I usually hate food trends. There’s nothing that boils my water more than lame avocado toast, displayed in all its glory. One trend that I can’t help but love, are veggie bowls like this one.
The variety is endless. Infinite combinations of root vegetables, nuts, pickled veggies, seaweed, avocado, etc. These can be piled on top of grains, rice, quinoa, barley. It’s like a massive wardrobe of ingredients. So when following a recipe, just know items can be mixed and matched.
Bowl basics
When composing your bowl, you just need to follow these basic rules, and it’ll be a successful meal. The number one rule for making your bowl is balancing the element of crunch, spicy, sweet, acidic and salty. A crunch can be introduced to the bowl by adding crushed peanuts, pistachios, crushed tortilla chips, etc.
The sweet can be in the dressing. For example, I like to make a tangy tahini and orange sauce top dress my bowl.
For an acidic punch, I love pickling root vegetables and onions. You can check out my pickling methods here: https://whatsyourdill.blog/2019/04/02/making-pickles-is-a-spiritual-experience/
In order to add some kick, I usually chop up a small chili and sprinkle it on top. An easier option is to add a dash of hot sauce to some roasted Brussel sprouts or some stewed eggplants.
The next key is to choose a good base for the toppings. If you are looking for an earthy bowl, I recommend brown wild rice. For a vessel to absorb big bold flavors, white Jasmin rice will do the trick.
The final key for an extravagant bowl of veggies is to add a little citrus and fresh herbs to make it look visually appealing and let the other flavors shine. I like to zest an orange, lime or lemon on the bowl just before serving.
