Viral Sushi Bake

5 from 3 votes

Viral Sushi Bake

Dive into this bubbly sushi bake, with creamy, savory sushi toppings over perfectly seasoned sushi rice. Serve with crisp nori sheets for scooping.

Prep Time20

Cook Time40

Total Time1

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Asian

Keyword: Sushi Bake

Servings:

Author: Jennifer Pallian BSc, RD

Ingredients

For rice:

2 cups sushi rice
2 ½ cups water
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp furikake optional

For Sushi Topping:

1 cup imitation crab shredded (8 oz by weight)
1 cup cooked shrimp chopped if large (8 oz by weight)
½ cup mayonnaise plus more, if desired
2 tbsp sriracha
1 tbsp soy sauce

To serve:

Nori seaweed sheets cut into smaller squares if desired
Optional toppings: more sriracha Japanese BBQ sauce (Yakiniku), sliced avocado, green onion, serrano pepper, and/or cucumber

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For Rice Layer:

Start by rinsing the sushi rice under cold water until the water runs clear. Combine the rice and 2 1/2 cups water in pot. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Once it boils, cover the pot and reduce the heat to low, letting it simmer for 18 minutes. After turning off the heat, let it sit covered for 10 minutes.
Combine rice vinegar, sugar and salt until dissolved. Gently fold into warm rice.

For Sushi Topping:

In a bowl, mix together imitation crab, shrimp, mayonnaise, sriracha and soy sauce.

To Assemble:

Spray a 9x13" baking dish with oil (or grease with 1 tsp sesame oil rubbed on with a paper towel).
Spread rice evenly in the bottom of greased dish. Sprinkle furikake evenly over rice (if using).
Spread the seafood mixture over the rice. Drizzle with more mayo, if desired.
Bake at 375°F for about 20 minutes, or until the top is bubbly and slightly golden.
Serve family-style, like a warm dip, with nori sheets on the side for individuals to scoop their own.

Video

Notes

Sushi Rice: Choose a bigger pot than you need so that you have room to stir the seasoning in without making a mess. Make sure it's seasoned while still warm for the best flavor absorption.

Rice Vinegar: Choose natural (unseasoned) rice vinegar, not the one labeled "Seasoned Rice Vinegar", as we are adding sugar and salt to the recipe directly.

Imitation Crab: This is a staple in sushi bakes for its convenience and mild flavor, but feel free to substitute with any flaky white fish or additional seafood.

Mayonnaise: I love the special umami flavor of Kewpie Japanese mayo for this, but any mayo will work. An extra drizzle before baking caramelizes deliciously in the oven. Yum.

Toppings: I like to allow my family/guests to add their own desired optional toppings (rather than adding toppings to the whole sushi bake).

Nori Sheets: If nori sheets are too brittle, lightly toast them over an open flame or in a dry pan for a few seconds to make them more pliable.

Furikake: Available in the Asian foods section of many mainstream grocery stores, in any Asian grocery store, or on Amazon.

Leftovers: If you have any leftovers, they can be refrigerated and reheated in a microwave or oven. If oven-baking, cover with foil to prevent drying out.

Nutrition