Creating this all in one bowl can be both carefully planned out or a hodge podge of leftovers in the fridge. These are flexible and wonderful for getting in all the important food groups in one spot. Family friendly and batch cooking friendly, there are plenty of ways we can easily roll this into our life.
THE ANATOMY OF A GRAIN BOWL
1. As with all the grain bowls, we start with a base. While traditionally a grain (or pseudo grain), it can be a riced veggies or noodle. It's also a great way to roll in some ancient grains that we may want to become more familiar with. Consider trying:
Quinoa
Basmati Rice
Brown Rice (if later in postpartum)
Barley
Oatmeal
Soba or rice noodles
Sweet Potato Rice
Ancient grains we may be less familiar with like farro, spelt, millet, couscous, teff, freekah, amarenth
2. Select a protein. In this case, this Bison Mix but you can also select
Bison Mix
Seared steak
Chicken Thighs
Leftover pulled chicken from this recipe
Leftover Salmon from this recipe
Tempeh
Albacore Tuna
Fried, poached or jammy eggs
3. Add some (more) Veggies. You can use riced veggies, roasted veggies, even pull some from the freezer. To mix it up, you can spiralize or grate or use a peeler to create easy bites and add texture to the bowl. Remember that we want to stick with cooked veggies and non-cruciferous here for now.
Roasted, steamed or sautéed kale, spinach or any green
Green Beans, blanched
Zucchini &Summer Squash
Caramelized Onion
Slow cooked Ghee'd Garlic
Roasted root veggies
Olives
4. Add fat. Always. Remember fat is how we absorb certain nutrients so it is essential in every meal
Avocado
Ghee
Olives
5. Add a dressing or sauce.
Scallion Ginger Oil
Hummus
Avocado Dulse Dip
Tapenade
Pesto
Peanut Sauce
Maple Dijon Dressing
6. Toppings! These can add a punch of flavor, another layer of nutrients and a nice crunch
Raw nuts,
Spiced Nuts
Minced Date
Dulse Flakes
Seaweed Snack (sheet of nori)
Nooch
Fresh herbs
Hemp or Sesame Seeds
Goji Berry
Have fun and play around! :)
Specifically for the Bison Bowl, I like to use the Cilantro Lime Rice, Bison Mix, Fresh Avocado, Green Olives, Scallion Ginger Oil topped with lots of seeds.