Today I am going to tell you about one of our FAVORITE dinners.
And I have a confession: I’ve been holding out on you.
Why?
Well. We’ve been making and loving these raw tuna bowls for a few years now. It’s taken me FOREVER to get an actual recipe written down (I often wing it) and tested for you guys.
Hopefully you think it’s worth the wait!
This is a hodgepodge of raw fish preparations that I love: Hawaiian poke and Japanese sushi.
While I do not claim to know how to authentically make either one of these dishes, I wanted to share this delicious mash-up of flavors that pays homage to those cuisines. While these may not be 100% officially authentic (I am a white Irish girl, after all), they ARE delicious. I swear, we eat these bowls regularly and ADORE the flavors.
The fish preparation is basically a spicy soy sauce marination/cure. Make sure to use sushi-grade fish whenever you are preparing and enjoying it raw.
I buy mine online (we love Crowd Cow) or at Whole Foods. The fish hangs out in a super flavorful combination of soy sauce, chili-garlic sauce, ginger, toasted sesame oil, rice vinegar, and sugar. This is the marination part – it imparts amazing flavor similar to that of Hawaiian poke.
It is then served over rice (or cauliflower rice, in this case) with a bunch of fun textures and flavors. I like to quick-pickle some shredded carrots for acidity and top the bowls with fresh cucumber and buttery avocado. It’s sort of like the flavors of poke but with the accompaniments of sushi.
I also serve this drizzled with a spicy mayo. Some Hawaiian poke is served this way, and some isn’t.
If mayo isn’t your thing (and I know people can feel very strongly about it when it comes to poke-style fish), you can omit it altogether. You can drizzle with a tiny bit of sriracha before serving, if you’re still wanting spice. We LOVE spicy mayo in this house, so we’re really going for it here.
That’s the beauty of meals like this: you can truly make them your own.
This is something we make at least once a month. I buy some sushi-grade tuna and cube it up and marinate it in the afternoon. Quickly prep the pickled carrots and cauliflower rice, and let everything hang out until dinner time. Easy peasy!
These are great for when we’re craving sushi but aren’t able to get our hands on it (we have very limited options around us), and for when we want something really fresh and healthy for dinner without a lot of fuss.
This meal is it!
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Marinated Tuna Bowls with Cauliflower Rice
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 2 generous servings 1x
Description
These Marinated Tuna Bowls with Cauliflower Rice are a delicious hodgepodge of Hawaiian poke and Japanese sushi! Marinated tuna is served raw atop rice and served with pickled carrots, cucumber, and buttery avocado. The kicker is a spicy mayo for drizzling on top! A wonderful mash-up of flavors and cuisines!
Ingredients
For the Pickled Carrots:
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- ½ cup red wine vinegar
- ½ cup water
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
For the Tuna:
- 12 oz sushi-grade tuna, cubed
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sambal oelek chile paste
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
- 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- 2 scallions, chopped
- Salt, to taste
For the Spicy Mayo:
- ⅓ cup mayo
- 2 teaspoons sambal oelek chile paste
- ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 2–3 drops fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar or honey (optional)
- Juice of 1 lime
- Water, as needed
To Serve:
- 3 cups cauliflower rice, cooked and cooled
- 1 medium hass avocado, sliced
- ½ cup finely chopped cucumber
- 2 scallions, chopped
- The pickled carrots
- The spicy mayo, for drizzling
Instructions
For the Pickled Carrots:
- Place the carrots in a heatproof jar or bowl. In a small saucepan, combine the other ingredients and place over medium heat. Bring to a simmer until the sugar and salt completely dissolve.
- Pour the hot liquid over the carrots, stir, and set aside for 20 minutes (longer is better).
- HINT: this is a good time to make the cauliflower rice so it has enough time to cool off. I will often prep it ahead and keep it in the fridge so it is chilled for quick meals like this.
For the Tuna:
- In a medium bowl, combine the soy sauce, sambal oelek, ginger, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, and sesame seeds and whisk until well incorporated. Add the cubed tuna and scallions to the bowl and stir gently to coat the fish. Season with a little bit of salt. Refrigerate for 15-30 minutes (and up to a couple hours ahead of time – the fish should be enjoyed the same day it is marinated).
- Taste after the marination time and adjust the seasoning as needed. Sometimes I add a little more salt or more acidity or heat.
For the Spicy Mayo:
Combine all the ingredients and mix until well incorporated. Slowly add water, as needed, until the mayo reaches a drizzling consistency.
To Serve:
- Place about 1 cup of rice at the bottom of each bowl, top with veggies, and then spoon the tuna and any residual marinade over the rice and veggies.
- Top with slices of avocado, a drizzle of the mayo, and serve immediately.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: seafood
Keywords: marinated raw tuna bowls, tuna poke bowls, tuna sushi bowls, soy marinated raw tuna, healthy tuna bowls
Hi There. I'm Molly. I'm a food-obsessed, self-taught cook and I can't wait to share my passion for all things culinary with you. My love for egg yolks is just the tip of the iceberg!
This was incredible! So many delicious flavours!
★★★★★
SO happy to hear! Thanks, Erin!
Wow.. This looks so tasty and amazing. Thanks for sharing the wonderful blog.