15-Minute Plant-Based Bowls

By the Gracious Vegan

Bowls aren’t always the fastest meal to make. You have to be very strategic to cook everything for a bowl in 15 minutes. Here are my suggestions. With a buddy in the kitchen, 15 minutes is definitely doable. Even with one cook it’s possible, but not as fun.  

Quick cooking grain 

• Whole wheat, regular, or tri-color couscous (pour boiling water, amount equal to couscous, over it, cover, wait 5 minutes, stir, wait another 5 minutes)

• Bulgur (boil 10-12 minutes with twice as much water as bulgur) 

• Buckwheat groats (boil 10-12 minutes with twice as much water as groats)

• Quinoa (boil 10-12 minutes uncovered with twice as much water as quinoa, then cover and let sit 5 minutes)

• Cauliflower or broccoli rice (microwaving is the fastest way to cook these)

• Prepare frozen or shelf-stable brown rice

 Protein

• Beans

• Broiled tofu, tempeh, or seitan (broil them with the vegetables) *

Vegetables

• Broiled zucchini *

• Raw diced cucumbers, tomatoes, onions

• Boiled/microwaved corn, green beans, cauliflower, broccoli, and/or other

Sauce

• Tahini sauce, vegan crema (if you’ve pre-soaked the cashews), salsa, peanut sauce, any other fast or store-bought sauce like Yumm

Toppings

• Green onions

• Shredded red cabbage

• Olives

• Pepitas or other seeds

• Cilantro

• Lime zest

• Garam masala

* Easy basting sauce for broiling vegetables and proteins: 

• 3 Tablespoons water

• 1 Tablespoon miso (your choice of color/strength) (What is Miso?)

• 1 Tablespoon tahini

• 1.5 teaspoon lemon pepper or other spice mix