Ahi Poke Bowl

Made with sushi-grade tuna, avocado, cucumber, and served on a bed of white rice, this Ahi Poke Bowl Recipe is delicious and easier to make than you might think!

Make your own delicious poke bowl at home. This poke bowl recipe is loaded with healthy toppings like fresh tuna, mixed greens, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, and finished off with a delicious homemade poke bowl sauce.

Looking for more easy meals served in a bowl? I’ve got you covered with Buffalo Tofu Bowls, Chicken Shawarma Bowls, Breakfast Hummus Bowls, Roasted Sweet Potato Bowls, and Pesto Chicken Power Bowls.

Ahi Tuna Poke Bowl Recipe

Say hello to a popular Hawaiian fish salad concept that brings with it a lot of Japanese inspiration. Poke bowls feature freshly caught raw fish, rice, vegetables, and a wide variety of toppings.

I like to think of it almost like a deconstructed sushi roll dinner.

The bowls may look intimidating, but they are easy to make and even easier to customize so you can continue to make this recipe with a different twist each time.

Ahi Poke Bowl Ingredients

Fish: for this poke bowl, I used sushi grade ahi tuna. If you can’t find sushi grade tuna, you can substitute tuna with sushi grade salmon or even tofu.

Rice: serving as the base ingredient, I recommend using sushi rice or white rice. If you are looking for a more nutritious option, you can substitute for brown rice or mixed greens.

Toppings: top off your bowl with flavor and texture from mixed greens, English cucumber, avocado, and cantaloupe.

Poke Bowl Sauce

You might be tempted to grab a bottle of poke bowl sauce (ponzu sauce) from the store, but it’s actually very easy to make at home and you will get a lot of use out of the ingredients needed to make it.

Dry ingredients: garlic, freshly grated ginger, and scallions.

Wet ingredients: mirin, low sodium soy sauce, lemon juice, toasted sesame seed oil, and rice vinegar.

*For a detailed list of ingredients and measurements, please reference the recipe card down below.

How to Make Ahi Tuna Poke Bowls

1. Marinate the tuna. Combine all poke bowl sauce ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Using a sharp knife, slice the tuna into 1-inch cubes and add to the mixing bowl with the homemade poke sauce. Toss to combine and marinate for 15-45 minutes, no longer than 1 hour.

2. Cook the rice. Meanwhile, cook the rice according to package instructions.

3. Assemble the bowls. Divide the cooked rice between bowls and top with marinated tuna, mixed greens, cucumber, avocado, and cantaloupe.

Sushi Grade Tuna

When making a poke bowl, it’s important to ensure you are using sushi grade tuna, but what does that mean?

When you are shopping at your local grocery store or asian market, you are going to want to check to make sure the label on the tuna you are buying says, “sushi grade,” or “sushi grade fish.”

Sushi grade means that it is of the highest quality and that it is safe to be consumed raw.

But who “grades” the tuna to ensure it is safe? When the tuna is caught, it is inspected and graded by wholesalers. The best of the best is assigned Grade 1 aka sushi grade.

If you are unsure, don’t be afraid to ask someone working at the seafood counter which fish is safe to consume raw.

Poke Bowl Additional Toppings

Poke bowls are meant to be changed up and customized, so have fun with it!

Forget having the same meal over and over again. Change up your newest favorite dish with different toppings to always bring out the best flavors.

Protein: consider swapping out the protein in your bowl to change it up with perfect substitutes like yellowfin tuna, salmon, shrimp, crab, and lobster.

Vegetables: leafy greens, seaweed snacks, cucumbers, edamame, avocado, red onions, sweet onions, ginger, green onions, shredded crunchy carrots, and radishes. Vegetables make for a delicious bowl; add one, add some, or add them all!

Fruit: although it might seem or sound different, the fruit adds the perfect texture, flavor, and bite to a poke bowl. If you are looking to add some, consider adding cubed watermelon, mango, or pineapple to your bowl.

Sauce: this is a crucial ingredient to assembling a delicious bowl. Popular sauces include soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, lime juice, honey, sriracha, spicy mayo, teriyaki sauce, light mayo, and wasabi mayo.

Other popular toppings: there are many other popular toppings you can top off your poke bowl with like sesame seeds (these can be white sesame seeds or black sesame seeds), red pepper flakes, tobiko (fish roe), and furikake. Try some fried garlic and fried shallots if you are looking to add a little crunch to your bowl.

You can also change it up and convert your bowl into Tuna Poke Nachos!

What is in a Traditional Poke Bowl?

The base of a poke bowl typically consists of rice, tuna, and raw vegetables. Sauces are also an essential and important flavorful part of a poke bowl and typically consist of wasabi mayo, eel sauce, or spicy mayo.

Is Ahi Tuna Poke Safe to Eat?

Consuming raw or undercooked seafood may increase your risk of foodborne illness, especially if you have certain medical conditions.

This raw fish salad or deconstructed sushi bowl draws a lot of questions because the protein is raw. As long as you are getting fish that has been handled and distributed with raw consumption in mind, it should be safe to eat.

Tuna Poke Appetizer

Turn this poke bowl recipe into bite sized tuna poke appetizers! To make tuna poke wonton cups:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F.
2. Grab a muffin tin and press two wonton wrappers into each muffin cup.
3. Spritz with olive oil spray or cooking spray and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy.
4. Let the wonton cups cool and fill them with marinated tuna and avocado.

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