Easy Sashimi Seaweed Salad with Spicy Mayo (No Cooking Required)

About 20 years ago, I spent a week in Austin, Texas, and found a restaurant that served the most amazing sashimi seaweed salad.

I loved it so much that I went back and ordered the exact same salad every single night.

You would think after eating somewhere five or six times, I’d remember the name of the restaurant. Nope. I couldn’t tell you where it was or even if it’s still around. But I never forgot that salad.

Recently, it randomly popped into my head, and I thought, why haven’t I tried making this at home?

Turns out, it was ridiculously easy. And the best part? It tasted just as good as I remembered.

A Restaurant-Inspired Lunch Without the Work

Here’s my little secret: I didn’t make the seaweed salad, and I didn’t prepare the sashimi myself.

I ordered a small sashimi platter and a side of seaweed salad from a sushi restaurant.

The platter came with salmon, tuna, yellowtail, and shredded daikon radish. All I had to do was cut the fish into bite-sized pieces, arrange everything over the seaweed salad, and drizzle some spicy mayo on top.

That’s it. No cooking, no special equipment, and hardly any cleanup.

It looks like something you’d order at a restaurant because, technically, most of it came from one!

What You’ll Need

• 1 small sashimi platter: Mine included salmon, tuna, and yellowtail.
• 1 side of prepared seaweed salad: The kind you can order from a sushi restaurant or buy at a grocery store.
• Shredded daikon radish: Mine came with the sashimi platter, so there was no need to buy anything extra.
• Kewpie mayonnaise: Japanese-style mayonnaise that’s rich and creamy.
• Sriracha: For a little heat.

The exact amount of fish and seaweed salad doesn’t really matter. Use whatever comes with your order and adjust the portions depending on how hungry you are.

How to Make Sashimi Seaweed Salad

1. Start with the seaweed salad

Spread the prepared seaweed salad across a plate or shallow bowl. This is the base of the dish.

2. Add the sashimi

Cut the salmon, tuna, and yellowtail into bite-sized pieces.

Arrange the fish over the seaweed salad. I like having a little bit of everything in each bite.

3. Add the daikon radish

Use some of the shredded daikon that comes with the sashimi platter. It adds a fresh, crunchy texture that works really well with the fish and seaweed.

4. Mix the spicy mayo

Combine Kewpie mayonnaise with a little Sriracha. Start with more mayo than Sriracha, then adjust until you get the heat level you like.

If you want a thinner sauce that’s easier to drizzle, mix in a tiny bit of water.

5. Drizzle and enjoy

Spoon or drizzle the spicy mayo over the salad and serve immediately.

That’s your entire lunch!

A Few Ways to Make It Your Own

One of the nice things about this lunch is that you don’t have to follow an exact recipe.

If your local sushi restaurant offers a different assortment of sashimi, use that. You could also add cucumber for extra crunch, avocado for a little creaminess, or sesame seeds on top.

Personally, I like keeping it simple with salmon, tuna, yellowtail, seaweed salad, daikon, and spicy mayo.

It’s the combination I remember from Austin, and I don’t feel the need to mess with it too much.

A Quick Note About Buying Sashimi

Because the fish is served raw, buy sashimi that has been prepared and sold specifically for eating raw from a reputable sushi restaurant or seafood supplier.

Keep it refrigerated until you’re ready to assemble the salad, and follow the supplier’s handling and storage guidance. I prefer making this right before I’m ready to eat rather than preparing it ahead of time.

Twenty Years Later, Still Just as Good

I love when a random food memory inspires something new in my kitchen.

I wasn’t trying to recreate a complicated restaurant dish. I just remembered a salad I couldn’t stop ordering during a trip to Austin and wondered if I could make something similar at home.

Twenty years later, I finally did.

I still don’t remember the name of that restaurant, but apparently, some meals are just too good to forget.