vegan mofo :: bowling – for vegans...

 Dragon Bowl: a no-brainer,  healthy meal with options for everyone

I'm a terrible bowler. Gutter balls.  Broken fingernails. Broken dreams. And let's not forget the hideous shoes. But I'm a pretty decent Bowl-er, as in a serendipitous creator of tasty Dragon Bowls. 

Dragon Bowls, aka "Bowls"

In the spirit of my VeganMofo theme, going Back to Basics, I thought I'd share another easy-peasy modular recipe. Just about every vegan, vegetarian and health food cookbook includes a Dragon Bowl recipe. In fact, they are so popular in plant-based circles that we usually drop the dragon and just call them Bowls.

Dragon Bowls have stood the test of time for the following reasons:

1. They are quick to prepare
2. They are efficient leftover user-uppers
3. They are frugal [But if you're feeling extravagant, you can easily make them budget burners by using store-bought, fancy-pants ingredients]
4. They can, in small ways, be modified to fit each diner's preferences – which makes them a fun, weekly meal theme for families with fussy eaters
5. They require no fancy equipment
6. They require little cooking ability
7. They are ever-changing; you can have a different bowl every night!
8. There are no Bowl rules – no strikes or spares – only suggestions.

For my bowl, I chopped up some Romaine lettuce that was on its way out...

Tonight, I ad-libbed a filling Bowl using some shirataki noodles, shredded carrots, leeks, edamame, peanut butter, Romaine lettuce, sriracha, and a green goddess dressing. I got a little crazy and also tossed in a few tablespoons of my Green Millet Mash-Up.

...I boiled some shiritake noodles, shredded carrots, edamame, and leeks. 

If your first few attempts taste uninspiring, fear not! After you compose a few Bowls, you'll start to get a feel for what goes with what. Best of all, you'll realize that as long as you have a grain, a protein, some veggies and a sauce, you will never again experience a dinner crisis. Adding the Bowl to your cooking repertoire is an empowering culinary act.

Bowl size is important. Left one's too big. Bottom one's too small. Right one is just right.
[Which is why it's on the right.] 

For each person, you'll need a large-ish, pretty bowl. It should have plenty of room in which to mix everything up. Plus, there's just something defiant about eating your dinner from a ginormous vessel. You can use a fork, but I prefer using chopsticks when eating a bowl, even if my bowl does not have Asian flavors. But use whatever you like best. Use your [clean] fingers if that makes you happy. Bowls are all about individualism. Try it and tell me what you made. [Now that I think about it, perhaps a better title for this post would have been "Vegans for Bowling"...]

My Dragon Bowl Formula for One

• About 1 cup of grain [quinoa, millet, traditional pasta, ramen or soba noodles, shiritake noodles, buckwheat, kamut, etc]
• About 1/2-to 1 cup of protein [Cubed, cooked or uncooked tofu (seasoned is best!), tempeh, seitan, legumes, soy curls, etc]
• About 1 cup raw veggies [Chopped lettuce, onions, peppers, spinach, kale, etc]
• About 1 cup cooked veggies
• Up to 1/4 cup sauce [Tahini, salad dressing, hummus watered down with some broth or water, Romesco sauce, pesto, salsa for Mexican-inspired bowls, etc]
• Toppings [Sesame seeds, nutritional yeast, non-dairy cheese
• Seasonings

Layer the grain in the bowl. Top with your protein and veggies. Add sauce to taste, then season. Mix very well and enjoy. Doesn't get much easier, does it?