This salmon sushi bake is everything you love about sushi in a warm, cozy, shareable casserole. Layers of seasoned sushi rice, savory salmon and crab, and creamy mayo and cream cheese are all topped with furikake and baked until bubbling. Finish with a drizzle of spicy mayo and eel sauce, scoop it onto nori sheets with avocado and cucumber, and you have a meal that’s as fun to eat as it is easy to make.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Cozy comfort food with all the sushi flavors — rich, creamy, and packed with umami in every bite
• Ready in 40 minutes — just cook the salmon, mix, layer, and bake
• Perfect for leftovers — if you have cooked salmon in the fridge already, this comes together even faster
• Endlessly customizable — use imitation crab, real crab, or skip it and double the salmon
• Great for sharing — bake it in a casserole dish for family dinners, potlucks, or a fun night in

Salmon Sushi Bake: Sushi Night Without the Rolls

Sushi bake became a thing for a good reason — it captures all the flavors of a salmon roll without any of the rolling, slicing, or technique. The base is seasoned sushi rice, tangy with rice vinegar the way good sushi rice should be. On top goes a creamy mixture of flaked salmon, shredded imitation crab, cream cheese, and sriracha mayo that bakes up warm and bubbly and tastes exactly like the filling of a spicy salmon roll. Furikake goes between the rice and the topping for that savory, nutty bite in every scoop. When it comes out of the oven you hit it with spicy mayo and eel sauce, grab a sheet of nori, and scoop. It’s casual and fun and everyone goes back for more. I love this recipe especially when I have leftover salmon — it’s genuinely one of the best ways to repurpose it into something that feels entirely new.

Salmon Sushi Bake Ingredients

For the Salmon

• 10 oz salmon (or use leftover cooked salmon)
• Drizzle of oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder

Sushi Bake Mixture

• 8 oz imitation crab
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• ¾ cup mayo, more or less to taste
• 3 tbsp sriracha
• 3 tbsp green onion, sliced

Rice Base

• 2 cups sushi rice
• 3 cups water
• ¼ cup rice vinegar, more or less to taste
• 2 tbsp sugar

For Assembly and Serving

• Furikake, enough to generously cover the rice layer
• Spicy mayo and eel sauce, for drizzling
• Extra green onion, for garnish
• Nori sheets, for serving
• Avocado and cucumber slices, for serving

The Rice Base

Sushi rice is non-negotiable here — the short grain, starchy texture holds up under the topping and gives you that authentic sushi flavor. Rinse the rice thoroughly until the water runs clear before cooking, otherwise the bake can turn out gummy. While the rice is still hot, mix in the rice vinegar and sugar immediately — this is the step most people skip and it makes a noticeable difference. The acidity seasons the rice and balances the richness of everything on top. Spread it into a greased 9×13 while it’s still warm so it presses into an even layer.

The Salmon Mixture

The creamy topping is essentially a deconstructed spicy salmon roll filling. Flaked salmon and shredded imitation crab get mixed with softened cream cheese, mayo, sriracha, and green onion until it’s thick, creamy, and scoopable. The cream cheese is what pushes this from good to really good — it adds richness and helps the mixture hold together as it bakes. If you’re using leftover salmon, this step takes about two minutes. If you’re cooking fresh, the air fryer at 400°F for 15 minutes gets you perfectly flaky salmon with a nice seasoned crust.

How To Make Salmon Sushi Bake

1. Cook the salmon: Preheat your air fryer to 400°F. Drizzle the salmon with oil and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Air fry for about 15 minutes until cooked through and flaky. If you’re using leftover cooked salmon, skip this step entirely.
2. Cook and season the rice: Rinse the sushi rice until the water runs clear, then cook with 3 cups of water in a rice cooker. While the rice is still hot, stir in the rice vinegar and sugar until fully dissolved. This is what gives it that signature sushi rice flavor — don’t skip it.
3. Make the sushi bake mixture: Flake the cooked salmon into a large bowl and tear the imitation crab into small shreds. Add the softened cream cheese, mayo, sriracha, and sliced green onion. Mix everything together until creamy and well combined.
4. Layer the base: Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish and spread the seasoned sushi rice in an even layer. Press it down lightly so it forms a compact base. Sprinkle furikake generously over the entire surface of the rice — don’t be shy here, this layer adds a lot of flavor.
5. Add the topping and bake: Spread the salmon and crab mixture evenly over the furikake layer. Preheat your oven to 400°F and bake for about 10 minutes, until the topping is warmed through and slightly golden at the edges.
6. Finish and serve: Remove from the oven and immediately drizzle with spicy mayo and eel sauce. Garnish with extra green onion. Serve with nori sheets for scooping, and avocado and cucumber slices on the side.

Storage and Reheating

Best fresh: Salmon sushi bake is best straight from the oven while the topping is warm and the edges are slightly golden. Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 to 3 days.

Oven reheat: Cover loosely with foil and warm at 350°F for about 10 minutes until heated through.

Microwave: Reheat individual portions in the microwave in 60-second intervals until hot.

Nori and toppings: Keep the nori, avocado, and cucumber stored separately and add fresh when serving — they don’t hold up well stored with the bake.