Vegan Sashimi Rice Bowl

Hi guys!

After I went plant-based?, one of the things that I craved the most was seafood – especially sashimi. I enjoyed seafood a lot before, and it is still very tough for me to go through seafood menus at restaurants or at grocery stores. One day I was just scrolling through Instagram mindlessly and saw this reels video about vegan sashimi?!? I was so shocked and surprised in a good way and had to order right away! The best part? Vegan sashimi is cheaper than real sashimi!???

Anyways, after a long wait (it wasn’t that long, it just felt like lol), finally the vegan sashimi arrived, and I tried it!!! The flavor? A little bit of seafood flavor, not too much and the texture was quite accurate!! I was so happy with the purchase and gonna buy it again! Not sponsored, I just wanted to spread the info if you are vegan or plant-based and craving some seafood, there are options. The first thing I made was poke. I made a creamy and traditional soy sauce-based one, and it was a KILLER!!! I LOVED it SO SO MUCH!!

Next, I had to make Hwe Dupbap, which I’m going to share the recipe here. Hwe Dupbap is Korean sashimi Rice Bowl – Hwe means sashimi (raw fish) and Dupbap means rice bowl. The sauce was so delicious, and I didn’t tell you this was vegan sashimi, there’s no way you could tell the difference. Well, unless you are a sashimi expert or something. lol??

Are we ready to jump in? This recipe is easier than fixing instant ramen noodles! Let’s get started!

Add your palm size dried kelp into 2 3/4 cups of cold water and soak for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, wash 2 cups of short to medium grain rice thoroughly until water comes out clean. Drain clean rice and place it in a medium-size pot. Pour kelp water and cover, bring it to a boil over high heat. When it’s boiling, stir the rice once and cover it back up. Then reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes or until rice is fully cooked. Remove from heat, and let it sit for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, rice is cooking, go ahead and make Chojang sauce, cut all veggies, and vegan sashimi.

To make chojang, combine all ingredients (list is down below!) for chojang sauce in a mixing bowl and set aside. This sauce will last 15 days in a fridge, it tastes even better the next day, the next day, and the next day… The taste gets better with time!

Slice or cube vegan sashimi. I used Vegan Zeastar, got it from GTFO. The visual is so accurate with the real piece of sashimi quality salmon, I was so shocked. They have tuna one too, the flavor and texture are the same. Only the color is different. 1 pack is 10.9oz, and it is good for 4 to 6 servings depending on the serving size.

You can slice them or cube them to your preference. For me, the cubed one was easier to eat.

Prepare all veggies into bite sizes or thinly julienned. You can use any veggies you have in your refrigerator, these are just my choice of veggies that I like for my Hwe Dupbap. I used cucumber, lettuce, cabbage (green or purple), onion, carrot, kkaetnip (Korean wile sesame leaves. Shiso, basil, mint, or perilla leaves will be great too!) and some chili (red or green). Radish or avocado will be great too!

You will need a handful of all the veggies for 4 servings.

When rice is done, remove the kelp and fluff up the rice with a rice spatula, a spoon, or a fork. Keep it warm.

Let’s assemble Hwe Dupbap!

Place 1 cup of cooked kelp rice on the bottom of the serving bowl. *Make sure your bowl is big enough to mix all ingredients around. Arrange all the vegetables evenly around the edge and place vegan sashimi in the middle. Sprinkle some white & black sesame seeds. Serve with Chojang sauce and let your or your guests pour as much as sauce desires! Drizzle extra sesame oil if you want more nutty flavor as I do!

Mix everything together and enjoy!