Confession time: I use my Postmates app more than I use my kitchen.
The thought of spending my precious evenings post work dicing and sautéing, instead of Netflix binging and face masking, isn’t exactly appealing to me. The major issues with this is that a) it sucks my wallet dry, and b) it’s not the most nutritional dinner option.
We live in the wellness age, where eating healthy and taking care of ourselves has never been so important. Protein shakes, vitamins, natural supplements, you name it — it’s all crucial to living a nutritious and balanced life.
At the base of being “well” is your diet. As important as it is to eat right, it’s just not always easy. Recently, I’ve found healthy buddha bowl recipes that aren’t only easy, but are filled with all the good stuff that my body needs. Buddha bowls truly are meal prep’s best friend, so take advantage of your Sundays, and you’ll have dinner ready to go for the rest of the week!
Read More: 10 Egg Roll in a Bowl Recipes That’ll Hit the Spot
What is a Buddha Bowl?
Before we dive into these healthy buddha bowl recipes, let’s break down what exactly a Buddha bowl is.
A Buddha bowl is – to put it simply, a hodgepodge of healthy (and delicious) ingredients thrown together in a bowl. The general rule of thumb is that they consist of five main categories: protein, grains, nuts, veggies and some sort of dressing. They are chock full of healthy fats, lean proteins, carbohydrates and your favorite veggies.
The best part? They’re easy.
Meal Prep some chicken, whip up some sweet potatoes, quinoa and Brussels sprouts, and you’re set for the week – just add spinach and a dressing of your choice. Perfect for those lazy weekday nights. Keep reading to learn about healthy Buddha bowl recipes we recommend all year round.
How to Add Extra Flavor to Your Healthy Buddha Bowl Recipes
The Roasted Root also offers up some ways to change up any of the above healthy buddha bowl recipes.
Want to add even more flavor? Feel free to add or subtract your favorite fruit, or add your favorite green (raw or cooked) and use any type of spice you think might compliment the dish.
Whether you’re vegan, vegetarian or a carnivore, this dish is for you. That’s the beauty of a Buddha bowl — it can really be whatever you want. Feel free to get as creative as you want, and make a big batch that’ll last you the whole week.
Relaxing weeknight evenings, here we come!
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Healthy Buddha Bowl Recipes to Try
This bowl is a perfect vegetarian option with just a bit more oomph.
This plant-based protein makes for a filling and delicious meal. The formula to this delectable concoction is as follows: Falafel, greens, roasted veggies, spicy peppers, nuts, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, honey for topping and voila! That’s all there is to it.
For your roasted veggies, toss your cauliflower and carrots into a pan, and sprinkle it with cumin, salt, and pepper. Bake them for 20 to 30 minutes while stirring occasionally. For the falafel, there’s a million recipes out there, but Pinch of Yum recommends this one that takes just 30 minutes.
Once you have the heart and soul of your Buddha bowl done, now comes the fun part: assembling your bowl! Combine your spinach, red cabbage, falafel, carrots and roasted cauliflower in the bowl and top with jalapeño and pistachios. After that, drizzle everything with tahini, lemon juice, honey, olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.
If you have a craving for Thai food, this little number will do the trick.
This pick on our list of healthy Buddha bowl recipes comes with a total of 16 grams of fiber, curtesy to the nutrient-rich grain, freekeh. Plus, this healthy buddha bowl recipe is vegan friendly!
A little background on freekeh: It is considered an ancient grain, and often compared to quinoa. The difference is, freekeh has more protein and twice as much fiber. It also is high in iron, calcium and zinc, with prebiotics vital for our gut health.
This bowl combines spinach, tempeh, freekeh, avocado, sweet potatoes, and peppers all under a magnificent cashew curry drizzle. This dressing is the true magic of this dish, if I do say so myself. It is bursting with flavor, and can make any bowl better. To make this dressing, just combine cashew butter, red Thai curry paste, coconut aminos and rice vinegar. This flavorful, nutritious Buddha bowl is a great balance of healthy fats, lean proteins and carbohydrates. Don’t mind if I do!
A bowl made for people on the go, this healthy buddha bowl recipe is quick and easy, while still giving your body all the nutrition it craves and deserves. This bowl in particular has a Greek twist to it, making it refreshing, yet still a warm and cozy meal.
Start with quinoa, and add in lemon juice once it’s done. Next, grill some chicken, and combine with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, stock powder and garlic powder. (Pro tip: Whip together a large batch of this chicken for leftovers galore!)
For the dressing, combine two tablespoons of garlic olive oil with two teaspoons of balsamic vinegar. Next is your Buddha bowl base. Toss together your lettuce of choice, tomatoes, onion, olives, feta and parsley, and you’re all set! You have yourself a healthy Buddha bowl.
Butternut Squash and Kale Buddha Bowl with Creamy Cashew Apple Cider Dressing
Ah, apple cider vinegar. The health benefits are known to be short of miraculous (it improves heart health, helps with weight loss, kills bacteria… the list goes on and on).
The taste, however? Not great. At least not until this healthy Buddha bowl recipe! It uses apple cider vinegar in a mouth-watering dressing, so it has all the added health benefits, minus the not-so-mouth-watering taste. Who needs to choke that stuff down each morning anyways?
The dressing requires one cup of cashews, one small shallot, apple cider vinegar, dijon mustard, honey, olive oil, water and salt. Once the creamy sauce is done, pour it over a plethora of tasty ingredients, including butternut squash, apples, chickpeas, kale, and pumpkin seeds.
Although the dish sounds like a fall treat, it tastes just as good all year round. The beauty with Buddha bowls, is that you can swap in whichever veggies you want, depending on the season.
This Buddha bowl is perfect for a warm summer night, stocked full of summer veggies. It reminds me of sitting on your front porch, listening to music and sipping on something sparkling. This fresh meal includes brown rice, mixed greens, cherries, blackberries, peaches, black beans, pistachios, red onion, avocado, queso fresco and tahini dressing.
Step one to this enticing bowl is to make your tahini sauce by combining tahini, rice vinegar, fresh lemon juice, water, garlic, salt, chives, basil, and sage.
Blend it all up in any blender you have until smooth, then stick it in the refrigerator until you’re ready for it. After that all you have to do is cook the rice, then combine all the goodies you have into a bowl. Pour the tahini sauce on top, and bon appétit!
This next healthy Buddha bowl recipe is, in my opinion, the most creative recipe I’ve found. Even though tofu is thought of as a bland protein, it can actually be dressed up with different sauces and spices. In this case, BBQ is the sauce of choice.
For this bowl, it’s important to drain the tofu by wrapping it in a clean towel and putting some sort of heavy object on top. This ensures your tofu is ready to absorb as much of the marinade as possible.
While its draining, feel free to start cooking the rice, broccoli, bell pepper and corn. Add tamari in the mix and sautee for 2 minutes. After that, cut up your tofu, fry it, then add the BBQ sauce. Be as generous as you want!
Once complete, assemble your Buddha bowl in whatever fashion you want. Sprinkle some sesame seeds for added flavor, and avocado on the side for a healthy fat.