Crispy Rice With Spicy Shrimp Salad

5 from 39 votes

Crispy Rice With Spicy Shrimp Salad

Crispy Rice with Spicy Shrimp Salad combines the crunch of crispy rice cakes topped with a delicious spicy shrimp and mayo salad. If you're craving sushi, but don't want the hefty price tag, this recipe will be your new favorite.

Prep Time20

Cook Time40

chilling time for the rice and shrimp salad2

Total Time3

Course: Appetizer, Main Course, main dish

Cuisine: Asian, Japanese

Diet: Low Fat

Servings: rice cakes

Calories: 132kcal

Author: Sarah Jenkins

Ingredients

For the fried crispy rice

2 cups water
1 ½ cups sushi rice rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tsp granulated sugar
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp neutral oil (like grapeseed oil or avocado oil)
1 tbsp unsalted butter (plus more as needed)

For the spicy shrimp salad

1 jalapeno or other spicy pepper, thinly sliced, seeds removed
1 lemon
1 lb shrimp cooked and finely chopped
⅓ cup diced green onions
2 tablespoon chili paste or gojuchang
1 tsp soy sauce
1 small avoado
2 tablespoon mayonaise

For serving

soy sauce
extra thinly sliced jalapeno
sesame seeds

Instructions

Make the sushi rice. Stir the 2 cups of water, the rinsed rice, vinegar, sugar and 1 teaspoon salt together in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover the saucepan, reduce the heat to low and cook until the rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Remove the rice from heat and allow it to sit, covered, for about 10 minutes.
Line an 8-inch square baking pan with plastic wrap, with a good amount of overhang on each side. Transfer the rice to the pan and press it down to flatten it into an even layer. Allow the rice to sit, at room temperature until completely cool, roughly 30 minutes. Refrigerate the rice until firm, at least 2 hours, but preferably longer (up to 24 hours).
Zest the lemon and grate the jalapeno, then place both in a small bowl. Add a pinch of salt, and stir. Add the chopped shrimp, the mayo, the chili paste (or gojuchang), and the green onions. Cover and place into the refrigerator for about 2 hours.
When you’re ready to prepare the dish, remove the rice from the refrigerator, unwrap it, and invert it onto a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, cut the rice into 18 even squares or rectangles.
In a large nonstick skillet, heat 2 tablespoon of oil and the tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Once the butter begins to foam, add the rice blocks and cook until golden on the bottom. This should take between 8-10 minutes. Flip the rice block and cook for an additional 8 minutes, until the other side is golden. Transfer the rice blocks to a paper-towel lined plate and sprinkle with salt. (You may need to do this step in batches depending on your skillet size.)
Pit the avocado and slice thinly, drizzle with the juice from the lemon.
Remove the spicy shrimp salad from the refrigerator and give it a good stir.
Assemble the rice cakes by adding a slice of avocado to each rice cake, then topping with a small scoop of the spicy shrimp salad. Top with a thin slice of jalapeno. Sprinkle with sesame seeds if desired.
Serve with soy sauce on the side.

Notes

Allow the sushi rice to chill in the pan for at least 2 hours, or up to 24 hours to make it easy to cut into squares.
Store any leftover crispy rice cakes in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Nutrition