This delicious spin on a salmon poke bowl features seared salmon and veggies in a colorful bowl, an easy dinner idea perfect for weeknights or entertaining!
This post was created in partnership with ALDI. All opinions are our own.
A while back, some friends had us for dinner to make poke bowls: those Hawaiian-inspired bowls of fresh fish, veggies, rice, and savory sauces. It was such a tasty and easy dinner concept that we’ve been meaning to share a recipe! Classic poke bowls traditionally feature raw ahi tuna, but we wanted to create a non-traditional spin on it to feature salmon. Meet this delicious seared salmon poke bowl! We got the salmon and all of the ingredients at ALDI, and the salmon is wild caught using their sustainable seafood practices. Here’s how to make it!
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What is a poke bowl?
So, what’s a poke bowl? It’s a Hawaiian dish based around raw marinated fish, usually Ahi tuna, that’s cut into cubes and served in a bowl with rice and surrounded by veggies and savory sauces. Poke is pronounced “poke-ay”, and means “to slice or cut” in Hawaiian: relating to the cut up fish. The bowls are ubiquitous in Hawaii, and you can get them everywhere from gas stations to groceries to restaurants.
The poke bowl is now having a moment here on Mainland USA, and you can even find poke bowl restaurants here in our hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana! Since poke bowls are a pretty free form concept, there are lots of variations on the way they are prepared. This salmon poke bowl is a spin with seared salmon instead of raw tuna. (We’ve also got a Vegan Poke Bowl with a special veggie-based poke…!)
Love ALDI? This recipe is part of our ALDI Meal Plan.
A note on buying sustainable seafood
Alex and I try to buy sustainable seafood where possible (we eat a mostly plant-based diet but flex occasionally to eat sustainable fish). In researching how to buy sustainable seafood, Alex and I have learned to look for wild-caught fish.
Also, frozen is good too! A myth about fish is that “fresh is best.” As soon as an animal dies it begins to decompose; freezing suspends this process. If a fish is frozen when it was caught and stays frozen until it gets to your kitchen, it will be higher quality than a raw fish that has taken a week to get to your plate.
For this salmon poke bowl recipe, we used Fremont Fish Market Wild Caught Salmon from ALDI. We were happy to see that ALDI has some wild caught options. This salmon is certified sustainable by the MSC. For more on ALDI and seafood, see the Seafood Sourcing page on ALDI’s website.
How to make this salmon poke bowl
Alright, here’s how to make salmon poke! As we mentioned above, most poke bowl recipes use raw sushi-grade ahi tuna that is cut into cubes (which is very, very tasty). But for our seared salmon poke bowl spin, here’s what you do:
- Sear the salmon. Marinate the salmon and then sear it for just a minute in a hot pan. You simply cut the salmon into squares and then marinade it in soy, toasted sesame oil and a little hot sauce while you prep the vegetables. Then it’s cooked in literally 30 to 45 seconds: talk about quick dinner recipes!
- Prep the veggies: The veggies in this salmon poke bowl are simple — they’re all organic ones we got at ALDI. Each veggie is cut differently and seasoned differently for a little variation!
- Tangy cucumber “noodles”, seasoned like a seaweed salad
- Sesame carrot ribbons
- Quick pickled cabbage
- Diced avocado
- Prep the rice or quinoa: Whip up a pot of rice or quinoa, and you’ve got one very, very delicious dinner.
Want to try it? Are you an ALDI fan? Let us know if you head to ALDI and make this recipe! Tell us in the comments below or tag us on Instagram: @acouplecooks and @aldiusa.
Another great way to cook salmon? Try our Easy Cedar Plank Salmon. Or browse all our easy salmon recipes!
This salmon poke bowl recipe is…
This seared salmon poke bowl recipe is pescatarian and gluten-free.
Vibrant Salmon Poke Bowl
(23 votes, average: 4.39 out of 5)
- Prep Time: 29 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 minute
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
This delicious spin on a salmon poke bowl features seared salmon and veggies in a colorful bowl, an easy dinner idea perfect for weeknights or entertaining!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups dry white rice or Simply Nature Organic Quinoa
- 4 medium fillets Fremont Fish Market Wild Caught Salmon*
- 5 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari, divided
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, divided
- 1 teaspoon sriracha
- 1/4 medium red cabbage (2 cups shredded)
- 1 large English cucumber (3 cups shredded)
- 3 medium carrots
- 1 avocado
- 3 green onions
- 2 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds (or toasted sesame seeds), plus more for garnish
- 1 tablespoon Simply Nature Organic Coconut Oil
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- Make the rice or quinoa using our How to Make Quinoa method (see the video below), Instant Pot Quinoa, Instant Pot Brown Rice or Instant Pot White Rice.
- With the salmon lying flat on a cutting board, run a sharp knife between the skin and the flesh to remove the skin. Cut the salmon into 1 inch squares and add it to a medium bowl. Note that thinner parts of the salmon may shred a bit (this is okay). Add 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, and the sriracha to the salmon and stir gently. Allow to marinate while preparing the vegetables.
- Thinly slice the cabbage (2 cups). Place it in a medium bowl and mix it together with 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt and 1 tablespoon rice vinegar.
- Julienne the cucumber into long thin strips (3 cups; we used a handheld julienne peeler). Place in a medium bowl and mix with 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce, and 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil.
- Peel the carrots into long ribbons using a vegetable peeler. Place in a medium bowl and mix with 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds.
- Dice the avocado (if using). Slice the green onions on the bias.
- Heat the coconut oil in a large skillet over high heat. When hot, add the salmon and cook for about 30-45 seconds until just cooked. Immediately remove to a clean bowl and add the green onions, a sprinkle of sesame seeds, and 1 or 2 pinches of kosher salt.
- To serve, scoop rice or quinoa into bowls, then top with the vegetables and salmon. If desired, garnish with additional sesame seeds.
You can read Full Here: https://www.acouplecooks.com/seared-salmon-poke-bowl/