Crispy Rice Salmon Bites
shared by Nibblore Kitchen
Crunchy, golden rice squares support cool, spicy salmon and creamy avocado for a restaurant-style appetizer made with supermarket ingredients. Chilling the seasoned rice helps the bites hold their shape, while a thin layer of oil creates crisp edges without deep-frying. Assemble just before serving for the best contrast of textures. • Use salmon specifically sold for raw consumption from a trusted fishmonger, and keep it refrigerated until needed. • Compact the rice firmly and chill it completely; loosely packed or warm rice is more likely to break during frying. • A wire rack preserves the crisp underside better than paper towels. • Wipe and lightly oil the knife between cuts for neat, camera-ready rice squares. • Replace raw salmon with an equal weight of cooked, cooled salmon if sashimi-grade fish is unavailable. • Use Japanese-style mayonnaise in place of regular mayonnaise for a richer, slightly tangier topping. • Replace sriracha with another smooth chili sauce, adjusting the amount to taste. • Replace avocado with thinly sliced cucumber for a lighter, crunchier topping. Store the seasoned rice and salmon topping separately in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 1 day. Cooked rice squares can be refrigerated for up to 2 days and reheated in a lightly oiled skillet over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes per side; cool briefly before topping. Do not freeze the assembled bites, and discard any assembled bites left at room temperature for more than 1 hour.
- Total time
- 60 min
- Servings
- 16
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
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Save to my cookbook — freeIngredients
- 1 cupsushi rice
- 1 ¼ cupwater
- 2 tbsprice vinegar
- 2 tspgranulated sugar
- ¾ tspfine salt, divided
- 225 gsashimi-grade salmon, skinless and cut into 6 mm cubes
- 2 tbspmayonnaise
- 2 tspsriracha, plus more for serving if desired
- 1 ½ tspsoy sauce
- 1 tsptoasted sesame oil
- 1avocado, thinly sliced
- 3 tbspneutral oil, such as avocado or canola oil
- 1 tsptoasted sesame seeds
- 1scallion, thinly sliced
Instructions
- 1Rinse the sushi rice in a fine-mesh sieve under cold running water for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring it with your fingers, until the water is nearly clear. Drain thoroughly, then combine the rice and 1 1/4 cups water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes.
- 2While the rice rests, stir together the rice vinegar, sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt until dissolved. Transfer the hot rice to a wide bowl, drizzle with the vinegar mixture, and fold gently with a spatula until evenly seasoned.
- 3Line a 20 cm square pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang. Press the warm rice firmly into an even layer about 2 cm thick, using a second sheet of parchment to compact the surface. Refrigerate uncovered for 30 minutes, or until cool and firm. This chilling time is included in the preparation time.
- 4Meanwhile, combine the salmon, mayonnaise, sriracha, soy sauce, sesame oil, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in a chilled bowl. Fold gently, cover, and refrigerate until assembly. Keep the salmon cold and do not leave it at room temperature for more than 1 hour.
- 5Lift the chilled rice from the pan and cut it into 16 equal squares with a lightly oiled knife. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons neutral oil in a 30 cm nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of the rice squares, leaving space between them, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes per side until deeply golden and crisp. Transfer to a wire rack and repeat with the remaining oil and rice. Let the squares cool for 5 minutes.
- 6Place one or two avocado slices on each warm rice square and top with about 1 tablespoon of spicy salmon. Garnish with sesame seeds, scallion, and small dots of extra sriracha if desired. Serve immediately while the rice is crisp and the salmon is cold.