Raspberry-Glazed Salmon Donburi with Shiso Cucumber Salad
Lacquered salmon bowls with raspberry glaze and crisp herbs.
Daily recipe · August 16, 2026
A little about this dish
This dish takes late-summer raspberries somewhere unexpected: whisked into a glossy soy-mirin glaze for lacquered salmon, then balanced with cooling cucumber, shiso, and fluffy rice. It feels light enough for a warm evening but still luxurious, with sweet-tart fruit, rich fish, aromatic herbs, and a dramatic jewel-toned finish that photographs beautifully.
Ingredients (for 2)
- Raspberries — 1 cup — divided
- Salmon fillets — 2 fillets (about 6 oz each) — pin bones removed and patted dry
- Japanese short-grain rice — 3/4 cup — rinsed
- Cucumber — 1 small — shaved into ribbons
- Avocado — 1 — sliced
- Shiso leaves — 6 — thinly sliced, plus extra small leaves for garnish if available
- Scallions — 2 — thinly sliced
- Lemon — 1/2 — juiced
- Soy sauce — 3 tbsp
- Mirin — 2 tbsp
- Rice vinegar — 2 tbsp — divided
- White miso — 1 tbsp
- Fresh ginger — 2 tsp — finely grated
- Sesame seeds — 2 tsp — mixed black and white if possible
- Nori — 1/2 sheet — cut into thin strips
- Neutral oil — 1 tbsp
- Toasted sesame oil — 1 tsp
- Kosher salt — 3/4 tsp — divided
- Sugar — 2 tsp
- Water — 1 cup
Preparation
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Step 1 — 🍚💧⏲️Combine the rinsed Japanese short-grain rice with 1 cup water and a pinch of the kosher salt in a small saucepan or rice cooker. Cook until tender, then let it rest off the heat for 10 minutes.
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Step 2 — 🍓🥣🔥In a small saucepan, combine 3/4 cup raspberries, soy sauce, mirin, 1 tbsp rice vinegar, white miso, grated ginger, and sugar. Simmer over medium-low heat for 4 to 5 minutes, gently crushing the berries.
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Step 3 — 🫗✨🍯Strain the raspberry mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl, pressing well. Return the liquid to the pan and simmer for 2 to 3 more minutes until glossy and lightly syrupy.
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Step 4 — 🐟🧂👌Sprinkle the salmon fillets with 1/4 tsp kosher salt to lightly season them before cooking.
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Step 5 — 🍳🐟🔥Heat the neutral oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the salmon, skin-side down if skin-on, and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until mostly cooked through.
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Step 6 — 🥄✨🐠Flip the salmon carefully, then spoon over half of the raspberry glaze. Cook 1 to 2 minutes more, basting until the glaze looks shiny and coats the fish.
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Step 7 — 🥒🍋🥗Toss the cucumber ribbons with the remaining 1 tbsp rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, lemon juice, half the sliced shiso leaves, and a small pinch of kosher salt. Let sit for 5 minutes.
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Step 8 — 🍚🥑🍽️Fluff the rice and divide it between 2 shallow bowls. Arrange the sliced avocado on one side of each bowl and add the cucumber salad beside it.
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Step 9 — 🐟🍚🥄Place a glazed salmon fillet over the rice in each bowl and spoon over a little more raspberry glaze.
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Step 10 — 🌿🍓🍥Top with the remaining raspberries, scallions, the rest of the shiso, sesame seeds, and nori strips. Serve right away with any extra glaze drizzled over the bowls.
A final fox tip
If shiso is hard to find, use a mix of basil and mint for a different but still fresh effect. For extra texture, add quick-pickled radish or crispy rice bits. The raspberry glaze is unusual but very natural with salmon: its brightness plays the role that plum or yuzu often would, while giving the bowl a late-summer color pop.