Sushi Bake Recipe Made In Only 30 Minutes

This perfectly seasoned sushi bake recipe is a tasty twist on your usual takeout sushi. It's made with layers of fluffy sushi rice, spicy imitation crab meat, nori sheets, furikake, and avocado slices. And, best of all, you only need a handful of ingredients and 30 minutes to make it! So, if you're looking for a flavorful, quick, and easy dinner recipe this homemade sushi bake is one you won't want to miss.

The Best Sushi Bake Recipe

If you love sushi rolls, then I have a feeling you're going to love this easy sushi bake recipe!

In case you haven't heard of it, a sushi bake is basically like a deconstructed California roll, where all the sushi ingredients are baked into a simple and delicious sushi casserole.

The result is a hearty, umami-packed dish filled with fluffy rice and a creamy sriracha crab meat topping. Then, everything gets baked to golden perfection and finished with fresh avocado slices and crispy nori sheets.

Seriously, this is a showstopping dish that's just so much better to serve for a family dinner than ordering a bunch of regular sushi. And, if you give it a shot, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

By the way, it's also super easy to make - there's no rolling or sushi knife required here. Just cook the rice, layer the ingredients in a baking dish, and let your oven do the rest.

Sounds pretty simple, right?! So simple that you can easily make this potato mochi to go with it!

Also, one of my favorite things about this sushi bake recipe is that it's easy to customize and really make your own. I've included a whole list of sushi bake variations down below.

Ingredients

The ingredient list for this sushi bake recipe might look a little intimidating at first, but all of these ingredients are pretty standard Asian ingredients. So, if you cook Asian food occasionally there's a good chance you have all of these at home already.

With that said, anything you don't already have on hand should be available in the Japanese aisle of your local grocery store.

Anyway, here's what you'll need to make the sushi rice:

• 2 cups Sushi Rice (or any cooked rice)
• 2 ¼ cup Water
• ¼ cup Rice Vinegar
• 2 tbsp. Sugar
• 1 tsp. Salt

And here's what you'll need for the imitation crab with spicy mayo:

• 250 gr. Crab Surimi (imitation crab meat/kani)
• ¼ cup Mayo
• 1 tbsp. Sriracha

Lastly, here are the sushi bake toppings:

• 1 tsp. Shichimi or Furikake
• ½ Avocado, sliced
• Nori sheets
• Sesame Seeds

Pretty simple stuff for a deconstructed sushi roll, right?

Oh, and you can use a lot of these same ingredients to make this fried sushi next!

Now, sushi rice is also known as Japanese short grain rice. While you can substitute other types of short grain white rice in a pinch, sushi rice will give you the best soft and sticky texture.

As for the rice vinegar, you can buy plain rice vinegar or seasoned rice vinegar. Seasoned rice vinegar is simply rice vinegar with salt and sugar already added. If you go this route, use half of the salt and sugar that this recipe indicates.

Now, as far as the crab goes, you can certainly swap imitation crab for real crab meat if you have it available.

For the mayo, I highly recommend the Japanese mayo brand, Kewpie mayo - specifically the one in the red capped bottle - for the best flavor. That said, any mayo you have on hand will also work just fine! Kewpie is just my favorite.

By the way, you can use most of these ingredients to make this tuna and rice, Tiktok-famous salmon rice bowl, or this tasty kani salad! And if you have extra imitation crab, you can use it to make this crab rangoon. So you'll definitely want to think about giving those a shot next.

Customizing Your Sushi Bake

There are so many ways to switch up your sushi bake and make it in a new way every time!

Here are some of my favorite ideas:

• Add in diced cucumbers, carrots, celery, or any other veggies you want.
• Swap your mayo for cream cheese for a richer and more decadent sushi bake.
• Replace the crab with cooked salmon or tuna to make a salmon or tuna sushi bake

Feel free to switch it up with your toppings too. I like green onions, roasted seaweed, black sesame seeds, or even fish roe!

How To Make Sushi Bake

Once you've gathered all your ingredients for your sushi bake, the rest is really simple and quick.

In 30 minutes or less, you'll have enough of this golden flavorful sushi bake to feed the entire family!

Anyway, let's stop wasting time and get right into how to make sushi in casserole form.

Step 1: Cook The Rice

First, preheat your oven to 350°F (180ºC) and prepare a baking dish.

Next, rinse your uncooked sushi rice under cold running water until the running water runs clear. This process removes any excess starch from the rice and will make for a fluffier texture.

Then, transfer your rinsed sushi rice to a pot with the water and bring it to a boil. Once it’s boiling, cover and reduce heat and cook for 12 minutes.

Also, for what it's worth, you can also prepare your rice in a rice cooker if you have one. 

Step 2: Prepare The Rice and Spicy Crab Mixture

Now, once your cooked rice is ready, let it cool to room temperature.

Then, while the cooked rice is cooling, you can mix your rice vinegar, sugar, and salt together in a small bowl. Now, once all of that is combined, pour it over the cooled sushi rice and mix all of it together.

Next, you can chop - or tear - the crab surimi into strands and mix it in a bowl with your mayo and sriracha.

Step 3: Bake and Garnish

Now, transfer your seasoned sushi rice to a baking dish and top it with an even layer of the crab mixture.

Then, slide it into the oven and bake your sushi bake for about 15 minutes.

Once it's done, let it cool slightly, and then garnish your finished sushi bake with furikake - or Schicimi - sliced avocado, eel sauce, soy sauce, unagi sauce, broken-up nori sheets, and sesame seeds.

By the way, if you prefer to use toasted sesame seeds, you totally can. Just simply place your sesame seeds in a dry pan and heat them for 2-3 minutes on medium heat or until fragrant. 

How To Store Sushi Bake

This recipe will make about 4 large servings, so it's plenty for a family dinner. And, honestly, you might even have some leftovers too. 

So, if you do, you can store the sushi bake leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Also, you don't even have to reheat your sushi bake to enjoy it! It's just as delicious cold and makes a great packed lunch or picnic food. And for this reason, it also makes a great quick lunch or dinner meal prep option too.

Wrapping It Up

Well, how to make a sushi bake that's bound to please the whole family!

Honestly, this recipe is fantastic if you want something a little different than your usual sushi roll. Plus, it's just so much more filling than sushi rolls too! Not to mention, making this sushi bake at home is a lot cheaper than ordering a bunch of sushi rolls at a restaurant.

And for what it's worth, my family always gives this recipe 5 stars and thinks it's even better than traditional sushi.

Anyway, if you give this recipe a try, be sure to leave a comment below and let me know how it went!

More Seafood Recipes

If you liked this recipe and want to give some more easy seafood recipes like it a try, we have a ton on the blog to choose from!

Here are a few to get you started:

• Creamy salmon pasta
• Red Lobster shrimp scampi
• Panda Express honey sesame chicken
  
• Sweet and sour shrimp
  
• Shrimp pasta

Oh, and make sure to check us out on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube for even more deliciousness! We post new recipes on them every day.

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