Vegan Sushi Cupcakes

Vegan gluten-free colorful sushi cupcakes are a fun way to enjoy all the flavors of sushi, but in the form of a cupcake. These are fun for any occasion, but I recommend them for birthdays, picnics, or a potluck. With a base of healthy superfood colored rice, you can top them with anything to make them unique to you. No chopsticks needed.

This recipe makes 12 sushi cupcakes.

Table of Contents

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• Recipe
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Contact Me with Questions
• Similar Recipes

I used to have a cupcake blog before VeganDollhouse was born (ieatcupcakes.com). I just figured I could eat everything in cupcake form for the rest of my life, but, eventually, I wanted to branch out to other food shapes. One kind of cupcake I never made for ieatcupcakes.com is a sushi cupcake. Better than never, right?

I used dried butterfly pea flowers to naturally color the sushi rice, and they’re gluten-free by nature, so we can probably even go as far as to call these healthy (at least compared to everything else I make).

Ingredients for Vegan Sushi Cupcakes Recipe

(jump to the FAQ section to see ingredient details and suggestions for substitutions)

• 1 ½ cups water
• small handful of butterfly pea flowers
• 1 cup white sushi rice
• 2 tablespoons sushi vinegar
• variety of toppings (I used carrot, pickled cauliflower, sunflower sprouts, and cucumber)

How to Make Sushi Cupcakes

Add 1 ½ cups of water, 1 cup of white sushi rice, and a small handful of dried butterfly pea flowers to the liner of your instant pot and lock the lid, making sure the vent is sealed. If you don’t want to pick the flowers out of the rice later, you can put your flowers into a nut milk bag or a reusable tea bag and toss that in with the water and rice. Or use butterfly pea flower powder since that will dissolve into the rice.

Press the rice button. Turn off the keep warm button if it’s on.

Gather and chop your toppings while the rice cooks. I used carrots, cucumber, sunflower sprouts, and pickled cauliflower.

Transfer the rice (once the pressure has released naturally) to a large pan so it can cool off more quickly. I used my lasagna pan for this, but you can use a cookie sheet, a parchment paper lined cutting board, a rolling mat or whatever you have that’s convenient.

Sprinkle seasoned sushi rice vinegar over half of the cooling rice. After a few minutes, you should notice an obvious color change. You’ll want to use both colors of rice in each cupcake to give it more depth of color.

Set a bowl on a stack of nori sheets and trace around the perimeter of the bowl with something sharp.

Cut (with scissors) through as many sheets of nori as you can at a time following the circle that you traced onto the top sheet. You want 12 of these seaweed circles.

Place one nori circle into one of the cubbies of a cupcake pan.

Set your bigger veggie pieces into the nori cupcake wrapper first.

Wet your hands, and then grab a ball of rice, trying to grab some of each color, and set the ball into the nori cupcake paper with veggies.

Add the smaller toppings to the top.

Repeat with the other 11 cupcakes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make these sushi cupcakes ahead of time?

You can prep the rice and chop your toppings 1–2 days in advance. Store them all separately in airtight containers, and assemble the sushi cups just before you serve them. This will make sure they stay fresh and crisp and the seaweed won’t get soggy.

What can I use instead of butterfly pea flowers to color the rice?

You can skip the butterfly pea flowers altogether if you don’t mind your sushi cupcakes having white rice. Or try alternatives like adding red cabbage to the rice cooker or instant pot. The flavor won’t change much, just the color.

Is there a low-carb version?

For a lower carb version of this recipe, you could try using cauliflower rice, an almond pate, or tofu. Or omit the rice and just make them out of veggies.

Can I substitute the vinegar or adjust the seasoning?

If you don’t have sushi vinegar, you can quickly make your own. Combine 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon of vegan, raw, or organic sugar, and ½ teaspoon of salt either in a saucepan on the stove or in the microwave. Heat and stir to dissolve the salt and sugar. This can take 15 seconds in the microwave or 5 minutes on the stove.

What toppings work well besides the ones in your recipe?

Try diced bell pepper, avocado slices, pickled ginger, pickled red onions, beets, scallions, edible flowers, shredded beets, or even small bits of marinated tofu for extra substance.

Comments or Questions?

If you make this recipe, I would love it if you’d snap a pic, post to instagram, and tag me @vegandollhouse. It seriously makes my day/week/month!

Please message me (instagram or email) if you have any questions or feedback about the recipe.

Similar Recipes

If you like this sushi cupcake recipe, you might also like my korean rice balls recipe, my vegan musubi recipe, my temaki recipe, and my tuna onigiri recipe.

For other ideas of things you can make with sushi rice, I have a recipe for an easy vegan sushi bakeand a vegan sushi bowl recipe.

For a show stopper sushi meal, check out my savory rainbow sushi cake recipe.

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I mostly cook with organic ingredients, but only specify organic when it’s necessary to ensure the item is vegan.

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