Air fryer salmon bites
Bite-size salmon with crisp caramelized edges and a sticky sweet chili glaze, over rice in about half an hour.
- 30 min total
- 10 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 2
- About $4.86 a serving
- 690 calories
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: I’d make this on a weeknight. It’s on the table in 30 minutes.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- ¾ cup jasmine rice, rinsed
- 2 salmon fillets, about 6 oz each, skinless, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 3 tbsp sweet chili sauce
- 1 lime, half juiced, half cut into wedges
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced (optional)
From your pantry
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp olive oil
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp salt
Each serving has about 690 calories, 40 g protein, 73 g carbs and 26 g fat, and costs about $4.86 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No jasmine rice? Long-grain white rice or basmati rice works.
- No limes? Lemons work.
- No green onions? Chives work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Put the rice and water in a small and over high heat.
Rinse. Rinsing means running cold water over rice or canned beans in a strainer while you swish them around. It washes off loose starch and can liquid, so rice cooks up fluffy and beans taste clean.
How you’ll know: The water running out goes from cloudy to mostly clear; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
Cover, turn the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, then leave it covered off the heat.
Low heatTimer: 15 min
the air fryer to 400°F for 3 minutes.
Preheat. Preheating means turning the oven on before you start, so it’s fully hot when the food goes in. Food that starts in a cold oven cooks unevenly and doesn’t brown the same.
How you’ll know: The oven beeps or its light clicks off, usually 10 to 15 minutes after you turn it on.
Timer: 3 min
the salmon with the oil, garlic powder, smoked paprika and salt.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Cube. Cubing means cutting food into chunky, even squares, usually three quarters of an inch to an inch. Same-size cubes cook at the same speed and brown on every side.
How you’ll know: Your pieces look like a handful of sugar cubes, a little bigger than diced, all close to the same size.
Spread them in the basket with a little space between and air fry for 6 to 7 minutes, shaking halfway, until at the edges.
Brown. Browning means cooking until the outside turns brown, which is where a lot of savory flavor comes from. Give food room and time without stirring, or it steams and stays gray.
How you’ll know: The food looks brown rather than gray, and the kitchen smells toasty and savory.
Timer: 6 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: Give them room. Touching cubes steam instead of getting those crisp edges.the sweet chili sauce with the lime juice, it with the salmon in a bowl, then air fry 1 minute more, until and the salmon flakes easily.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Glaze. A glaze is a thin, glossy coating, often sweet, brushed or spooned over food near the end. It adds shine and flavor, and because it has sugar, it can burn quickly.
How you’ll know: The food looks shiny and evenly coated, sticky at the edges but not blackened.
Timer: 1 min
Food safety: Fish is done at 145°F, when the middle looks opaque and flakes apart easily with a fork.
Serve the salmon bites over the rice with green onions and lime wedges.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
