked my salmon bits perfectly! I didn’t have low sodium soy sauce but will definitely use it next time as the sauce was quite salty. I have no clue what mirin is but a Google search told me I could use sherry in place of it. I served this with your cucumber carrot salad with Asian dressing and the two paired fabulously together! Definite keeper!
Oh good! And that’s so helpful to know about the saltiness without the low-sodium soy sauce. I always use low-sodium so I didn’t test it with the regular version. And yes, mirin is just a nice extra that adds a little subtle flavor, not a necessity. Sherry or white wine are a good substitute and in most recipes you can just skip it if you don’t have it. I saw in your other review you paired with the cucumber carrot salad – thanks for making both and sharing your thoughts here!