Ommmm-nom nom nom
Spring is avocado season, and what better way to celebrate the warmer months and new life than with the tantalising and fresh flavours of a Buddha bowl?
What is a Buddha bowl?
There are a lot of stories about how the Buddha bowl got its name:
- It’s shaped like Buddha’s belly
- Buddha used a bowl while he was begging for food
- Someone somewhere liked alliteration and new brunch ideas
Like the origin of its namesake, the best part of a Buddha bowl is deciding what goes into it. For our Spring Buddha Bowl, we’re going to be using what’s fresh and in season.
What vegetables are in season for Spring?
One of the main appeals of the Buddha bowl is its variety of textures, making Springtime a winner for this dish! There’s a good mix of crunchy and soft, giving every bite a unique feel and flavour.
From our Spring selection, we’ve chosen:
| Avocados | Broccoli | Spring Onion |
| Cucumber | Spinach | Garlic |
What will I need to make this dish?
There are two ways to make this dish, depending on the time available to you and your texture preferences.
For the full experience, you’ll need:
- An oven tray
- Aluminium foil
- A pan
- A pot
- A strainer
What you can expect from this method: By using the oven, you can expect sharper crunch from your vegetables, as well as stronger individual flavours in the final dish.
For the faster, less crunchy method, all you need is:
What you can expect from this method: This will produce a messier, stir-fry version of a Buddha Bowl, with slightly less crunch and a lesser variety of flavours.
What ingredients will I need?
The best Buddha Bowls are shared with buddies, so for this recipe we’re using enough ingredients to make two servings:
- 1 x big avocado
- 1 x small sweet potato
- ½ a head of broccoli
- 1 x large cucumber
- 1 x cup of spinach
- 1 x cup of chickpeas (drained)
- 1 x small carrot
- ¾ cup of brown rice
- 200 grams of spring onion (small bunch)
- 200 grams of tofu
- 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons of olive oil
- Pepper and salt (to taste)
Method
For the full experience:
- Fill pot with water and bring to boil
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees
- When water is boiling, tip in brown rice (cooking time ~25 mins)
- Peel and cube the sweet potato
- Cube the tofu and broccoli
- Place sweet potato and broccoli on an oven tray covered in aluminium foil, and lightly coat with olive oil
- When oven is heated, put in oven tray (cooking time ~20 mins)
- Bring the pan to a high heat
- Mince garlic
- Dice spring onion
- When pan is hot, lightly coat with olive oil, throw in the garlic and spring onion, and bring the temperature down to medium (stir occasionally)
- Generously slice the cucumber and avocado
- Wash and pat dry the spinach
- Throw chickpeas and tofu into the pan to lightly brown (cooking time ~10 mins)
- Strain the rice when finished
- Take veggies out of the oven
- Take pan off the heat
For the faster, less crunchy method:
- Fill pot with water and bring to boil
- When water is boiling, tip in brown rice (cooking time ~25 mins)
- Heat wok on high, lightly coating with olive oil
- Dice garlic and thinly slice spring onion
- Throw garlic and spring onion into the wok, and reduce heat to low (stir occasionally)
- Peel and cube sweet potato, broccoli, tofu
- Turn the wok to medium-high, and when heated, throw in sweet potato, broccoli, tofu and chickpeas (cooking time ~10 minutes)
- Wash and pat dry the spinach
- Generously slice the cucumber and avocado
- Strain the rice when finished
Preparing the bowl: Start with the brown rice as your base. From there, try to add the ingredients individually around the rim of your bowl. To finish, garnish with grated carrot, drizzle in soy sauce and add salt and pepper to taste.
This nutrient packed bowl is perfect for breakfast, brunch, or late afternoon snack if you just can’t hang on for dinner. If any of the ingredients aren’t immediately tempting, you can substitute them for other veggies like cauliflower, beans, edamame, or really anything else that takes your fancy!