Protein Packed Buddha Bowls

While it’s really fun to make new dishes and try out recipes every night, often times its unrealistic because you always have leftovers lying around in the fridge. That’s where these Protein Packed Buddha Bowls come in.

Basically: there’s no rhyme or rhythm to Buddha Bowls which is what I’m all about; freestyling with food is my favorite. It’s where new recipes are born, and where old ones come to life. When I started getting into cooking, I followed a lot of recipes to the T and felt like everything had to be perfect or the recipe wouldn’t be a success. Over time, however, I’ve realized that while following a recipe is awesome and fool-proof, sometimes it’s fun to play around and try out different combinations. My current obsession: avo toast with agave & black pepper. It’s a weird combo but amazing, try it out and come back and thank me. 😉

Since Buddha Bowls are my go-to lunch almost every day, I thought I would share them with you guys to inspire you to get creative with food and use up your leftovers. While I use different ingredients day to day depending on what I have, I always make sure I include a carb (brown rice, green vegetables, quinoa, pasta), a protein (beans, tofu, lentils, etc), and a fat (avocado, nuts). That way, I am getting a balanced meal every time. It kind of sort of makes me feel like I have my life in order, ya know? *Kind of* being the key phrase here haha. 

Anyway: the tried & true trick to these bowls is keeping them simple. Don’t have grilled tofu? Sub for some canned beans. Don’t have quinoa? Sub for microwave brown rice. Don’t have lettuce? Sub for another green vegetable like broccoli. Hell, you can even use the steam in bag frozen vegetables that take 4 minutes in the microwave! There are so many amazing ways to cut corners nowadays with cooking and make your meals work for you. Aint nobody got time to hang out in the kitchen all day, I get it.

If you guys give this a try, let me know how you liked it and let me know if you have any favorite combos. While I like to pretend I have a *refined* palette, I will truthfully try any combo no matter how odd so send your suggestions my way. Enjoy angels.

Protein Packed Buddha Bowl

Ingredients:

• cooked brown rice
• pan-grilled tofu
• roasted chickpeas
• diced tomatoes
• roasted peppers
• cilantro
• avocado
• radishes
• lettuce & kale
• Add-ons: hot sauce, sweet chili sauce, olive oil & vinegar, salad dressing, sesame seeds, my fave peanut sauce (recipe here), etc.

1. First, layer the bottom of the bowl with your green vegetable of choice. Here, I am using a lettuce and kale blend but you are welcome to use anything you have on hand.
2. Next, add the toppings. I used grilled tofu, roasted chickpeas (just roasted from a can at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes), tomatoes, peppers, cilantro, avocado, and radishes. I like to add mine in piles around the bowl so they are neat and pretty but you can totally just throw them all together. *Also, I didn’t add measurements for the above ingredients because there is no wrong or right way to do this. Add as much of each as you want!*
3. Lastly, add your add-ons. If I use ingredients that were pre-seasoned, I often leave as is, but if I am using new ingredients that I just opened, I’ll add some hot sauce, sweet chili sauce, etc, for a nice tasty bite.
4. Eat & enjoy! Tip: **If I have more than one meal worth of ingredients, I like to make multiple bowls at a time and put them into Tupperware containers so that I have lunch ready for a few days.**

As always: feel free to pin this recipe so that you can save it for later.

Also, head over & follow my Vegan Entree Board for more lunch/dinner inspo.