Firecracker Salmon Salad Bowl

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Refrigerator Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour & 20 minutes
Servings: 5 people

Dive into these spicy, tender salmon fillets paired with crunchy, refreshing veggies in a vibrant Firecracker Salmon Salad Bowl! It’s super easy to whip up and loaded with protein and fiber. You can have it ready in just ten minutes, making it perfect for lunch or dinner. This is the salad I made on day ten, and let me tell you, it’s absolutely fantastic. The firecracker marinade is delicious, and the flaky salmon just melts in your mouth. And the veggies—cabbage, carrots, radishes, edamame, and avocado—add so much crunch and color. I’m totally obsessed with this salad, and I have a feeling you will be too!

What Sets This Firecracker Salmon Apart:
Firecracker sauce is a game-changer in the kitchen! With roots in Asian and fusion cuisines, this sauce strikes the perfect balance of sweet, savory, and spicy. The name ‘firecracker’ hints at the explosive flavor profile, combining soy sauce, honey or brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and sriracha. These ingredients create a symphony of flavors that ignite your palate with every bite.

What sets this sauce apart is its versatility. Not only does it make proteins like our Firecracker Salmon, shrimp, or chicken sing, but it also doubles as a dipping sauce for Crispy Buffalo Chicken Wings, a marinade, or a drizzle over vegetables for that extra burst of flavor. It’s the secret ingredient that will elevate your dishes to new heights.

Ingredients:

Firecracker Salmon

6 salmon fillets
⅓ cup of sriracha
2 tablespoon soy sauce
½ tablespoon brown sugar
3 cloves of garlic crushed or grated
1 tablespoon of ginger grated
2 teaspoon of chilli flakes
Salt to taste
Paprika to taste
2 tablespoon of olive oil

Salad

170 g or 4 cups of green leaves
1.5 cups of white cabbage shredded
2 cups of carrot shredded or julienned
1 cup of red pepper sliced
4 radish sliced
1 avocado sliced
2 cups of edamame
4 or ¼ cup of green onions sliced
1 tablespoon of sesame seeds

Directions:

In a small bowl, whisk together sriracha, soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, chili flakes, salt, paprika and oil. Set aside ¼ cup of the sauce for serving later.
Cut the salmon fillets into equal-sized pieces and pat them dry with paper towels. Brush the sauce generously over both sides of each piece. If you have time, marinate the salmon in a bowl covered with plastic wrap in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Preheat the air fryer to 200°C/400°F and line the basket with parchment paper or foil. Grease lightly with oil to prevent sticking. Arrange the salmon pieces in a single layer in the basket and cook for 10 minutes or until the fish flakes easily with a fork.
While the salmon is cooking, prepare the salad. In a large bowl, toss together the mixed greens, cabbage, carrots, bell pepper, radishes, avocado, green onions and edamame. Season with salt and pepper to taste and drizzle some olive oil over the salad if desired.
To serve, add salmon slices on top of the salad, sprinkle sesame seeds over the salmon and drizzle with the reserved sauce or serve it in a pot. Enjoy!

Tips & Notes:

Batches: Feel free to double or triple this recipe if you need to feed a crowd.
Marinate: If you have extra time, marinate the salmon. It intensifies the flavor and gives it a beautiful color.
Salmon: Do not overcook the salmon, as this will give the fish a dry texture. You'll also enjoy this Baked Cajun Honey Butter Salmon Recipe if you are a salmon lover.
Salad: Ensure all the salad ingredients are fresh for the best flavor.
Variations: Salmon is a delicious and healthy fish that you can prepare in various ways. One of the easiest and fastest methods is using an air fryer, which gives you crispy and juicy results in no time. But don’t worry if you don’t have one, you can still enjoy a tasty salmon dish by baking it in the oven or frying it in a pan. Preheat your oven to 200C for oven baking and place the salmon on a baking sheet. Bake it for 10-12 minutes or until it flakes easily with a fork. Heat some oil in a large skillet over medium heat for pan frying and cook it for 7-10 minutes, flipping once or until it’s golden and cooked through.
Add-in: Feel free to add any additional salad ingredients of your choice for this recipe. Some delicious add-ins include cucumber, crushed peanuts and celery.
Salmon: I used half of a whole deboned salmon fillet and then sliced it before marinating; however, you can buy sliced salmon fillets from the supermarket instead. If the salmon is frozen, allow it to thaw completely before preparation.
Sriracha: Use good quality sriracha for the best flavor.
Soy sauce: The same goes for soy sauce. Select a good brand. You can also use low-sodium soy sauce instead.
Brown sugar adds sweetness to the sauce. If you don't have brown sugar on hand, you can swap it for honey.
Ginger: Fresh ginger works best, but you can substitute ground ginger if you don't have any.
Green leaves: I used a shop-bought mixture of red and green leaves. Feel free to use any greens of your choice. You can also use lettuce.
Cabbage: I used white cabbage but you can also use red. Chop or shred it thinly so that it is easy to eat.
Carrot: Juilliene or shred the carrots so that it is bite-sized.
Red pepper: Remove stem and seeds. Slice thinly.
Raddish: Remove the stem and slice thinly.
Avocado: Remove the seed, skin and slice.