Spicy Kani Salad
Spicy Kani Salad Recipe: A sushi shop favorite you can make at home! Kani Salad tastes just like the popular dish you order at your neighborhood Japanese restaurant.
Balance
Let’s talk about this Kani Salad, but first balance…
Japanese food is an enigma. A delicate balance between the overcooked and the uncooked, between the overly seasoned and the unseasoned… A balance of extremes. Japanese cuisine reflects its culture. A graceful symmetry between the old and the new. A level scale holding on to the past and pressing into the future.
A close friend of mine lived in Japan for the last couple of years and talks about these extremes. She tells of their home high in the mountains, bitter cold in winter due to no insulation. Yet they had fiber optic internet, go figure. In Japan, balance doesn’t mean duplication; it means hot and cold dancing together in perfect rhythm.
I like balance. A lot. I would say it is one of my utmost goals in life. To give myself completely to the purposes and people I hold dear, yet not choose one over the other. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in one pursuit, one relationship, or one mindset, and allow others to suffer.
I want my life to be bold, yet reserved. Graceful, yet edgy. Wise, yet adventurous. Complex, yet simple. Ah balance, sometimes you are nowhere in sight!
Thankfully every morning is a fresh chance to step out on that tightrope again.
Kani Salad Recipe
I appreciate Japanese cuisine because I feel it encapsulates this concept. Extreme textures and flavors come together in harmony.
Spicy Kani Salad is a tribute to balance: cool and spicy, silky and crisp, sweet and tart, light, and filling.
The spicy dressing caresses the smooth cooling ribbons of cucumber, crab meat, and mango, sprinkled with crunchy panko. A symphony of contradiction in every bite.
Our Spicy Kani Salad Recipe with mango is a nod to a sushi bar fav favorite. Now you can make it at home!
What is Kani?
Kani is the Japanese word for crab. However, when used it is usually referring to imitation crab meat.
For this Kani salad recipe, you can use either real crab or imitation crab. Although the imitation is more true to the recipe and has a distinctly different flavor than the real kind.
How to Make Kani Salad
Ingredients
For the Dressing:
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon sriracha sauce (chile sauce)
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- Pinch salt
For the Salad:
- 4 Kani sticks (1/2 pound imitation crab)
- 1 mango peeled and shredded
- 1 large cucumber (or three baby cucumbers) peeled and shredded
- 3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Whisk mayonnaise, rice vinegar, sugar, sriracha, paprika ginger, and salt together for the dressing. Taste for seasoning and set aside.
- To make the Kani Salad shred the crab sticks by hand and place them in a large bowl. Shred the cucumber and mango in a food processor (or julienne by hand) and place in the bowl.
- Toss with the dressing and top with panko immediately before serving.
- Voila!
See The Recipe Card Below For How To Make Spicy Kani Salad. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I Use Real Crab Meat Instead?
Imitation crab is traditional for this kanikama salad, but you could definitely substitute REAL crab. It doesn’t shred as well, but you can’t beat the flavor. Although I will say, imitation crab has come a long way. It’s much more flavorful (and sustainable) than it used to be.
How Long Does This Japanese Crab Salad Last in the Fridge?
To store this main dish/side dish recipe, transfer it into an airtight container and it can keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Can I Buy This Kani Salad Dressing In The Store?
You might have the Japanese mayonnaise sauce, Kewpie, available in stores near you, but it is not always accessible where I live. However, you can find it online!
What Other Additions Can I Make?
Some people like to add some julienne-style vegetables with a crunch, like carrots or Persian cucumbers along with the creamy spicy mayonnaise dressing and shredded thin strips of imitation crab sticks. Other recipes call for corn kernels and soy sauce.
You could also turn this into a lettuce wrap or top this dish off with some sesame seeds and tobiko fish roe.
Looking for Even More Salads? Try These!
- Vietnamese Banh Mi Salad
- Grilled Romaine Salad with Buttermilk Dressing
- Smoked Trout Salad with Avocado Dressing
- Duck Confit Salad
- Ginger Salad Dressing from Spicy Southern Kitchen
Check out the printable recipe card below for the nutrition information including calories, carbohydrates, protein, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, potassium, fiber, vitamin c, and calcium percentages.
Spicy Kani Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the Dressing:
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon sriracha sauce (chile sauce)
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- Pinch salt
For the Salad:
- 4 kani sticks (1/2 pound imitation crab)
- 1 mango peeled and shredded
- 1 large cucumber (or three baby cucumbers) peeled and shredded
- 3/4 cup panko bread crumbs
Instructions
- For the Dressing: In a small bowl, whisk the dresing ingredients together until smooth. Taste for seasoning and salt and pepper as needed. Set aside.
- For the Salad: Shred the crab sticks by hand and place in a large bowl. Shred the cucumber and mango in a food processor (or julienne by hand) and place in the bowl.
- Toss with the dressing and top with panko immediately before serving.
What fun they look like they are having. Great looking recipe.
the ingredients are an interesting mix, mango? I bet it taste wonderful. Here we make mango salad but it;s spicy.
Oh, what adorable children! Such cute personalities :) And on to the salad…which looks fabulous! Such wonderful flavors…I’d love a bowl or two~
I love japanese food but always have trouble mimicking my favorite restaurant. They do have an amazing way of balancing all the flavors and texture! Thanks for sharing this recipe, it looks great!
You are absolutely right in their perspective of balance. I have heard that everything in life is about balance, even the type of food. I love the sound of the spicy crab salad you made here and it looks great! Oh and your Japanese salad eaters’ use of chopsticks is impressive!!!
What an interesting salad, and I am SO impressed that they are eating it! I wouldn’t have eaten ANYTHING like that when I was younger haha. I was so picky. Looks great!
what cuties, I would love to try this. Seems simple anough for me to try.
Fruity, light and flavour! This is such a wonderful salad.
Mm, this salad looks tasty and refreshing! Have you heard of the japanese mayonnaise, Kewpie? You should try that with this salad next time! :)
Thanks Roxan, It’s not available where I live, so this dressing is made with regulay grocery store finds. :)
Try making your own Japanese style mayo.
I use 2 egg yolks
1 cup of canola oil in a squeeze bottle
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
pinch of MSG (Accent)
1/2 tbs of rice vinegar
1/2 tbs malt vinegar though you can just use 1tbs rice vinegar if you like.
Put one egg yolk and the salt and sugar in a bowl. Mix with electric mixer on low then slowly start adding the oil, drop by drop ( this is the reason for the squeeze bottle, I use one I got in the cake decorating section at WalMart that came in a two pack and holds exactly 1 cup). Do not rush the oil or it will turn into a mess.
Once you get about half the oil added, add the second egg yolk and keep adding the oil, you can add it faster now. When I get to about 1/4 of the oil remaining I pretty much add it in a stream. The texture may get a little lumpy here, but not to worry. When all the oil is in, add the MSG and the vinegar then mix some more on low, this will settle any lumps that may have formed. Cover and refrigerate.
Your little ones are so cute! How wonderful that they enjoy the salad as well. My daughter would, too, but not my son. Thanks for a great new salad idea.
Having a picture of your kids eating this is what sealed the deal for me. Did you have to “encourage” them to try it or did they just dig in?
They are actually putting away a SQUID salad at one of our favorite little sushi joints in these picture. But, no, they are pretty adventurous eaters at this point!
oh my god, I love this salad! looks delicious and the kids are even funnier!
1. I am stealing your children.
2. I am stealing your plates along with your children.
3. This recipe is awesome!
Very jealous. I so wish my seven-year-old would try something like this!
You have adorable kids! They are super cute and they know how to use chopsticks! (I don’t lol)
I love the salad, the combination of flavors is so appetizing..
I’m all about balance too! AND I totally love those dishes!
This is a very unique salad, loving the spicy dressing and the combination of cucumber, crab meat and mango, nice!
Yum – what a delicate, lovely salad!