Tuna rice bowl of multigrain rice topped with Ahi tuna chunks tossed in jalapenos accompanied by avocado, edamame, sliced cucumbers, shredded carrots, and cabbage with a spicy citrus and sesame creamy sauce.
![Raw Ahi Tuna surrounded by vegetables with a creamy sauce, decorated with sesame seeds and scallions for spicy tuna rice bowl](https://growthculinary.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/PXL_20220721_223012658.jpg)
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I'm Exhausted
Sometimes, you don't want to cook, and you want something fresh. This has to be one of my favorite ways to prepare Ahi Tuna. Undoubtedly, spicy Tuna Rice Bowls are a quick and easy dish to make for dinner or lunch. Just get some leftover rice, steam up some edamame for a few minutes, cut up your favorite vegetables, and make a quick sauce. As a result, you get yourself a very nutritious meal.
Try these other bowl recipes: Salmon Sesame Chili Rice Bowl and Healthy Poached Egg Avocado Rainbow Tuna Salad.
For more Japanese-inspired dishes, check out Shrimp Shishito Eggplant Stir-Fry.
Have an air fryer? Then you have to try the following:
- Chili Herb Crusted Rainbow Trout with Cannellini Beans, Spinach, Mushrooms, and Tomatoes
- Blacken Trout with Chorizo Beans and Garlic Broccoli
- Air Fryer Branzino with Lemon Potatoes and Vegetables
Sushi Bowl?
A bowl like this tells a story. A story of influence from different cultures. Another web of connections. Sushi, as you may know, originated in Japan. For example, tt usually consists of raw fish, roe, or seafood served with sushi rice (medium grain rice seasoned with seasoned rice wine vinegar and mirin, a sweet reduced rice wine vinegar) with various raw vegetables. It can also be rolled in a nori seaweed wrap or layered and secured with a strip of nori or not!
Or Poke Bowl?
Then you have Poke, which originated in Hawaii from the Polynesians. A rice dish topped with raw fish or seafood, usually a type of tuna or even octopus, tossed in ingredients native to the island. But now, you'll find fish or seafood tossed in seaweed, soy sauce, and sesame oil, influenced by Japan. On top of that, Americanized sushi rolls have influenced the toppings of the "Sushi Bowl," such as adding seaweed, cucumbers, carrots, edamame, furikake seasoning, sesame seeds, fried onions, and the list goes on.
Ingredients and Instructions
Whisk together mayonnaise, lemon and lime juice, siracha, sesame oil, ginger, salt, black pepper, and sesame seeds for the sauce. Then top cooked rice in a bowl with diced sushi-grade Ahi Tuna in the center. Finally, surround it with steamed edamame, slice Hass avocado, cucumber, jalapenos, carrots, scallions, and shredded purple cabbage.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Tip for Multigrain Rice
I use the same measuring cup to portion the sushi rice and multi-grains, creating a ratio of 3 part sushi rice to 1 part multigrain.
This mixture will turn the rice a light purple color.
How to Make Multigrain Rice
This is for 1 cup of uncooked rice. It yields about 3 cups of rice.
- Fill up a measuring cup with ¾ cup of sushi rice.
- Then, fill the rest with a grain mix, about ¼ cup.
- Pour the rice mixture into the rice cooker’s insert and fill the container halfway with water.
- Then, mix the multigrain mixture in the water using a rice paddle to loosen up the starch and other impurities.
- Drain the rice. Repeat this two more times.
- Then add fresh water, filling up to your first knuckle.
- Add salt, mix well, and place in the rice cooker.
- Rice cooker selections may vary, but look for “brown rice” or “grain.”
Busy Folks: Become a better home cook with tips to help you cook more efficiently on Cook's Notebook tab. You'll also find more detailed steps for the instructions above. Learn about cooking rice. Try the Easy Spiced Brown Rice and Quinoa recipe.
Substitutions
- Multigrain Rice - You can use all white or brown sushi rice.
- Tuna - Try with sushi-grade salmon.
- Yuzu Juice - The combination of lemon and lime juice is used to slightly mimic the taste of yuzu juice. Yuzu can be expensive and sometimes hard to find, but if you have it, use it instead.
- English Cucumber - You can use Persian or Kirby cucumbers. Ensure you remove the large seeds of the Kirby Cucumbers.
Change Heat Level - Modify the recipe's heat level to your liking and learn more about the Scoville Scale and Chili Pairings.
Variations
- Protein Toppings - Try adding more than one type of fish, shrimp, octopus, teriyaki or shredded chicken, crispy tofu, fish roe, or canned tuna.
- More Toppings - Add chopped tomatoes, fried onions, furikake seasoning, chili pepper flakes, chili oil, red radish, white onion, sliced shallots, fried garlic, diced mango, or kimchi.
Dinner Meal Idea: Hot Honey Sesame Chicken with Napa Cabbage Stir-Fry.
Equipment
- Citrus Squeezer - I developed this recipe using the KitchenAid Citrus Squeezer, the cool thing is that you can squeeze both of the citrus fruits, and it will keep the juice in its reservoir, so there are fewer dishes to clean.
- Whisk - To combine the ingredients for the dressing.
- Rice Cooker - I used a mixture of Nishiki Premium 7 Grain Mix and Nishiki Medium Grain Rice in the Aroma Rice cooker to develop this recipe.
Kitchen Must Haves - Find other tools I use here.
Storage
- Refrigerator - To store in the fridge, you can place the rice mixture in a shallow 2-inch pan to cool down quickly. Then, store the rice and tuna in an air-tight sealing container. The meal will last up to two days.
- Freezer - I do not suggest freezing this recipe.
Air Tight Food Containers - I use Glass Food Storage Containers with a plastic clipping lid to store food. For example, I always suggest glass storage containers since you can microwave them and hold food without staining the container, and the glass keeps them at a more stable temperature, which keeps the food fresher longer.
Cooking tips
- Sushi Grade Tuna - Use Sushi Grade Tuna to ensure that the fish was frozen onsite after being caught, making it safe to eat raw, usually bought frozen.
- Cutting the Fish - Cut your fish when it is halfway thawed for even uniform pieces. Plus, it is easier to cut this way.
- Faster Prep - Use bagged prepped cabbage and carrot slaw mix. The bonus is the ones with broccoli and kale!
- Toasted Sesame Oil - This oil gives a richer flavor using toasted sesame oil, usually used to finish dishes.
Frequently Asked Questions
This incredibly nutritious purple rice can have a mixture of about 7 of the following ingredients: brown rice, black rice, sweet brown rice, red rice, bamboo rice, millet, buckwheat groats, quinoa, black beans, red adzuki beans, red kidney beans, hulled barley, purple or black barley, and that list goes on too.
If you can, get your hands on some multigrain rice if you haven't heard of or tried it yet. It's so delicious and comforting to eat.
This sauce is usually served for fried shrimp, consisting of sweet Thai chili sauce and siracha mixed with mayo.
Yuzu is native to East Asia and can be expensive. It tastes almost l like all citrus fruits were blended, giving off a pungent lemon taste with a sweet background of orange or grapefruit. Not easy to explain. You'll find or taste this ingredient in Ponzu, a gyoza dipping sauce.
A dark and bumpy skin small avocado popularized in California. This is the typical avocado found in North and Central American markets. The Hass avocado taste is more suitable for "sushi" related dishes. It tastes more oily with less water content compared to the Florida avocado. For example, the Florida avocado is 3x more enormous and is popular in Florida and the Caribbean Islands.
The Florida avocado, aka Choquette avocado, is my favorite, eaten alone, with Haitian Bread, or as a hot meal. Its texture and flavor are more buttery despite its higher water content than the Hass Avocado.
This ensures that the fish was frozen onsite after being caught, making it safe to eat raw; usually, you'll buy it frozen.
Related Seafood Recipes
Looking for other seafood recipes like this? Try these:
- Healthy Haitian-Style Creole Spicy Shrimp Pasta
- Seared Snapper Spicy Creole Sauce and Roasted Vegetables
- Sesame Seed-Crusted Ahi Tuna with Spicy Sesame-Soy Sauce
- Grilled Shrimp Garlic Jalapeno Butter and Cilantro Lime Rice
Related East Asian Recipes
Looking for other Asian recipes like this? Try these:
- How to Make Multigrain Rice | Purple Rice Recipe
- Easy Sheet Pan Spicy Miso Salmon Rice Bowl
- Sheet Pan Citrus Chili Lime Salmon with Vegetables
- Easy Air Fryer Sticky Date Teriyaki Chicken Wings
Video
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📖 Recipe
Spicy Citrus Tuna Rice Bowl
Ingredients
For the Tuna Bowl
- 2 cups cooked multigrain rice
- 8 ounces ahi tuna steaks frozen and sushi grade
- 1 cup edamame pods steamed
- ¼ cup English cucumber halved and thinly sliced
- 1 cup purple cabbage thinly sliced
- ½ medium Hass avocado cubed or sliced
For the Creamy Citrus Sesame Sauce
- 2 tablespoons vegan mayo
- 1 teaspoon lemon juiced
- 1 teaspoon lime juiced
- 2 teaspoons sriracha
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon ginger paste, or minced
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon black sesame seeds
Garnish
- ¼ cup scallions thinly sliced
- 2 pinches of black sesame seeds
- ½ medium jalapeno thinly sliced (optional)
Equipment
Instructions
- Save time in the kitchen: Read the instructions thoroughly, then gather and prep all your ingredients before cooking! Learn Prepping Tips.
- Note: Your leftover rice should be heated and cooled to room temperature before use.
- Make Sauce: In a small mixing bowl, whisk the mayo, lemon juice, lime juice, siracha, sesame oil, ginger paste, salt, black pepper, and sesame seeds for the sauce and set aside.
- Plate Up: Portion one cup of rice into each bowl. Add the carrots, cucumber, cabbage, edamame, and avocado ingredients around the bowl, alternating colors while leaving the center open.
- Divide and add the tuna chunks into the center of the dish. Drizzle the creamy sauce over the tuna chunks. Garnish with sesame seeds, sliced scallions, and sliced jalapenos.
Video
Nutrition
Food safety
- Cook chicken to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C).
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food that previously touched raw meat to prevent foodborne illness from contaminated uncooked meats.
- Wash hands after touching raw meat to prevent cross-contamination.
- Don't leave food at room temperature for extended periods; this can breed bacteria.
- Never leave cooking food unattended to prevent burns and fires.
- Use oils with a high smoke point to avoid harmful compounds.
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
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