Build-a-Bowl Meals!

If you need a quick go-to meal for your midweek slump (or any-day slump!), look no further.

As I mentioned in my meal planning post for on-the-go eating, the easiest way to approach dinner when you’re well and truly stumped, is to stop thinking in terms of names.

You know, “I need to have Spaghetti Carbonara” or “I need to have Mushroom Risotto”.

Dishes with names require recipes and that can all get a bit much when we’re busy and rushing around, right?

In these moments, I just turn to my Build-a-Bowls.

A bowl with bulgur wheat, lentils, steamed veggies and peanuts in a peanut satay sauce.

Build-a-Bowls take the guesswork out of successful meal making. They just follow the formula I laid out in my meal planning post:

• COMPLEX CARBS + PROTEIN + VEGETABLES

Boom, dinner is served. How?

Well, you can cheat a bit. I sure do.

At the supermarket, I stock up on jars of lovely, tasty delightful sauces. Peanut Satay cooking sauce, Butter Chicken cooking sauce (it hasn’t seen a chicken yet, I promise!), Teriyaki sauce…and so on.

Then I build my bowl!

A bowl with brown rice, steamed veg and cannellini beans tossed in a teriyaki sauce.

I cook up a whole grain once a week – this week it was bulgur wheat. (COMPLEX CARB)

Then I cook up some lentils for the week, or I crack open a can of chickpeas or beans. (PROTEIN)

I stockpile my fridge with delish veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, mushrooms, peas…whatever you wish. (VEGETABLE)

And then I build my bowl…putting the grain on the bottom, topping it with veggies, and finishing off with my protein. I toss everything in the sauce du jour, and voila. My bowl is built, and my meal is complete.

Give Build-a-Bowl Meals a go next time you’re stumped on what to cook or what meals to plan.

And then take all that time you saved and go buy some fro-yo for dessert ;).

QUESTION:

• An interesting survey came out tracking the most popular foods and beverages in Canada. The winner was coffee – apparently we drink more than 8x as much coffee as any other country (even the States!). I was blown away by that. Maple-flavoured goodies, Subway sandwiches, naan bread, raspberries and waffles were some of the others in the top 10. What would you expect the most popular food in your country to have been? (If you’re in Canada, were any of these surprising?)