Thai Sweet Chili Salmon Bowls

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Sweet Chili Salmon Bowls are a family-friendly weeknight recipe everyone will love! Start by tossing salmon pieces in soy sauce, lime juice, and minced garlic. Pan fry, then toss with Thai sweet chili sauce, serve on top of rice with sliced cucumbers, diced mangos, avocados, with homemade boom boom sauce!

Sweet chili salmon bowls with boom boom sauce on top

You totally eat with your eyes first.

Crispy pan-fried salmon nuggets marinated in soy sauce, garlic, and lime juice. Pan-fried until they’re golden and crispy and tossed with Thai sweet chili sauce for the last few seconds so the sugar in the sauce caramelizes and becomes a sweet and spicy, sticky glaze!

Holy moly! Don’t be surprised if the fam starts eating that salmon straight from the pan; it’s that good! I like to serve Thai sweet chili salmon pieces over brown rice with a diced cucumbers, mangos, and avocados all mixed into a refreshing salad. Plus creamy boom boom sauce drizzled right on top.

Glazed salmon nuggets over brown rice with avocados and mango salsa

Ingredients for sweet chili salmon bowls:

Salmon: I like using whole salmon fillets for this recipe. I usually ask the fish monger to remove the skin-side of the salmon so you’re left with just the flesh. You‘ll want to chop the fish into roughly 1-inch pieces so that they all cook up in roughly the same amount of time. Salmon is a great source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids which have numerous health benefits.
Sauces: You’ll need Thai Sweet Chili Sauce for this recipe. Brands such and Thai Kitchen and Mae Ploy make these sauce and they are easily available in most mainstream grocery stores. I’ve linked them as well if you’d like to purchase online. You’ll also need some mayo, ketchup (I use my favorite spicy ketchup) and a squeeze of sriracha.
Lime juice: Fresh lime juice goes into the marinade for salmon before we cook it up in the pan.
Garlic: You’ll need both minced garlic and garlic powder for this recipe. The minced garlic goes into the salmon marinade and the garlic powder is used in the boom boom sauce.
Shelled Edamame: You can use shelled edamame to make your life easier or use regular edamame, steam it, and then shell it yourself.
Cucumbers: I like using persian cucumbers for most recipes so that’s what I’ve used here, feel free to use English cucumbers or whatever you like.
Mangoes: If mangoes are in season, use fresh mangoes, if not, canned diced mangoes work equally well here.
Avocados: You can slice your avocados and add them to the bowl or dice them up and toss them with the cucumbers and mangoes.
Prepared rice: I like to use brown rice for this recipe, however, my coconut ricerecipe, or my basmati rice are also good options! Use whatever you like!
Toppings: I like to top the bowls with fried garlic (this is easily available in Asian grocery stores or you can make your own at home) along with toasted sesame seeds and some fresh cilantro. You can use all or some of these ingredients!

Salmon pieces before and after marinating

How to make the best Thai sweet chili salmon bowls:

Make the sauce. First you want to make the boom boom sauce. Start by stirring together the mayo, sweet chili sauce, ketchup, sriracha and a pinch of garlic powder in a small bowl. Once combined, set it aside or refrigerate if you did this well in advance.
Marinate the salmon. Toss the salmon pieces in a bowl with soy sauce, lime juice, and minced garlic. Once combined, let sit for 5 minutes if time permits. This allows the flavors to develop further.
Toss the salsa. Add the edamame, cucumbers, mangoes to a bowl. Toss with a little more lime juice if you’d like and season with a pinch of salt, fried garlic, sesame seeds, and some of the chopped cilantro. This is like a mango cucumber salsa for the bowls!
Pan fry until flakey. Add a drizzle of avocado oil to a large pan and heat through. When warm, add the salmon piece sin a single layer and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the salmon is done to your liking. Quickly drizzle the sweet chili sauce over the salmon and toss the salmon the sauce. Use a spoon to help glaze all of the protein.
Serve it up! Divide the rice into 4 bowls, top with the cucumber mixture, sliced avocados, glazed salmon bites and top with fried garlic, cilantro, and drizzle with that prepared sauce. Serve with lime wedges to squeeze on top!

FAQs about this recipe:

Is this recipe gluten-free?

ou’ll need to check the sweet chili sauce, ketchup, and sriracha that you’re using, as long as all of those sauces are gluten-free, this recipe is safe to consume for those that follow a gluten-free diet.

How do you suggest storing leftovers?

I usually keep the salmon in an airtight container separate from the cucumber and mango salsa. Both of these can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Can I prepare the salmon nuggets in the air fryer?

I’m confident that you can, I just haven’t had a chance to test it out yet. I would suggest following directions from another recipe to make sure the salmon cooks all the way through. You can brush the salmon nuggets or toss them in a bowl with the sweet chili sauce and serve if you don’t want them to be caramelized. Or you could also do this on a sheet pan under the broiler in the oven on the broil setting for 45-75 seconds. Just be sure that the oven rack isn’t too close to the broiler or you run the risk of burning the salmon.

If you like this recipe, you might also like:

Rice bowls topped with salmon pieces, avocados and more

Yield: Serves 4