This crave-worthy salmon sushi bake is a twist on the viral Tiktok meal. Sticky sushi rice baked with salmon, cream cheese and furikake seasoning then served with spicy kewpie mayo and seaweed sheets for snacking. Jump on the sushi bake trend - you won't believe how delicious it is!
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📋 About the Recipe
- Basically a deconstructed California roll - This easy sushi bake recipe is everything you love about sushi rolls, but baked in an easy casserole-like dish. The original Tiktok sushi bake was shared by @lizzymwong and was made with imitation crab. To make this version a bit healthier and fresher, I opted for salmon.
- Short bake time. Although this recipe has a slightly longer prep time, it only needs to bake for 15 minutes keeping the total recipe time under 1 hour. Plus, if you prep the Instant Pot Sushi Rice ahead of time, the prep time is shortened considerably.
- Easy to customize. Experiment and add your favorite sushi toppings on top of this salmon sushi bake!
🛒 Ingredients
A few notes about the ingredients:
- Mirin - Mirin is a sweet Japanese rice wine. It can be found in the International food section of most large grocery stores, but if needed, visit your local Asian market for better options.
- Low sodium soy sauce - Soy sauce is used to make the homemade eel sauce. If gluten-free, use tamari or coconut aminos (for an even less salty version).
- Salmon - For this casserole you'll need raw, skinless salmon. If you purchased a skin-on salmon fillet, watch this helpful tutorial: How to Skin a Salmon.
- Cream cheese - A key ingredient that adds creaminess to balance the savoriness and fish. Don't skip it!
- Sushi rice - Any cooled and cooked sushi rice or short grain rice will work here, but I highly recommend my Instant Pot sushi rice. It's the easiest way to make sushi rice with perfect results every time.
- Furikake - Furikake seasoning is a Japanese condiment that can be sprinkled onto cooked rice or used to season vegetables and fish to add an umami flavor. It typically consists of dried fish, sesame seeds, seaweed, sugar, and salt. I buy mine at Trader Joe's.
⁉️ Substitutions and Alterations
- Salmon substitute: If desired, you can use the original imitation crab mixture for a standard sushi bake or another raw fish of choice. You could even use small chicken cubes (pre-cooked) as a last resort.
- Mayonnaise: Regular mayonnaise or kewpie mayonnaise will work perfectly fine.
- Mirin substitute: Try sweet marsala wine, white wine vinegar, or plain rice vinegar.
📓 Instructions
- Preheat the oven. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Make the eel sauce. In a small saucepan, whisk together mirin, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch, and water. Set pan over medium heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, until thickened to a syrup-like consistency, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Eel sauce will thicken as it cools.
- Make the spicy mayonnaise. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together ½ cup mayo and sriracha until combined. Set aside.
- Dice the salmon. Dice the salmon into bite size pieces. Add cream cheese and 2 tablespoons cooled eel sauce to a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the cubed salmon and mix until the salmon is fully coated.
- Layer salmon bake in baking dish. Spread cooked sushi rice in an even layer at the bottom of the casserole dish. Spread salmon mixture on top of the rice. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds or a layer of furikake over top.
- Bake. Place salmon sushi bake in the oven and cook for 15 to 18 minutes, or until salmon is cooked through in the middle.
- Garnish. Remove from the oven and top with spicy mayo, extra eel sauce, avocado, sliced cucumber, green onions, sushi ginger, wasabi, or sesame oil, if desired.
- Serve. Serve this Tiktok inspired bake warm with nori sheets to scoop and enjoy.
❄️ How to Store
To store: This sushi bake will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator when tightly covered with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container. Allow to cool completely before covering and refrigerating.
Freezing is not recommended.
To reheat: This casserole is best served fresh but can be reheated in the microwave if needed.
🔍 Recipe FAQs
Yes, this salmon sushi bake is made with raw, skinless salmon and must be baked to cook the salmon through. It can be served warm, room temperature, or even cold, if desired.
This Japanese-inspired bake is filling on its own and best served with seaweed snacks. If you're looking to offer additional side dishes you may enjoy serving with Edamame, Gyoza, crab rangoon, or a simple side salad.
Kewpie mayo is Japanese mayo that differs from regular mayo in that it is made with egg yolks only instead of whole eggs. This makes it richer, a little more yellow in color, and slightly custard-like in texture. If you can't find it - no worries. Regular mayo will work perfectly well, too!
No, in order to cook the rice directly in the casserole dish, it would require liquid and a much longer bake time. In order to make this salmon sushi bake, you'll need to start with already cooked sushi rice.
💭 One More Tip
Adjust the spiciness! As is, this recipe is not incredibly spicy. If you prefer spicier food, increase the amount of sriracha in the mayo or even top your personal serving with a teaspoon of wasabi. Make this recipe your own!
🍴 Related Recipes
Share your cooking with me! If you make this recipe, I'd love to know! Tag @yourhomemadehealthy on Instagram or leave a comment with a rating and some feedback at the bottom of this page!
Salmon Sushi Bake
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Eel Sauce
- ½ cup mirin
- ½ cup low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon water
For the Spicy Mayo
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon sriracha
For the Salmon Sushi Bake
- 1 pound raw, skinless salmon
- ½ cup (4 ounces) cream cheese, softened
- 3 cups cooked sushi rice
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 1 cup thinly sliced cucumber (about 2 mini cucumbers)
- 3 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions (about 2 green onions)
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds and/or furikake seasoning
- sushi ginger and/or wasabi
- roasted seaweed snack, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Make the eel sauce: In a small saucepan, whisk together mirin, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch, and water. Set pan over medium heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, until thickened to a syrup-like consistency, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Eel sauce will thicken as it cools.
- Make the spicy mayo: In a small mixing bowl, whisk together mayonnaise and sriracha until combined. Set aside.
- Dice the salmon into bite size pieces. Add cream cheese and 2 tablespoons cooled eel sauce to a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the cubed salmon and mix until the salmon is fully coated.
- Spread cooked sushi rice in an even layer at the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Spread salmon mixture on top of the rice. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds or furikake over top.
- Place salmon sushi bake in the oven and cook for 15 to 18 minutes, or until salmon is cooked through in the middle.
- Remove the sushi bake from the oven and top with spicy mayo, extra eel sauce, avocado, sliced cucumber, and green onions. Optional: add sushi ginger and/or wasabi on top too.
- Serve warm with seaweed snacks to scoop and eat.
Notes
- Mirin is a sweet Japanese rice wine. It can be found in the Asian foods aisle of your grocery store.
- For a quick and easy way to cook sushi rice, try this instant pot recipe!
- Furikake seasoning is a Japanese condiment that can be sprinkled onto cooked rice or used to season vegetables and fish to add an umami flavor. It typically consists of dried fish, sesame seeds, seaweed, sugar, and salt. I buy mine at Trader Joe's.
- Experiment and add your favorite sushi toppings on top of this salmon sushi bake.
Nutrition
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