Crispy, saucy and delicious! Spicy tuna crispy rice is a little bite of heaven made from frying seasoned sushi rice and topping it with creamy, spicy tuna and a thinly sliced Jalapeño – for a tiny kick! These flavorful bites look gourmet and are served in tons of restaurants now, but you can easily make them at home. I’ll show you how!

Spicy Tuna Crispy Rice Recipe

Crispy Sushi Rice:
2 cups sushi rice (short grain white rice)
4 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
Oil for frying (vegetable or canola)

Spicy Tuna:
7-8 oz sushi grade tuna, finely chopped
2 tablespoons Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Sriracha
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
juice of 1/2 a lime
1 tablespoon chopped green onion

To Serve:
Thinly sliced Jalapeño
Sliced green onions
Eel sauce (sweet soy sauce)

Prepare sushi rice the day before.

Step 1.
Follow package directions for cooking sushi rice.

Step 2.
While the rice is cooking, in a small pot on medium heat, bring to a simmer the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt to make the sushi vinegar. Simmer until the sugar dissolves and set aside.

Step 3.
Line a small rectangular baking dish with plastic wrap for easy rice removal later. Once the rice is finished cooking and still hot, add rice to the prepared baking dish. Season rice by pouring the sushi vinegar mixture over the rice and mix using a wooden spoon in a chopping motion- trying not to break the rice. Then, press the rice down into the dish in an even layer – the layer should be at least 1/2 inch deep. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

The next day: fry the crispy rice and prepare spicy tuna.

Step 4.
Remove the baking dish with the seasoned sushi rice from the fridge. Remove the wrapped rice block from the baking dish, unwrap and transfer to a cutting board. Cut rice evenly into small bite-sized squares or rectangles.

Step 5.
In a large frying pan, heat 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil on high heat. Once the oil is hot, gently place your rice squares into the pan. Cook rice squares in batches making sure not to overcrowd the pan. Cook approximately 2-4 minutes on both sides flipping half way through when the color of the bottom is golden brown. After you flip over rice, add 2 tablespoons of additional oil to the pan as needed to maintain the oil level for frying. When your rice squares are fried on both sides transfer to a rack to cool and maintain crispiness.

Step 6.
Chop green onion, slice Jalapeño and prepare optional toppings.

Step 7.
Prepare spicy tuna by finely chopping tuna on a cutting board. Transfer tuna to a small bowl. Add to the bowl Kewpie mayonnaise, Sriracha, soy sauce, sesame oil, and lime juice and chopped green onion. Stir to combine.

Step 8.
Assemble by topping each crispy rice bite with 1-2 tablespoons of spicy tuna, then top with chopped green onion and 1 thin slice of jalapeño. After all are assembled, drizzle lightly will eel sauce and serve immediately.