Crispy Rice with Spicy Shrimp Salad
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I’m currently 20 weeks pregnant and have been craving my beloved spicy tuna crispy rice! Unfortunately since raw fish during pregnancy is not advised, I haven’t been able to indulge. Instead I’ve come up with this pregnancy (or raw fish aversion friendly) version of the fan favorite using cooked shrimp salad and piling it on crispy rice.
The shrimp is finely chopped into small pieces and combined with kewpie mayonnaise, sriracha, a touch of soy sauce, green onion, diced jalapeño and panko breadcrumbs for some added crunch. Craving more dishes like this? My spicy crab crispy rice recipe is right up your alley. Learn how to nail the technique with this Nobu-style crispy rice method. The key is in how you press, chill, and fry the rice.
Why You’ll Love Crispy Rice with Spicy Shrimp Salad
- Crispy, golden perfection. Each bite of the crunchy rice base pairs perfectly with the creamy, spicy shrimp salad topping for the ultimate contrast in texture.
- Restaurant-quality at home. This dish looks and tastes like something you’d order at a trendy sushi bar, but is surprisingly easy to recreate in your own kitchen.
- Great sushi alternative. This iteration is great for those in areas without fresh raw fish available, the raw fish averse and anyone who may be pregant and using precaution when eating raw foods.
Key Ingredients in This Recipe
- Shrimp – I don’t season the shrimp before cooking it since the added sauces in the salad provide a fair amount of salt. I recommend cutting the shrimp into small pieces for the salad so it can easily be piled on top of the crispy rice.
- Panko – Panko, or Japanese breadcrumbs, are light and airy. Because the shrimp are much more firm than raw fish, I add panko for extra crunch and to help bind the salad.
- Mayonnaise – Kewpie is a type of Japanese mayonnaise that has added seasoning. If you cannot find Kewpie then substitute regular mayonnaise with a ½ teaspoon of mirin.
- Sriracha – Sriracha is great because it is so easy to find and adds a spicy, garlic flavor to the shrimp salad.
- Rice – Short-grain Japanese sushi rice is used to make this recipe. The plump grains stick together well, making it perfect for crispy rice. Long-grain rice won’t stick together enough to fry the pieces as the base.
- Green onion – In this recipe I use both the white, more pungent bottom parts of the stalk as well as the more mild green tops.
- Jalapeño – I add chopped jalapeño to the salad as well as a small slice on top to garnish the crispy rice. Removing the seeds and membrane from the jalapeño before chopping it cuts down on the spice level. As a result the jalapeño flavor remains.
- Mirin – I season the rice with mirin for extra flavor though this step can be skipped.
- Eel sauce – I love adding a drizzle of eel sauce over the top of the crispy rice. You can even make your own eel sauce!
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Tips for Perfect Crispy Rice
If your rice isn’t crisping up or browning the way you want, these tips will help you achieve that golden, crunchy exterior every time.
- Use the right rice: Stick with short-grain sushi rice. It has the ideal starch content to hold together and crisp up beautifully.
- Pack it tightly: Make sure the rice is firmly pressed with no loose grains sticking out. I like to sandwich the rice between two same-size sheet pans to get an even, compact layer or make sure it’s pressed into one pan.
- Heat your oil properly: Don’t rush this step! The oil should be shimmering hot before you start frying; otherwise, the rice will absorb oil instead of crisping.
- Add a light cornstarch coating: A quick dusting of cornstarch on the rice before frying helps create a deeply golden crust.
- Use a deep pot: A high-sided pot or Dutch oven minimizes splatter and helps maintain even heat for frying.
Special Equipment
While it’s not required for this recipe, I recommend using a rice cooker for perfect fluffy rice, every time.
Swaps and Substitutions
- Shrimp: Swap the shrimp for cooked crab, chopped sushi-grade tuna, or salmon for a different spin on the topping. For a vegetarian option, use finely diced avocado or spicy tofu instead.
- Spicy sauce: If you don’t have Sriracha, try using gochujang, chili crisp, or even a dash of hot sauce for a similar kick. You can also mix in a little wasabi for an extra kick of heat.
- Soy Sauce: Tamari or coconut aminos both make great gluten-free alternatives to soy sauce.
- Toppings: Play around with texture and flavor! Add sliced scallions or sesame seeds.
How to Make Crispy Rice with Spicy Shrimp Salad
Place the rice in a fine mesh strainer and rinse until the water that runs out of the bottom is clear. This gets some of the starch out of the rice. In a medium saucepan, combine the rice and 2 cups (400g) of water.
Bring to a boil then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until rice is tender and the water has been absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, sprinkle with mirin and fluff the rice with a fork and let cool.
Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap, then spread the sushi rice evenly, pressing it down so that it is tightly packed. Transfer to the refrigerator for at least an hour.
Lift the plastic wrap from the pan, then use a knife to cut it into 8 even squares.
Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet to 375°F (190ºC). Fry only a few squares of rice at a time in the pan. Cook, rotating so that the rice is golden brown on all sides, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the pan to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
Cut each square of crispy rice in half.
Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat, add the oil and heat through. Add the shrimp to the pan, cooking until pink and no longer translucent, about 1 minute. Flip and continue to cook until just cooked through. Remove to a cutting board and allow to cool completely.
Finely chop the shrimp then add to a bowl with the green onions, breadcrumbs, mayonnaise, sriracha, jalapeño and soy sauce. Stir to combine and set aside.
Top each piece of crispy rice with a slice of avocado and a scoop of the shrimp salad. Drizzle with the eel sauce and top with a slice of jalapeño. Serve immediately with soy sauce for dipping.
How to Make Crispy Rice with Spicy Shrimp Salad Gluten Free
This dish can easily be made gluten free! Rice is naturally gluten free so just make sure there is no cross-contamination in the oil when frying. Check the label of the mirin if using because some can be made with wheat. Substitute the eel sauce and soy sauce with a gluten free Tamari or liquid aminos. I like to add the butter lettuce as a cup filled with the rice like it’s served at Nobu.
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
Short-grain sushi rice works best for crispy rice. It has the right amount of starch to hold together when pressed and fry up with a perfectly crunchy exterior. Avoid long-grain rice like basmati or jasmine – they won’t stick together properly.
Pack the rice very tightly before chilling or cutting. I like to press it between two sheet pans and refrigerate it for at least an hour (or overnight). Cold, compact rice holds together much better when fried.
Make sure your oil is hot before frying (around 350°F / 180ºC). If the oil isn’t hot enough, the rice will absorb oil instead of crisping. You can also add a light dusting of cornstarch before frying for extra crunch.
Yes, you can prepare and fry the rice squares ahead of time. Let them cool completely, then store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a few hours. For best texture, re-crisp them in a hot oven or air fryer before topping.
If you prefer not to deep fry, you can shallow-fry the rice in a nonstick pan with a generous amount of oil. It won’t be quite as evenly crispy, but it will still get a nice golden crust.
Crispy rice is super versatile! Try topping it with spicy tuna (the original version), salmon tartare, avocado and eel sauce, or even seared steak for a fun twist.
Other Recipes to Try
If you enjoy this crispy rice with spicy shrimp salad recipe, give these a try and follow me on Instagram for more updates:
Made this dish? Be sure to rate the recipe and drop a comment below! Your feedback means everything (and helps others find it too)!
Crispy Rice with Spicy Shrimp Salad
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Ingredients:
For the crispy rice:
- 1½ cups short grain sushi rice
- 2 teaspoons mirin
- 1 cup Vegetable oil
For the spicy shrimp salad:
- ¾ pound large (21-30 count) shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ¼ cup diced green onions
- ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 3 tablespoons kewpie mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons sriracha
- 1 tablespoon diced jalapeño
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
For serving:
- 1 medium Hass avocado, pitted, peeled and sliced
- 1 small jalapeño, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons eel sauce, optional
- Soy sauce, as needed
Instructions:
For the crispy rice:
- Place the rice in a fine mesh strainer and rinse until the water that runs out of the bottom is clear. This gets some of the starch out of the rice. In a medium saucepan, combine the rice and 2 cups (400g) of water.
- Bring to a boil then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until rice is tender and the water has been absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, sprinkle with mirin and fluff the rice with a fork and let cool.
- Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap, then spread the sushi rice evenly, pressing it down so that it is tightly packed. Transfer to the refrigerator for at least an hour.
- Lift the plastic wrap from the pan, then use a knife to cut it into 8 even squares.
- Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet to 375°F (190ºC). Fry only a few squares of rice at a time in the pan. Cook, rotating so that the rice is golden brown on all sides, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the pan to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
- Cut each square of crispy rice in half.
For the spicy shrimp salad:
- Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat, add the oil and heat through. Add the shrimp to the pan, cooking until pink and no longer translucent, about 1 minute. Flip and continue to cook until just cooked through. Remove to a cutting board and allow to cool.
- Finely chop the shrimp then add to a bowl with the green onions, breadcrumbs, mayonnaise, sriracha, jalapeño and soy sauce. Stir to combine and set aside.
For serving:
- Top each piece of crispy rice with a slice of avocado and a scoop of the shrimp salad. Drizzle with the eel sauce and top with a slice of jalapeño. Serve immediately with soy sauce for dipping.
Notes:
Nutrition:
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Can you fry these in an air fryer
I don’t recommend frying them in the air fryer, it doesn’t give them the same crispy exterior as frying them in the pan. The air fryer does work great for reheating and re-crisping up any leftovers though!! Hope you enjoy.
Made these for a sushi loving friend and they were a hit!! Couldn’t find sushi grade tuna so we were happy to have an alternative. Will definitely make this again!
I have spent 6 years missing sushi due to food allergies and hyperthyroidism.
Too many unsafe ingredients and far too high sodium levels.
However- I came across a crispy rice w spicy shrimp salad recipe/reel on IG a few days ago and knew this was possible!
She already included Gf options, there was no lactose to be found, and careful label reading insured it was black pepper free. Seaweed is the biggest sodium culprit and this was sans that!
Omg. DELICIOUS.
I was on crispy rice duty while my kitchen witch husband handled the shrimp salad which simplified things but you could easily make the salad ahead if you’re prepping solo.
And although this presentation is LOVELY, it tastes the same layered in a bowl- easy peasy!
Even the tweens in the house couldn’t get enough.
Although easily adaptable for spice preference or allergies, there really is nothing that needs tweaked for taste anywhere! A+++++
I’m so glad you were able to enjoy sushi again!! I hope this helps others with allergies too!!
This is delicious!!! It reminds me of a crispy spicy tuna “roll” I tried while vacationing in Miami that I loved! It’s nice to be able to make something so delicious from the comfort of my own home. My girls (ages 13 and 14) loved it too. I didn’t have eel sauce but it had so much flavor anyway! Will definitely make again.
I’m so glad it was a hit! Thank you for sharing Melissa!!
This recipe was a hit for my family and I. I always look for simple recipes with not a long list of ingredients and this was it. Skip the sushi restaurant and give this a try 1000/10 recommend. *Chef’s kiss. Best part is you can adjust the spicyness to your liking.
So happy to hear that Melanie! Thank you so much for sharing!!
Made this today. Omg, this was so easy to make and very delicious. I had to substitute a couple of item because of some food shortages but it still turned out really delicious. Thanks for sharing!!!
So happy to hear you enjoyed!!
Made this tonight for my birthday dinner! Didn’t quite get the crispy rice right but it was still so delicious looking forward to trying this again!
Practice makes perfect! I’m glad you enjoyed!!
Very delicious recipe. My husband said it was spectacular. Very easy to make. I bought already cooked rice. But next time will make it my own.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed! Thank you for sharing!
I’m very much a cooking novice but this recipe is so easy to follow and turned out amazing. I’m celiac so I substituted a few items for gluten free options and it still turned out amazing. Highly recommend.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed and that you could make the swaps to make it gluten free!
You wrote: “ Panko – Panko, or Japanese breadcrumbs, are light and airy. Because the shrimp are much **more firm**than raw fish, I add panko for extra crunch and to help bind the salad.”
Want to do a website? Please use English.
It’s “FIRMER”, not “more firm”.😖
I just made these for lunch today and the toast is fantastic ! I must have done something wrong because the rice fell apart while frying. I did make the rice the day before and pressed into a loaf pan. I fried them right out of the refrigerator today. Any ideas what I might have done differently? It was delicious though !!
Are you using sushi/ short grain rice? I recommend rinsing the rise before cooking it and making sure there aren’t any gaps between the grains of rice to make sure it’s tightly packed in the loaf pan. I also recommend making sure the oil is hot enough so it fries quickly! Hope this helps!!
So easy to make and delicious!
Great recipe!
So happy to hear it! Thanks for sharing Katina!
Great easy recipe
So happy to hear it! Thanks for sharing Ross!
Was not loving this recipe. It looked so good in the photo, but I found it to have little flavor.
I’m sorry you found the recipe to have little flavor, did you try increasing the sriracha based on preference or using more eel sauce? It should be a fairly flavorful recipe with the jalapeños and sauces!
These are SO good! I added a layer of seaweed and sprinkled some furikake to the shrimp salad mix. The crispy rice adds a great crunchy texture that takes it to another level of yum. I will be making these regularly. I may never need to buy sushi again. Thanks for sharing and congrats on your pregnancy!
So happy to hear it Mel!! And thank you so much!!