Spicy Ahi over Crispy Rice
POV - you dedicated your Sunday to matching outfits, vacation planning, and capping off the day with an epic sushi-adjacent dinner. That’s exactly what this last Sunday looked like at our house and it was a 10/10 experience. It was the Sunday I needed + the kind of rejuvenation I was looking for. A day to just relax, do nothing but the fun stuff, and embrace a “no responsibilities Sunday” to cap off the weekend. It was truly perfect , and capping it off with a few hours in the kitchen was something I was really looking forward to.
On the menu - a Spicy Ahi over Crispy Rice. Think the perfect bite of prepared + seasoned poke over crispy rice squares that will satisfy any sushi craving while setting the tone for a light, snack-y kind of dinner vibe. It’s finger food heaven + feels kind of fancy, so everything we look for when it comes to a special Sunday night dinner. The tuna on top is rich, so flavorful, equally sweet + salty in a teriyaki kind of way, and still so light. If you are like me and seek out the fresh tuna rolls on a sushi menu, you’ll love this. The crispy rice on the bottom is this perfect little rice cake to soak up all the sauce + add a little texture. It was all served with a super simple miso cucumber salad on the side and drizzled with a homemade eel sauce that was perfection (and of course a Sapporo - duh).
Two things in the “never have I ever” category of at-home cooking - crispy rice + eel sauce. Both are two things I really enjoy, and I feel like my goal for 2026 is to hone in on some of these staples and be better equipped to make some of my favorite “eat out” food here at home. This week that goal clearly took a Japanese twist + revolved around this sushi-adjacent dinner at home, and I stepped outside my box to make what might be the best meal we’ve had at-home this month. We enjoyed it at our kitchen table in our matching Lululemon fits, and proceeded to spend the later evening hours diving into our upcoming Japan trip. A Sunday dream in my book.
A snack style dinner
To me, a perfect Sunday dinner is something fun, healthy, and worth setting the dining room table for. I always try to have something fun on the menu to look forward to cap off the weekend. Something “at-home fancy,” which really means veering away from my comfort zone of soups + one pot wonder style dinner. The idea of making crispy rice with a sushi-style tuna over top checked all those boxes, and it exceeded all my hopes + dreams for flavor and vibe.
To be honest - I’ve only had crispy rice once + I have the fondest memories of it. It was when we still lived in Arizona, and Jordan took me out on a Friday night to a spot in Old Town. I cannot remember the name of it, but I remember it being right in Old Town Scottsdale + you had to go up a set of stairs to enter the dining room. I also remember us really looking forward to this Friday night dinner date and it being one of our first date-nights out after being got married. Anyways, the shining star of everything we tried that night was this ahi on crispy rice appetizer. We didn’t leave one speck on that plate. It had a total sushi vibe and, all things considered, was pretty simple, but it was so good + so yummy that I remember it vividly all these years later. This at-home variation was so reminiscent. Crunchy, full of flavor, fresh, and, my favorite part, it just looked so cute all plated up + ready for us to dig in. I amped this one up to make it our main meal - slightly larger pieces of crispy rice, generous dollops of the ahi on top, and all served over a big crisp leaf of lettuce. We sort of wrapped the whole bite in a piece of lettuce and it was the perfect fresh, crispy veggie bite, and the undressed lettuce also made the whole thing a lot less messy to pick-up and enjoy.
Must love raw fish
To say a meal like this is outside the realm of normal for what comes out of our kitchen is a huge understatement. First, I feel like anytime we’re cooking anything bordering Asian food, it’s limited to stir fry. Second, I really do not do much fish. The reason that was different this go around was one thing - sushi grade Ahi. No de-boning, no having to deal with fish skin, and truly no cooking. It was my dream. The hardest, actually hardest part, was finding the tuna. I spent a solid few minutes calling the various fish counters I deemed superior to find that good quality ahi I was lookin for, and I finally found a solid source in town. Once the tuna was finally in my posession, the prep was easy. Chop it up, mix it with some mayo + other sauces, and refrigerate it until you’re ready to assemble. Super simple. The work really revolves around whipping up the crispy rice, which I was certainly intimidated to make.
Key things for this crispy rice - plenty of time + a clean bread loaf pan. You want to cook the rice as you would if you were making a stir fry, but you want to smash it together + chill it in a bread loaf pan so that after some time in the fridge, you have yourself a solid rice log that you can slice + fry + turn into the crispy rice bites that hold this thing together. My nervousness was heavily rooted in the fear that the rice wouldn’t hold up, but it was no issue at all. As long as you are aggressive about getting it all solidly smashed into your loaf pan + give it plenty of time to chill, you’ll have no issues at all.
Plated perfection
Plating this is the most fun part. And the most gratifying because it just looks so delicious. Start by laying down your torn lettuce pieces somewhat haphazardly, and use that as your guide as to where to place a piece of crispy rice. Gently dollop plenty of your tuna mix on top of the rice, and carefully garnish each piece with a piece of avocado + a pepper wheel. Hello cute little green pop! The final step is that sweet + sticky eel sauce drizzled all over the top, which I definitely went in for extra of that.
The perfect end to the weekend. The perfect excuse to buy a couple of Sapporo’s to enjoy here at home. The perfect use for our garden lettuce (which is already going bananas - I can’t believe it!) and the perfect attempt at a sushi style dinner for someone who is typically very intimidated at the thought of making fish. Enjoying it all in matching Sunday outfits was just the icing on the cake.
For the tuna
1 1/2 c. white rice, rinsed + drained
2 tsp mirin
1 tsp rice wine vinegar
1/2 lb sushi grade ahi
3 tbsp mayo (I used a lowfat mayo)
1 tbsp sriracha
4-5 green onion stalks, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp sesame oil
vegetable oil, for frying
fresh crispy green lettuce, like romaine or butter lettuce, ribs removed + torn into large pieces
1 avocado, thinly sliced
1 serrano, thinly sliced
sesame seeds
For the eel sauce
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. mirin
Start by prepping the rice. Rinse the rice in a strainer thoroughly - continuing to run water over the rice until the water is clear an no longer cloudy. Add 2 cups of water, the mirin, rice wine vinegar, and rice to a pot + place it over medium high heat. Stir thoroughly + bring the pot to a boil. Once boiling, cover the pot + reduce the heat to low, letting the rice continue to cook for 20 minutes. The rice should be completely tender at this time. Turn off the heat + lightly fluff the rice with a fork.
Take a loaf pan + line it with plastic wrap. Transfer the rice to the pan, firmly pressing the cooked rice in the pan. Cover the rice and let the rice cool in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Next, finely chop the tuna into small, bitesize cubes. Mix the tuna with the mayo, sriracha, sesame oil and green onion. Mix thoroughly to coat the fish, cover, + set in the fridge.
Next, make the eel sauce. Add all of the ingredients for the eel sauce to a sauce pan + mix together. Place the pan over medium heat + bring to a simmer, letting the sauce simmer for 10 minutes while stirring regularly. The sauce should thicken up + coat the back of a spoon. Turn off the heat.
Move to frying up the crispy rice. Add 3 tbsp canola oil to a large skillet placed over medium low heat. Grab the rice and remove the rice from the loaf pan - it should be removed in one large block. Slice the rice into 8 thin slices, and then cut each slice in half so you have 16 squares. Increase the heat to under the skiller medium + add in one of the rice patties. You want the oil to sizzle immediately when the rice is dropped in - that how you know the oil is hot enough. Proceed to lay all of the rice cakes in the pan in a single layer (cooking in batches if needed) + cook the rice cakes for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. The rice should be golden brown on each side. Remove the rice cakes + transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet.
Now it’s time to plate. Lay the lettuce down on your serving platter in a single layer, doing this somewhat haphazardly. Top each piece of lettuce with a piece of crispy rice. Spoon a heaping tablespoon of the ahi mixture on top of each piece of rice, garnishing each rice piece with a piece of avocado + a pepper slice. Drizzle a small spoonful of eel sauce over each slice. Finish by sprinkling sesame seeds over the top + serve with leftover eel sauce. Dig in + enjoy!
