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California Roll Sushi Bowls Recipe

4.6 from 54 reviews

This California Roll Sushi Bowls recipe offers a fresh and vibrant twist on the classic sushi roll, transformed into a convenient bowl format. Featuring sushi rice seasoned with rice vinegar and sugar, topped with a colorful mixture of imitation crab, cucumber, carrots, nori, pickled ginger, and creamy avocado, all finished with a tangy soy sauce drizzle and spicy sriracha mayonnaise. Perfect for a quick, delicious, and visually appealing meal.

Ingredients

Scale

Rice Base

  • 2 cups dry sushi rice or calrose rice
  • 5 Tbsp rice vinegar, divided
  • 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Spicy Mayo

  • 1/4 cup light mayonnaise or regular mayonnaise
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp sriracha

Sauce

  • 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce

Toppings

  • 10 oz imitation crab or lump crabmeat, torn or chopped into small bite size pieces
  • 1 1/2 cups diced English cucumber
  • 3/4 cup roughly chopped matchstick carrots
  • 1 nori sheet, chopped or crumbled into small pieces (add more if you’d like)
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp chopped pickled sushi ginger
  • 1 large avocado, peeled and diced
  • Black and toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

Instructions

  1. Rinse the Rice. Place rice in a fine mesh strainer and rinse under cold water until the water runs clear, about 2 minutes. Tap the bottom of the strainer to drain thoroughly.
  2. Cook the Rice. Transfer the rinsed rice to a medium saucepan, add 2 1/4 cups water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let it rest, covered, for 10 minutes.
  3. Prepare the Vinegar Mixture. In a small saucepan, combine 4 Tbsp rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Heat over medium heat while whisking until sugar dissolves. Allow to cool, then pour over the cooked rice and gently toss to coat evenly.
  4. Make Spicy Mayo. Whisk together mayonnaise and sriracha in a small bowl, then transfer to a resealable sandwich bag and set aside.
  5. Mix Soy Sauce Dressing. In another small bowl, whisk together soy sauce and the remaining 1 Tbsp rice vinegar; set aside.
  6. Prepare Toppings. In a large bowl, gently toss crab meat, cucumber, carrots, nori, pickled ginger, and diced avocado. Alternatively, arrange these toppings in sections over the rice in each serving bowl.
  7. Assemble the Bowls. Divide the seasoned rice evenly among 4 to 5 bowls. Top each with the crab and vegetable mixture.
  8. Add Sauces and Garnish. Drizzle soy sauce mixture over each bowl. Cut a small tip off the corner of the spicy mayo bag and drizzle the sriracha mayo on top. Sprinkle with black and toasted sesame seeds and serve promptly to enjoy fresh avocado.

Notes

  • Rinsing the rice thoroughly is essential for the perfect sushi rice texture.
  • Allowing the rice to rest after cooking helps it absorb all the water evenly and become fluffier.
  • Customize the spice level by adjusting the amount of sriracha in the mayo.
  • To keep avocado from browning, prepare avocado just before serving and serve immediately.
  • You may substitute lump crabmeat for imitation crab according to preference.
  • Adding more nori enhances the traditional sushi flavor and texture.

Keywords: California roll sushi bowl, sushi bowl, imitation crab, spicy mayo, sushi rice, Japanese cuisine, easy sushi bowl recipe