Sushi Salad with Sweet Miso Dressing

For when you are craving sushi but can't get out for take-out, this sushi bowl has everything: rice, miso, edamame, some seaweed tossed with chopped fresh ingredients.

Craving sushi but going out for lunch is not in the budget right now? Try this sushi salad. It has everything - rice, edamame, seaweed (yes!) and a sweet miso dressing.

This is not just a salad. This is a lunch bowl. Edamame adds a nice amount of good vegetarian protein, the rice helps make this bowl substantial enough to get you through until dinner time.

Of course, you can make this bowl for dinner too. Salad for dinner? I'm in!

Ingredients for the perfect sushi salad

Seaweed. Nori sheets are easy to find at most grocery stores. Get them online as well, here. I find them hard to slice with a knife. It's much easier to roll them up like a cigar and use scissors to cut into thin strips.

Edamame. I used frozen shelled edamame beans for this recipe. Prepare them according to package directions (a quick boil in salted water or steam in the microwave).

Edamame beans are an easy way to add healthy plant-based protein to this salad.

Miso. Miso is a paste made from fermented soybeans, rice or other grains. It is salty and savory and gives dishes "umami."

Miso comes in several varieties. Color varies between light yellow (like I've used here) to dark red. The darker the color the stronger and saltier the miso tends to be. Lighter varieties tend to have a little bit of sweetness. Use any type of miso in this dressing.

I keep light miso on hand as its mild flavor works in many recipes. It's the only one I stock in my pantry.

Miso will last forever in the refrigerator and is handy to ingredient to keep around. Try these roasted Brussels sprouts with a miso glaze if you are wondering what else to do with it.

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Other ingredients you will need:

• Cooked rice. I used brown rice. Any type works. I like medium or short grain rice in this salad.
• Cucumber
• Shredded carrots
• Greens - spinach, shredded kale or other lettuce
• Avocado
• Pickled ginger

Can I make this salad ahead of time?

Absolutely! This salad works well for weekend meal prep. Make the dressing, chop the veggies, prepare the edamame and cook some rice. Just keep everything separate until you are ready to eat. See note below about avocados.

To prep lunches for the week, portion out the salad components into portable containers so that you have several meals measured and ready to go throughout the week. Keep the dressing separate and drizzle on just before serving.

One of my favorite ingredients in this salad is the avocado. Avocado cannot be chopped or prepared ahead of time. So slice up the avocado just before serving.

For taking the salad to work, cut avocado will keep for a few hours. I like to drizzle with a bit of lime or lemon to keep it a bit fresher a bit longer. For a packable lunch, chop as you pack your lunch in the morning, drizzle with some lime juice and it will be just perfect at lunch.

If you like this recipe, you might also like these hearty, meal-sized salads:

• Soba Noodle Salad with Spicy Peanut Sauce (Vegan) - Don't have miso? Try this spicy peanut dressing instead!
• Red Potato Salad with Sweet Corn {Vegan, GF}
• Summer Pasta Salad with Tofu {Vegan, GF}
• Lemon and Herb Bean Salad {Vegan, GF}