Japanese Salmon Salad Recipe

Today’s Japanese salmon salad recipe offers you a dish with Japan’s finest. When you think of Japanese cuisine, sushi or sashimi may be the first food that comes to mind, and this salad features one of its most prominent ingredients.

Raw salmon is the hero of this salad, accompanied by edamame, radish, lettuce, and carrots. All these ingredients are coated with a delicious layer of creamy and nutty dressing. If you want to explore Japanese cuisine, this salad is a good starting point.

Can You Eat Raw Salmon?

The answer is yes.

Raw salmon is a primary ingredient in world-famous dishes like sushi, sashimi, or poke bowls. The known-and-beloved sushi rolls and sushi cupcakes wouldn’t be popular without the delectably soft, melt-in-the-mouth texture from raw salmon.

Despite being a common ingredient, raw salmon do carry risks, like other animal protein. You can, however, reduce those risks by storing and preparing raw salmon correctly.

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Check out this roundup of ours for more salmon salad ideas.

While shopping for salmon, pay attention to the appearance, which may include bruising, discoloring, or off-odor. 

Wrap the salmon tightly and store it in the freezer to avoid cross-contamination. Thaw the fish by transferring it to the fridge and keep it refrigerated until serving.

Make sure to clean your kitchen surfaces and utensils carefully while preparing the fish. 

Lastly, pregnant women, children, older adults, and immunocompromised people should avoid eating raw fish altogether.

Is Japanese Salmon Salad Healthy?

Yes, we believe this salad is healthy.

This dish contains 211 calories in each serving, which is reasonable for an appetizer, side dish, or a light snack.

By adjusting the amount of mayonnaise and choosing the reduced-sodium version of soy sauce, we limit the saturated fat and sodium levels to 2 g and 239.1 mg, respectively.

This salad also provides you with 12.6 g of protein, thanks to salmon and edamame beans.

Aside from protein, salmon is a source of omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin B12, both may benefit different bodily functions.

Edamame is rich in folate, which may support pregnancy and fetal development.

Main Ingredients

• Salmon

Raw salmon’s delicate flesh simply melts in your mouth. As such, salmon's natural flavor stands out more than cooked salmon.

This is also a chance for you to show off your knife skills. Slicing raw salmon requires finesse. When you master the technique, the result will be beautiful. The trick is to use a sharp and flexible knife and slice diagonally.

Remember to keep the salmon in the fridge before slicing.

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• Edamame

Edamame is green and young soybeans. Unlike the mature soybeans used for tofu and soy milk, edamame is soft and has tons of flavor. The texture of edamame is somewhat similar to peas but firmer, while its flavor is sweet and nutty.

The pod of edamame is inedible. For this recipe, we recommend that you buy the hulled version of edamame to save you some time.

• Other vegetables

This salad features two types of lettuce (iceberg and red leaf), two types of radish (white and red), red onion, and carrots. The textures of these vegetables contrast the buttery salmon nicely, giving this dish more diversity.

• Dressing

The dressing is sweet, salty, and nutty. It includes some popular ingredients in Japanese cuisine like mirin, soy sauce, sesame seeds and oil, and Japanese mayonnaise. Tahini paste seems to be the odd one out.

Tahini paste is made from sesame seeds. Its appearance resembles peanut butter, but it’s not as sweet. Instead, its nutty flavor is strong and earthy.

How to Serve

This Japanese salmon salad makes a great start to any meal. 

You can serve it as an appetizer or alongside some rice or noodle dishes. Doubling down on the Japanese theme is also an option, gyudon (Japanese beef rice bowl) or teriyaki chicken both work well with this salad.

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How to Store the Leftovers

You can store this salad in the fridge. However, since the dish contains raw salmon, we recommend that the leftovers be eaten within the day.

Salads shouldn’t be frozen to avoid losing the texture of the vegetables. Besides, the mayonnaise-based dressing cannot be thawed as it will break.

How to Make Japanese Salmon Salad

5 from 2 votes

This Japanese salmon salad recipe features a collection of Japan's signature ingredients that can give you a delicious meal.

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• cook TIME 10 mins
• prep TIME 12 mins
• total TIME 22 mins

• COURSE Side Dish
• CUISINE Japanese
• SERVINGS
  4

  servings
• CALORIES 211 kcal

INGREDIENTS

1x2x3x

• 6 oz skinless boneless salmon
• 2 oz red leaf lettuce
• 2 oz iceberg lettuce
• 2 oz edamame beans
• 1 oz carrot (julienned)
• 1 oz white radish (julienned)
• 1 oz red onion (julienned)
• 1 oz radish (sliced)
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp cooking mirin
• 1 tbsp Tahini paste
• 1 1/2 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise
• 1 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tbsp unsalted roasted sesame seeds
• 1 tsp sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

Image instructions

1

Make the dressing: Mix 1 tbsp rice vinegar, 1/2 tbsp sesame seeds, 1 tsp sugar, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp cooking mirin, 1 tbsp Tahini paste, 1 1/2 Japanese mayonnaise, and 1 tbsp soy sauce.

2

Slice the salmon (make sure to keep salmon in the fridge before slicing)

3

Add 2 oz red leaf lettuce, 2 oz iceberg lettuce, 1 oz red onion, 2 oz edamame beans, 1 oz radish, 1 oz white radish, 1 oz carrot, 1 1/2 tbsp sesame seeds, and 6 oz salmon. Mix carefully.

NUTRITION

Nutrition Facts

How to Make Japanese Salmon Salad

Amount Per Serving (1 serving)

Calories 211Calories from Fat 126

% Daily Value*

Fat 14g

22%

Saturated Fat 2g

13%

Trans Fat 14g

Polyunsaturated Fat 3g

Monounsaturated Fat 3g

Cholesterol 39mg

13%

Sodium 216mg

9%

Potassium 373mg

11%

Carbohydrate 9g

3%

Fiber 3g

13%

Sugar 4g

4%

Protein 12g

24%

Vitamin A 2318IU

46%

Vitamin C 5mg

6%

Calcium 35mg

4%

Iron 1mg

6%

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

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