fast teriyaki salmon bowl
Enjoy ordering bowls in restaurants and want an easy version for your own kitchen? You’re in luck. My simple, healthy, and versatile meal makes the most of your favorite vegetables cooked along with the fish all in one skillet. Make this even more quickly by using microwaved rice or grains. Cook up a double batch of sauce and store a jar in the fridge to make a different version later in the week, say with grilled boneless chicken thighs. Have leftover vegetables or fresh greens from last night? Toss those in, too.
- Easy Teriyaki Sauce--recipe below
- 1 ½ cups cooked rice—white or brown, seasoned with a drizzle of olive oil, and a generous pinch each: salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper
- 2 tablespoons canola or peanut oil--more as needed
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced
- 1 1/2 cups broccoli florets--blanched* in microwave or in a saucepan
- 2 cups shredded cabbage or packaged coleslaw mix
- Kosher salt, fresh ground pepper, crushed red pepper
- 2 plump cloves garlic--sliced
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger – or more to taste
- 2 4- ounce salmon fillets--oiled, salted and peppered on both sides
- 1 cup sliced English cucumber
- ½ red bell pepper--sliced (can sub tomatoes or avocados, etc.)
- ½ small red onion, thinly sliced – optional
- Sliced scallions, fresh cilantro, and/or sesame seeds for garnish
MAKE TERIYAKI SAUCE AND RICE: set aside covered to keep warm until needed.
COOK VEGETABLES: Heat a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat for two minutes; add 2 tablespoons canola or peanut oil and heat until shimmering. Add a single layer of mushrooms and sauté until golden brown on both sides. Push to the side of the pan and stir in the cabbage or slaw mix, adding a drizzle more oil as needed. Cook a minute or two or until just wilted and add garlic and ginger; stir well. Add blanched broccoli. Season all of the vegetables well with salt, pepper, and a pinch of crushed red pepper. Push vegetables to one side and stir them regularly as salmon cooks to prevent burning. (Remove to a bowl if needed.)
SAUTÉ SALMON IN SAME PAN. Lay the oiled and seasoned salmon fillets skin side up on the empty side of the pan and cook about 3 minutes. Turn, drizzle with a tablespoon of Teriyaki sauce each, and cook another 2 minutes or until just firm or 125-130 degrees F. (Temperature will rise as the salmon rests. FDA temperature for fish is 145 degrees F, but your salmon will be quite overdone if you cook to that temperature.)
CHOP FRESH VEGETABLES (cucumber, bell pepper, red onion, plus garnish scallions) while the salmon cooks if you haven’t already done it.
PLATE AND SERVE HOT OR WARM: Scoop ¾ cup rice into a bowl and spoon half the cooked vegetables alongside. Add a salmon fillet (remove skin if desired) and arrange some of the fresh vegetables to the other side or at top. Garnish with sliced scallions, fresh cilantro and/or sesame seeds. Drizzle a little Teriyaki Sauce over everything. Sprinkle entire bowl with salt and pepper. Repeat with the second bowl. Pass the remainder of the sauce at the table.
Easy Teriyaki Sauce:
• ¾ cup EACH: lower-sodium soy sauce and dry white wine
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• Pinch EACH: kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, and crushed red pepper (or to taste)
Heat all ingredients in a small saucepan to boiling. Reduce to simmer for 5-10 minutes or until reduced and thickened. Remove from heat, cover, and reserve.
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*Blanched: cook briefly in boiling water
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COOK'S NOTES: This recipe easily expands to feed several more people, but you’ll need to cook the vegetables and salmon fillets in separate skillets or grill the salmon either on a gas or charcoal grill or in a stovetop grill pan. In fact, if you haven’t a large, deep skillet, you may want to cook the vegetables first, remove to a covered bowl, and then cook the salmon separately. Copyright Alyce Morgan, 2019. All rights reserved.