Probiotic Buddha Bowl

My sister’s been going on about the Buddha bowl for a long time. But for some reason I was never interested in trying it. It made me think of the bland, tasteless food that was passed off a vegetarian fare in the 1980’s. Boy, was I wrong… A properly constructed Buddha bowl is SO absolutely DELICIOUS. Savoury, earthy and tangy all at once.

Check out this sweet potato and chickpea Buddha bowl recipe on Minimalist Baker, which really kick-started my whole fascinations with bowl-based dinners. After trying a few different Buddha bowls, I realized that all good Buddha bowls have a pretty standard construction.

My breakdown for a perfect Buddha bowl:

• 1 cup base (lettuce, grains, sweet potato or beans)
• 1/2 cup vegetables (cooked or fresh)
• 1/4 cup protein (nuts, hard boiled egg, cooked meat)
• Fermented vegetables (pickled veggies or sauerkraut)
• Salad dressing (I like green-goddess dressing, see recipe below)
• Top with 2 tbsp of something crunchy.

From this basic base of a Buddha bowl (or not so Buddha, if you’ve included meat) you can explore all sorts of different flavours. Here’s a few ideas:

Mexican: Use rice, pinto beans, sauted mushrooms and peppers, curtido and fermented salsa. Top with crumbled corn chips

Asian: have a base of rice noodles, topped with grilled tofu and vegetables, kimchi and peanut sauce. Top with roasted peanuts

Indian: Start with a bed of rice and top with some cooked chickpeas and vegetables, fermented chutney, pickled lemons or dosa filling and a curry sauce. Top with Punjabi mix.

Cajun Spice: Toss cooked chickpeas and sweet potatoes in oil, then sprinkle with a Cajun spice mix and roast in the oven for 30 minutes. Throw in some diced up broccoli and allow to roast for 10 more minutes. Add sauerkraut or pickled beets, tahini dressing and top with roasted pumpkin seeds.

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