If you truly consider yourself a foodie, there is no way you haven’t heard about Buddha bowls. They are colorful, filling dishes served in a bowl and usually contain grains, raw or cooked vegetables (or both), protein and seeds topped with some dressing. YUM.
The good thing about Buddha bowls is that they really help to bring out your creativity, from the way you design the bowl to what you choose to include in it, anything is possible and there isn’t just one way to make Buddha bowls.
The meaning of the name Buddha bowl is driven from 3 different reasons: Buddha used to go around with his bowl and ask for bites of food to fill it from villagers who gave him a bit of what they were having. That is why the bowl also contains all kind of food and not just one ingredient. Reason two is because the Buddha bowl is a balanced meal and balance is a key concept in Buddhism. The last reason, which sounds ridiculous to me, is that the overstuffed bowl look like Buddha's belly. Think it over and choose the meaning on your own! (Buddha bowl)
In my Buddha bowl recipe, I used 3 types of rice that you cook together, whole rice, black rice and brown rice. These grains are considered to be healthier and they help to make you feel full for a longer time. The 3 types of rice will eventually look all black because the black rice dyes them together while cooking.
On top of the rice, I added roasted sweet potatoes, raw baby spinach leaves, fresh red bell pepper and marinated cooked tofu. To top it all off, I made a tahini dressing and sprinkled sesame seeds. Is your mouth watering yet?!
This bowl makes a great balanced lunch that will keep you full and make you skip snacking and looking for some chocolate or sweet treats. The bowl is loaded with healthy, but delicious ingredients and you'll even gain vitamins by eating it. Trust me, you aren’t sacrificing any taste by whipping up a healthy Buddha bowl. Just because it’s insanely healthy, doesn’t mean that isn’t jam packed with taste – and that’s just the punch my recipe gives.
The tofu in this recipe is pressed, marinated and cooked the same way as my tofu spring rolls recipe, check it out for further instructions. If you want, you can omit the tofu or add any other ingredients to your Buddha bowl such as more vegetables, other grains like quinoa – don't be afraid to be creative and test what works best together for you.
Here is the recipe for my enjoyable Buddha bowl:
Buddha bowl
Ingredients
For the rice:
- ⅓ cup whole rice
- ⅓ cup brown rice
- ⅓ cup black rice
- 3 cups boiling water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Black pepper by your taste
For the roasted sweet potatoes:
- 2 sweet potatoes peeled and cut to cubes
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper by your taste
For the fresh vegetables:
- ½ cup spinach leaves
- 1 red bell pepper cut
For marinating the tofu:
- 4 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- ½ chili pepper cut
For cooking the tofu:
- 4 tablespoon arrowroot flour
- 3 tablespoon coconut oil
For the dressing:
- ½ cup tahini
- Up to 1 cup of water- depends how runny you want the sauce
- Lemon juice of one lemon
- Salt and pepper by your taste
Garnish:
- 2 tablespoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- For the rice: In a pot, heat the olive oil on high.
- Add all the rice, salt and pepper to the hot oil and mix.
- Add boiling water to the pot and cook on low for around 35 minutes or until rice is fully cooked.
- For the roasted sweet potatoes: Heat the oven to 180°C / 350°F with the fan.
- Place the cut sweet potatoes on a baking pan lined with baking paper.
- Drizzle the oil, salt and pepper and mix the sweet potatoes until they are covered with oil and spices.
- Roast the sweet potatoes for 30 minutes in the oven.
- For the tofu: follow the instructions of my tofu spring rolls recipe.
- In a small bowl, mix all the dressing ingredients.
- In a serving bowl, place the rice. Near it, arrange the roasted sweet potatoes, baby spinach leaves, red bell pepper and tofu.
- Drizzle the dressing and sprinkle sesame seeds
- Dig in and enjoy!
For this theme of Buddha bowls, I collaborated with my vegan blogger friend so you can explore her delicious recipe too:
Sarah from sarahsveganguide.com created a moroccan cauliflower rice buddha bowl
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