A sardine rice bowl is the perfect introduction to tinned fish. It’s an opportunity to combine bold flavors and textures to either hide or enhance the taste. For example, lemon can brighten and balance the rich, fatty flavors, while a crunch and spicy kimchi can mask them. Today, I’m sharing two of my favorite combinations!
Sardines and rice are the ultimate budget-friendly meal (and one of my favorite leftover rice recipes). When building your bowl, you can keep it simple or load it up with toppings like cucumber, carrots, scallions, kimchi, olives, radishes, and more. This is the perfect meal for one person with endless variations.
The rich, meaty texture of the sardines, combined with bold flavors and textures, turns a humble can of seafood into a nutritious and satisfying meal. Don’t like sardines? Any tinned fish will work. Swap them out with mussels, trout, anchovies, mackerel, smoked oysters – whatever you want!
It’s no secret that rice bowls are one of my go-to meals when I want something quick and easy, but they’re also a great way to use up ingredients and prevent food waste. I often make a double batch of my oven-baked rice and freeze most of it in half-cup portions so that I can throw one together quickly. They’re versatile and can be easily adapted to fit gluten-free, low-carb, vegan, high-fiber, and high-protein lifestyles.
Sardines are an essential pantry ingredient for lazy dinners, quick lunches, and low-effort meals. They’re also an easy source of nutrients and protein. Having a well-stocked pantry with a variety of canned seafood will help you easily pull together easy, healthy meals like this sardine rice bowl!
Sardine Rice Bowl
I’ve been on a canned seafood journey for the past couple of months, and trust me when I say that I’ve tried just about every combination of ingredients, and rice with sardines is at the top of my favorites list. I can’t put it into words, but it’s a delicious combination and a blank canvas for endless toppings!
As mentioned above, rice bowls are a great way to use up ingredients like leftover cooked protein and veggies. We eat eggs and rice at least once a week, and my husband keeps requesting this shrimp rice bowl. If you’ve been wanting to dive into the world of canned seafood, a sardine rice bowl is a great way to get started!
 | Brisling Sardines in Extra Virgin Olive Oil Brunswick Wild Caught Gourmet Brisling Sardines in Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Wild Caught Sardines - 14g Protein per Serving - Gluten Free, Keto Friendly |
Sardine And Kimchi Rice Bowl
This combination was fresh, crunchy, and packed with big, bold flavors and textures. The kimchi does the heavy lifting in this sardine rice bowl, providing spicy, tart, savory (umami) flavors. Combined with the sardines’ subtle smokiness, this was absolutely delicious!
- Warm up a serving of rice. I use my easy baked rice, which is typically frozen. To defrost it, I place a block into a bowl (I use these containers for freezing), cover it with a wet paper towel, and leave it to defrost for 2 minutes. It’s perfectly heated every time.
- Add a generous spoonful of your favorite kimchi on the side, and drizzle a little bit of the juice over the rice. Although you can’t see it in the picture, I also drizzled the rice with the tiniest bit of soy sauce.
- Next, arrange the sardines on top. For this bowl, I used lightly smoked Brisling sardines. Rather than repeating myself, you can read this post to learn about the different types of sardines and the ones I use most. Although these are whole, they’re pretty small and very flavorful!
- Add sliced radishes and scallions, and finish with some bagel seasoning for flavor and crunch. I love a little fresh lemon over the sardines, but it’s not necessary. The kimchi gives enough acidity.
Sardines And Rice With Creamy Soy Ginger Sauce
This bowl is simple and lets the sardines shine. It’s savory yet fresh and light, with amazing flavors and textures. My homemade soy ginger sauce is so good you’ll want to make a double batch!
- Start with a base of cooked rice. This can be fresh-cooked rice or leftover rice that needs to be used. Since these recipes go quickly, I do this first. You actually don’t want the rice to be scorching hot when building a sardine rice bowl. Room temperature is OK.
- Next, drizzle on any condiments you like. Sometimes I keep it simple with a little soy sauce and Sriracha, or a quick Sriracha mayonnaise. Today I used my creamy soy ginger dipping sauce.
- Adding a crunchy veggie or two is another great way to hide the texture of the sardines. Today I went with radishes because they provide crunch and a peppery bite that complements the other flavors.
- For this bowl, I used these boneless and skinless sardines. If the idea of eating the bones and skins isn’t for you, these are a great starting point. You can chop the sardine fillets as small as you want and mix them into the rice. After trying dozens of varieties, which I explained in this post, I prefer sardines packed in olive oil. They’re incredibly tender, succulent, and never dry.
- Arrange the sardines on top, squeeze a little fresh lime over the top, garnish with scallions or chives and a little bagel seasoning, and enjoy.
Notes And Variations
- This rice bowl is a one-person meal, so you shouldn’t have any leftovers. However, if you can’t eat a whole can of sardines at once, store them in a single layer, cover them with oil (use the oil from the can), refrigerate, and consume them within 48 hours.
- Swap out the veggies. Edamame, snow peas, cucumbers, and carrots are all delicious. As I mentioned above, this is a great “use what you’ve got” opportunity. Any canned seafood works. Mackerel, smoked mussels or oysters, rainbow trout – they all work beautifully in a rice bowl.
- Another thing I’ve learned on this journey is that the sauces and garnishes can make all the difference. It can take a bland sardine rice bowl or toast and turn it into something absolutely delicious. A little fresh lemon, your favorite hot sauce, crispy garlic, or bagel seasoning, or some of my favorites.
- Literally anything brined and pickled works beautifully with sardines or any tinned fish recipe. Kimchi, olives, hot peppers, and Giardinera all complement the rich, meaty texture of the fish.
And that’s it, friends! I hope this inspires you to make your own sardine rice bowl, and I’d love it if you come back to let me know how you like it!
 | Season Sardines in Extra Virgin Olive Oil Skinless & Boneless, Sustainable, Wild Caught, 22g of Protein, Keto Snacks, More Omega 3's Than Tuna, Kosher, High in Calcium, Canned Sardines |
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