Steamed Chicken Poke Bowl

This recipe is my take on the popular and ongoing poke bowl trend, which in turn originated with Hawaiian poke, or cured fish. It's infinitely adaptable to different proteins and toppings, so you can make it your own using what you've got on hand.

Prep Time15

Cook Time25

Total Time40

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Asian, Hawaiian, Japanese

Keyword: poke, poke bowl, steamed chicken

Servings:

Calories: 807kcal

Ingredients

Chicken

¼ cup soy sauce plus extra for serving
2 Tbsp rice vinegar plus extra for serving
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp granulated sugar plus more as needed
3 scallions one minced for marinade, two thinly sliced and reserved for serving
1 Tbsp sesame seeds
1 lb chicken breast skinless, diced into ½-inch cubes

Rice

1½ cups sushi rice
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp fine salt

Spicy mayo

1/2 cup Kewpie mayonnaise or regular mayonnaise
1 Tbsp Sriracha or other hot sauce of choice, adjust to taste

Bowls

½ cup shelled frozen edamame
1/2 cup frozen corn
1 avocado small, diced into 1/2 inch cubes
1 mango small, diced into ½ inch cubes
1 Lebanese cucumber or other small firm cucumber, sliced
8 cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes, quartered
Furikake seasoning or shichimi togarashi, optional, to taste, see notes

Instructions

Marinate the chicken

Mix together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, minced scallion and sesame seeds in a lightweight, shallow stainless steel tray or baking dish. Add the diced chicken and mix to combine. Set aside in the fridge for 30 minutes to develop the flavors, if you have time.
¼ cup soy sauce, 2 Tbsp rice vinegar, 2 tsp toasted sesame oil, 1 tsp granulated sugar, 3 scallions, 1 Tbsp sesame seeds, 1 lb chicken breast

Cook the rice

Put the rice into a strainer and rinse until the water runs clear. Drain, then tip it into a shallow stainless steel tray or baking dish and add 2 1/4 cups water.
1½ cups sushi rice
Put the rice into your steam oven and set to Steam, 212°F/100°C (100% humidity). Set the timer for 20 minutes (this is 20 minutes from cold, not from the preheated temperature).
While the rice cooks, mix the rice vinegar, sugar and salt in a small bowl and heat in the microwave or a small saucepan until it just comes to the boil. Remove from heat and set aside.
2 Tbsp rice vinegar, 1 Tbsp granulated sugar, 1/2 tsp fine salt

Make the spicy mayo

Mix the Kewpie mayonnaise and as much or as little Sriracha sauce as you like in a small bowl. Set aside for serving.
1/2 cup Kewpie mayonnaise, 1 Tbsp Sriracha

Cook the chicken and vegetables

While you're waiting for the rice timer to go off, put the edamame and corn into small stainless steel trays (you can mix them together if you prefer, it's up to you).
½ cup shelled frozen edamame, 1/2 cup frozen corn
When the rice timer goes off, add the tray of chicken and set the timer for a further 7 minutes. Then add the edamame and corn and cook for a further 2-3 minutes, until the vegetables are bright and heated through (you're not aiming to cook them a lot, they just need blanching).

Finish and assemble the bowls

Remove everything from the oven, and set aside the chicken and vegetables. Mix the warmed rice vinegar/sugar/salt through the rice with a wooden spoon.
Put a scoop of rice into each bowl for serving. Divide the warm chicken and blanched edamame and corn between the bowls, then add chopped avocado, mango, cucumber and tomatoes to each bowl. Arrange everything so it's in separate little mounds on top of the rice, allowing people to mix and eat each element as they prefer.
1 avocado, 1 mango, 1 Lebanese cucumber, 8 cherry tomatoes
Serve the bowls with spicy mayo and furikake seasoning for dressing at the table, and enjoy.
Furikake seasoning

Notes

Quantity. This makes four very generous bowls. In our house of 2 adults and 3 kids, the quantity does all of us for dinner, plus a lunch for my husband the next day.
Customizations for protein. I'll never be able to give all the possible customizations I can think of for this dish, but here are a few ideas:
1. Sub firm tofu for the chicken. I love this as a meat free alternative; marinate and heat the tofu exactly the same as written for the chicken in the recipe.
2. Try good quality raw tuna or salmon in place of the chicken. You can use exactly the same marinade, and either steam the fish just until it's flaky, or don't cook it at all and have it like the more traditional Hawaiian poke.
3. Soft boiled eggs, peeled and marinated, are another protein sub that's easy and inexpensive. Halve the eggs for serving and drizzle with any leftover marinade.
Customizations for toppings. Obviously the toppings are all very 'make it your own' here, too. If mangoes are out of season, skip them, or try segmented and peeled citrus as a great alternative (don't knock it till you try it!). Use podded peas, radishes, green beans, peppers, shredded carrot, bought seaweed salad, or any other colorful veg you like. As long as you've got a good mixture of texture and color in the bowl, it'll be great.
Seasonings. I have both furikake and shichimi togarashi seasoning blends in my kitchen; furikake is more traditionally used as a rice seasoning, while shichimi togarashi is for adding spice. Both are widely available online and in stores carrying Japanese foods. You can use either to season your poke bowls, or a mixture of both.

Nutrition