Salmon Rice Bowl with Maple Mustard Sauce

Hello and welcome to "this is a dinner that is very easy to make in half an hour, trust." Aka my favorite kind of recipe.

When it comes to dinner, a salmon rice bowl (or any kind of salmon with rice dinner tbh) is something that we eat AT LEAST once per week. I buy salmon, we always have rice, and then we think on what we want the bowl to taste like - Asian sticky soy sauce, sundried tomatoes over everything, or lemon butter because lemon butter is pretty much always the answer.

Recipe Notes

I didn't intend for this to be gluten free, but a rice bowl with a little thought put into it (no soy sauce, etc) is usually gluten free, and this one is! Winning for folks that can't eat gluten.

This version of salmon rice bowl has a FAST maple mustard sauce that I make early in the week for meal prep. Then, the salmon gets a little spice blend (similar to this cast iron skillet salmon) and a quick sear in a skillet.

At the same time, I simmer rice and make a quick green veg: spinach salad, steamed broccoli, something simple that goes well with the creamy maple mustard sauce.

Honestly? That's it. Just a few simple steps, a DELICIOUS, nourishing salmon dinner that is really versatile and can be made a little differently each time based on what you want to eat, what you need to use up, and what your family loves.

Ingredients

Super simple stuff here! I use salmon filet cut into chunks, with the skin removed. A green veg to serve, a few spices for the salmon, then dijon mustard, maple syrup, and heavy cream make the simple sauce.

Ingredient Notes and Variations

• You can of course serve this with any veggie or rice substitute you like! Green beans and brussels sprouts both are really yummy with the sauce, and I love this with rice, but quinoa and farro are also delicious.
• If you don't enjoy salmon, any thick white fish such as cod or grouper works well with this method.
• If you're into a spicy rice bowl situation, adding some sriracha to the maple sauce (start with a teaspoon and add more if you want!) is a really, really nice idea.
• Side note, but the maple mustard dipping sauce is NOT BAD with homemade baked chicken tenders later in the week.

Step By Step Instructions

1. Sauce: Start by whisking together the ingredients for the maple mustard sauce: heavy cream, maple syrup, and dijon mustard. Add a pinch of salt, then taste the sauce and add a bit more salt if you'd like.
2. This sauce makes enough for 3-4 people, so feel free to double or triple the amount if you like a lot of sauce or want to use it a few times. The maple sauce can be made several days in advance and stored in the fridge.
3. Salmon: Once the sauce is prepped, measure the ingredients for the salmon seasoning and cut the salmon into chunks - about 3 inches or so. Sprinkle the salmon pieces on all sides with the spice blend. Use all of the seasonings!
4. Rice: Start the rice and set a timer, then start the green veggie you are making and preheat a skillet to medium heat for the salmon. Doing this in this order will ensure the entire dinner is done in about half an hour.
5. Finish: At this point, the rice should be simmering, veggie cooking (turn it off when it's done!), skillet hot for the salmon (lol hot for salmon like...teacher...nevermind, gross). Sear the salmon chunks on all sides for about 2 minute per side until the spices are browned at the edges and the salmon is hot all the way through. Salmon can be cooked to medium or even medium rare if you prefer; don't overcook it.
6. Assemble the bowls with rice, broccoli (or whatever you're using), salmon, lemon wedges, and a heavy-handed drizzle of maple mustard sauce.

I MEAN SERIOUSLY. Look at that. So good, fresh, healthy, light but filling, all very good adjectives to describe a dinner drowning in a seriously delicious sauce drizzle situation.

Storage and Make-Ahead

Honestly, I'm not huge on leftover cooked salmon. BUT, you can store leftover salmon in the fridge for a few days and it's totally fine to eat. This meal, though, is definitely best served fresh.

The things that are nice to do in advance to speed this meal up even more are 1. whisk together and store the maple mustard sauce, 2. measure the spices for the salmon into a little bowl.

Serving Suggestions

I love this as-is as a pretty plain/lightly flavored dinner, but fresh herbs, lemon wedges, flaky salt, and some chili crisp as extra toppings are really, really good.

THAT SAID, this exact salmon + sauce recipe flaked into a pita with some shredded cabbage? Very, VERY good.

I hope you love this salmon rice bowl! It's an excellent, easy weeknight meal on the rotation, and pro tip for kids: sometimes referring to salmon as pink fish can cause them to eat one tiny fleck of a bite, which counts as a win.

(Or, you have a kid that loves this dinner more than anything because they only eat plain white rice for 90% of dinners and this, in fact, includes plain white rice. It's fine.)

Enjoy!