Cajun Bang Bang Salmon Bowls

Why you’ll love this cajun salmon rice bowls with bang bang sauce

This dish combines crispy seared salmon bites with a spicy and creamy sauce that will wow your tastebuds. When served over rice and finished with a garnish of chives, this one is sure to become a favorite.

Seared salmon combined with a spicy Cajun seasoning is the star of this dish. But there’s more, we’re going to load in even more flavor and a bit of extra spice. Get ready, you’re in for a treat!

Salmon bites are a delicious way to achieve a crispier texture and they cook quicker than salmon fillets. For this recipe, we sear the salmon in a skillet for a crispy outer layer with a juicy center. But you can also air fry the salmon cubes to achieve that beautiful char.

This is a great dish to serve for lunch or dinner, or to share with friends. Whether you’re a seafood lover or just looking for a new way to prepare salmon, this recipe is a super delicious way to treat everyone at your table.
Let me guide you through the recipe with this step-by-step VIDEO.

What Is Bang Bang Sauce?

Bang Bang sauce is a magical combination of just a few ingredients. Made with mayonnaise, Thai sweet chili sauce and Sriracha for heat. If you like your sauce with some extra ‘bang’, feel free to add more Sriracha. We’ll also add honey and lime juice to balance out the flavors. To lighten it up, you can swap the mayonnaise for full fat Greek yogurt. 

These simple ingredients make for a creamy spicy sauce, but don’t be fooled by its simplicity. It has a flavor punch that’s exciting and elevates whatever it’s added to, to the next level. You can use it on chicken strips, seared shrimp or roasted veggies like cauliflower or broccoli.

Ingredients for the salmon

• Salmon fillets: Cut into cubes. Try to buy salmon fillets of the same size so they can sear evenly.
• Oil and Butter: To sear the salmon. We would never get the same crispy sear with only oil, and butter alone would burn at high temperature.
• Seasoning: A mix of garlic powder, salt and black pepper.
• Cajun seasoning: You can use store-bought or make your own to get the right balance of flavors. You can find my favorite blend in the recipe notes. If using store-bought, you might use less salt to season the salmon.
• Chives: Swap for scallions.
• Rice: Use white rice, jasmine rice or cauliflower rice.

Bang bang sauce ingredients

• Mayonnaise: You can use regular, light or non-fat mayonnaise. For a lighter version, use full fat Greek yogurt.
• Sweet Chili Sauce: This sauce is sweet and spicy and delivers the flavor in bang bang sauce. You should be able to find it in the Asian section of your grocery store.
• Sriracha: This adds a spicy kick. Use more or less depending on how spicy you like your food. Can’t find it? Use sambal oelek or gochujang paste.
• Honey: To sweeten the sauce and counter balance the heat. 
• Lime juice: This helps to bring the flavors together. As we are using such a small amount you can use lemon juice.

Helpful tips

• How to make air fryer salmon bites? Cook salmon bites for 8-10 minutes at 375°F/190°C. If you find that after 10 minutes, the salmon bites aren’t golden, air fry for another 1-2 minutes until charred.
• Make your own Cajun spices: 2 tbsp smoked paprika, 2 tsp each onion powder + garlic powder, 1 tsp each dried thyme + dried oregano + salt + black pepper + cayenne pepper + chili powder + ground cumin
• Pair with a cucumber salad, steamed or air fried broccoli, avocado, shredded carrots or edamame beans.
• Top with sesame seeds, crispy fried onion or chili oil.
• Get your pan super hot before searing the salmon. A hot pan will result in an even sear and a delicious crust.

How to store leftover salmon?

• Leftovers will keep for 2 days in the fridge stored in airtight containers. 

Try these next

• Japanese Style Risotto with Seared Salmon
• Cajun Honey Butter Salmon
• Sticky Chicken Skewer Rice Bowls