Sweet and Spicy Salmon Bowls (30-Minute Recipe)

These Sweet and Spicy Salmon Bowls are bursting with colors and flavors! It's an easy recipe that comes together in minutes and is perfect for a simple weeknight dinner, lunch, or meal prep! Packed with healthy and fresh ingredients, this well-balanced dish has everything: protein, fiber, and carbs!

30-Minute salmon bowls

This quick and easy family-friendly weeknight meal takes only 30 minutes and requires only one cooking dish. The recipe blends together savory, sweet and tangy flavors in a single salmon bowl. The fish is glazed with a deliciously sticky homemade sweet chili sauce made with super simple ingredients. Then, the salmon is combined together with fresh mango salsa (that also includes bell peppers) and jasmine rice to create a delicious flavor combo! This simple dinner is rich in protein and healthy omega-3 fatty acids. The cleanup is minimal. It's perfect for meal prep, making ahead, and preparing on a busy weeknight.

What makes this recipe unique

• It's a well-balanced meal that has everything. Salmon provides you with healthy, omega-3-rich protein. You get the fiber from the mangos and bell peppers. This meal is completed with light and fluffy jasmine rice to satisfy your carb cravings.
• Salmon bowls are easily adaptable to whatever ingredients you have available. Don't have salmon? Use trout instead. Swap out mangoes for pineapples or peaches (fresh or canned). Add more veggies of your choice, such as green onions, broccoli, or cauliflower.
• The clean-up is a breeze since you have only one pan to clean! A perfect choice for a busy family weeknight dinner! Your family will love bold flavors and vibrant colors in this delicious 30-minute salmon bowl!

Healthy dinner

Salmon bowls are a great example that healthy recipes can taste like comfort food without sacrificing flavor.

• Fresh fruit and veggies. This is a great recipe to incorporate more fresh fruits and veggies into your diet. The salmon is paired with homemade mango salsa - a combo of fresh diced mangos, red bell peppers, fresh chopped cilantro, and freshly squeezed lime juice (along with spices like chili powder!)
• Salmon nutrition. This delicious fish is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, high in protein, and low in saturated fat. Salmon is a good source of Vitamin B12 and Vitamin D, as well as rich in Potassium and Iron.

Homemade sweet chili sauce

Homemade sweet chili sauce doesn't have to be a project. I make my own, overly-simplified version of the sweet chili sauce that uses basic ingredients and takes only 5 minutes. Here is the simple recipe that I make at home all the time:

• My version of sweet chili glaze is made with only 4 ingredients: low-sodium soy sauce (or tamari sauce), rice vinegar, fig spread, and red pepper flakes.
• Fig spread is a wonderful "shortcut" ingredient to use in sticky sweet chili sauces to create thickness and texture. I used fig spread by Divina brand (sold in many grocery stores these days).
• I also highly recommend using chili fig spread by Divina brand - it already has red pepper flakes, and is perfectly spicy for this recipe.
• Just mix all the ingredients for the homemade sweet chili sauce together - which should take you only 5 minutes! So easy!

Simple substitutes for homemade sweet chili sauce

Want to make it even simpler? Here are 2 more options:

• Option 1. Get a store-bought pad Thai sauce and mix it with the fig spread and red chili flakes.
• Option 2. Get a store-bought sweet red chili sauce and mix it with the fig spread and red chili flakes.

The main ingredients

• Salmon is a highly nutritious fish, rich in protein and healthy omega-3 fatty acids. It's low in saturated fat and a good source of several vitamins and minerals. In this recipe, I baked it to perfection until flaky.
• Garlic adds pungency and spicy aroma.
• Olive oil is used to coat the salmon while you roast it in the oven.
• Mangos are a deliciously sweet fruit, rich in vitamins (such as Vitamin K and Vitamin C), minerals, and antioxidants (including Beta-carotene).
• Red bell pepper will add texture, flavor, and color. You can also use green, yellow, or orange bell pepper if you like.
• Fresh cilantro adds a ton of flavor, so be sure to use the freshest herbs.
• Freshly squeezed lime juice provides just the right amount of acidity. Use only freshly squeezed lime juice, not the bottled kind. You can also use lemon juice.
• Chili powder will add pungency and spice to salmon bowls.
• Homemade sweet chili sauce. I make it using only 4 ingredients: low-sodium soy sauce (or tamari sauce), rice vinegar, fig spread, and red pepper flakes.
• Rice. I used jasmine rice.

How to make salmon bowls

1. First, start roasting the salmon (tossed with olive oil, minced garlic, salt, and pepper) in the preheated oven at 425 F for about 10 minutes or longer until cooked through.
2. While the salmon cooks, make the sweet chili sauce by combining together low-sodium soy sauce (or tamari sauce), rice vinegar, fig spread, and red pepper flakes in a small bowl.
3. Next, prepare the fruit salsa by tossing in a medium mixing bowl the following ingredients: diced mango, diced red bell pepper, chopped fresh cilantro, freshly squeezed lemon juice, chili powder, salt, and pepper to taste.
4. Then, glaze the salmon with some of the sweet chili sauce (reserving some for future use). Return glazed salmon to the oven briefly.
5. Finally, assemble the salmon bowls by adding cooked jasmine rice to each bowl. Top with sweet chili salmon and mango salsa. Spoon the reserved sweet chili sauce over the salmon. Garnish with chopped fresh cilantro and lime slices.

That's it! The whole recipe takes 30 minutes from start to finish!

Storage and reheating tips

• Refrigerate the leftover salmon in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
• How to reheat. Separate the mango salsa from rice and salmon. Reheat salmon and rice in the microwave in 30 seconds increments until completely heated through.
• I do not recommend freezing this dish.

What to serve with it

This is a classic salmon bowl recipe where the fish is served over the bed of jasmine rice. You don't have to limit yourself to plain rice only. Try these options next:

• Make flavored rice, such as cilantro-lime rice, cilantro-lime rice with black beans, or sun-dried tomato basil rice.
• Pasta. I recommend long pasta, such as spaghetti, fettuccine, pappardelle, or bucatini. You can also use egg noodles and rice noodles.
• Quinoa is a healthier carb alternative to rice and it pairs really well with the flavors in this recipe!

Other 30-minute salmon recipes

• Pan-Seared Salmon with Spinach, Artichokes, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, and Capers
• Salmon Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce and Spinach
• Garlic Parmesan Crusted Salmon and Asparagus - Baked in the Oven
• Creamy Tuscan Salmon with Spinach, Artichokes, and Garlic
• Honey Garlic Glazed Salmon - One-Pan, 30-Minute Meal

4.96 from 24 votes

Sweet and Spicy Salmon Bowls - 30-Minute Dinner

These Sweet and Spicy Salmon Bowls are bursting with colors and flavors! It's an easy recipe that comes together in minutes and is perfect for a simple weeknight dinner, lunch, or meal prep! Packed with healthy and fresh ingredients, this well-balanced dish has everything: protein, fiber, and carbs!

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 4 people

Calories per serving 507 kcal

Author: Julia

Ingredients

Simple sweet chili sauce

• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• ⅓ cup fig spread or more, for thickening the glaze (I prefer to use Divina brand)
• red pepper flakes to taste

Salmon

• 24 oz salmon fillets (4 salmon fillets)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• salt and pepper

Mango salsa

• 2 mangos mangos ripe, peeled, pitted, and diced
• 1 sweet red bell pepper small, diced
• ½ bunch fresh cilantro chopped
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• ¼ teaspoon chili powder  or more
• salt and pepper to taste

Rice

• 2 cups cooked rice I used Jasmine rice

Garnish

• 1 lime sliced
• fresh cilantro chopped

US Customary - Metric

Instructions 

• Preheat the oven to 425 F.

Make the sweet chili sauce

• Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl and mix well.

Cook the salmon

• Use whole salmon fillets or slice each into 3 chunks. Season the salmon with olive oil, minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Spread in a single layer in a baking dish skin-side down.
• Roast for about 10 or 12 minutes in the preheated oven at 425 F or until the salmon is almost cooked through.
• Remove from the oven. At this point, if you don't like the salmon skin, remove it by sliding a spatula carefully under each salmon fillet or chunk to separate the fillet from the skin. Discard the skin. Or leave the skin on!
• Coat the salmon with the sticky sweet chili glaze (reserving about ⅓ of the sauce for later) and return briefly to the oven to continue cooking (a couple of minutes) until the salmon is cooked through.
• While the salmon is roasted in the oven, proceed with the rest of the recipe and prepare the mango salsa and the bowls.

Mango salsa

• Note about mangos. Wash them thoroughly to get rid of any debris. Use ripe mangos. Always peel the mangos. Pit the mangos and dice them into cubes.
• In a medium mixing bowl combine diced mangos, diced red bell pepper, chopped fresh cilantro, freshly squeezed lime juice, and chili powder. Toss to combine.

Assembly

• Add cooked jasmine rice to the bowls. Top with glazed salmon on one side and mango salsa on the other side. Glaze the salmon with the reserved ⅓ of sweet chili sauce. Top with chopped fresh cilantro and fresh lime slices.

Notes

Notes about homemade sweet chili sauce

• My version of sweet chili sauce is made with only 4 ingredients: low-sodium soy sauce (or tamari sauce), rice vinegar, fig spread, and red pepper flakes.
• Fig spread is a wonderful "shortcut" ingredient to use in sticky sweet chili sauces to create thickness and texture. I used fig spread by Divina brand (sold in most grocery stores these days).
• I also highly recommend using chili fig spread by Divina brand - it already has red pepper flakes, and is perfectly spicy for this recipe.

Simple substitutes for homemade sweet chili sauce

• Option 1. Get a store-bought pad Thai sauce and mix it with the fig spread and red chili flakes.
• Option 2. Get a store-bought sweet red chili sauce and mix it with the fig spread and red chili flakes.

Nutrition

Nutrition Information

Sweet and Spicy Salmon Bowls - 30-Minute Dinner

Amount per Serving

Calories

507

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

18

g

28

%

Saturated Fat

 

3

g

19

%

Polyunsaturated Fat

 

5

g

Monounsaturated Fat

 

9

g

Cholesterol

 

94

mg

31

%

Sodium

 

609

mg

26

%

Potassium

 

973

mg

28

%

Carbohydrates

 

48

g

16

%

Fiber

 

5

g

21

%

Sugar

 

16

g

18

%

Protein

 

36

g

72

%

Vitamin A

 

1141

IU

23

%

Vitamin C

 

51

mg

62

%

Calcium

 

47

mg

5

%

Iron

 

2

mg

11

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition Disclaimer:

The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Keyword salmon bowls

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