These lightly seasoned Salmon Flakes make a great all-purpose topping or filling. Make ahead and use it on steamed rice, pasta, gratin, tamagoyaki, and more!
When comes to feeding my family, I’ve learned that having some make-ahead dishes can be really helpful. But they can’t be merely about convenience: They need to be tasty and nutritious as well.
Today I’ll like to introduce Salmon Flakes (鮭フレーク), a terrific recipe for anyone who is looking to pack more Omega-3 into every meal to stay strong and healthy.
What is Salmon Flakes?
Salmon Flakes is shredded cooked salmon that’s mildly seasoned and used as a versatile sidekick for a great variety of dishes. In Japanese, we say Sha-ke Fu-ray-ku (鮭フレーク). For such a simple dish, the salmon flakes have a lot to offer. The most common way to use them is to sprinkle over rice, like Furikake rice seasonings. Salmon Flakes elevate simple steamed rice with extra nutrients and flavors.
If you go to a Japanese grocery store, you can even find a jar of Salmon Flakes like this (see below).
While the store-bought stuff is tempting, it contains preservatives and unfamiliar ingredients so we will make our own! The great news is it’s ridiculously easy to make. Before I go into how to make Salmon Flakes, let’s go over how to use it with a few recipe ideas.
How to Use Salmon Flakes
1. Sprinkle over
- Steamed rice
- Ochazuke
- Udon noodle soup
- Soups
- Stir-fried udon noodles
- Baked/mashed potatoes
2. Use as a filling
- Rice ball (Onigiri)
- Onigirazu
- Tamagoyaki
- Quiche
- Puffed pies
- Crispy wontons
3. Mix in together
- Pasta (especially Japanese style pasta with soy sauce- or cream-based!)
- Zosui (rice soup)
- Gratin
- Fried rice
- Stir-fries
- Maze gohan (mixed rice)
- Potato salad
- Dips
How to Prepare Salmon Flakes
This recipe involves 3 simple steps. More discussed in the recipe card below.
- Bake the salmon in the oven till fully cooked.
- Dehydrate the moisture and season the salmon in the frying pan.
- Let cool and store in a jar.
If you keep in an air-tight container, it lasts for 4 days in the refrigerator and for up to a month in the freezer.
Itadakimasu!
My kids love salmon, and many of you expressed how much you and your children enjoy all my salmon recipes. So I hope this Salmon Flakes recipe will come in handy. I personally love tossing this salmon into pasta or sprinkle over rice when we need protein or just one more dish. And I’d love to hear some other fun and delicious ideas you have for using the recipe!
Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want to look for substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here.
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These lightly seasoned Salmon Flakes make a great all-purpose topping or filling. Make ahead and use it on steamed rice, pasta, gratin, tamagoyaki, and more!
- 1 lb salmon (454 g)
- ¼ tsp kosher/sea salt (I use Diamond Crystal; Use half for table salt)
- 1 Tbsp sake
- 1 Tbsp mirin
- 2-3 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp toasted white sesame seeds
- 1 tsp sesame oil (roasted) (add more if necessary)
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Gather all the ingredients.
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Preheat the oven to 425 ºF (218 ºC). Sprinkle salt over the salmon fillets and set aside for 15 minutes.
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After 15 minutes, remove excess moisture with a paper towel and transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
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Bake the salmon at 425 ºF (218 ºC) for 10 minutes (5 minutes per ½” thickness).
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Using chopsticks or fork, break it into flakes and remove the skin and bone (if any).
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Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Once hot, add 1 tsp sesame oil and coat the pan well. Add salmon in the pan.
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Add sake and mirin and stir well. Let the alcohol evaporate.
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Add soy sauce and stir to combine. Let the moisture evaporate.
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Transfer to a baking sheet and sprinkle sesame seeds. Set aside to let cool. Store in an airtight jar once salmon is completely cool.
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You can store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and in the freezer for a month.
Source: Just One Cookbook
