If you are looking for a new healthy meal recipe that packs a ton of nutrition and is also delicious, look no further than my Asian Heritage Rice Bowl. Rice bowls (and their vegetarian equivalent, Buddha bowls) have been popping up everywhere lately and I can understand why. They are a fantastic way to get a variety of colourful vegetables, fruits, proteins and grains into your diet. Essentially, the bowl starts off with a base (often rice or salad) and you simply add handfuls of each ingredient to the bowl to make up a full meal.
These Asian Heritage Rice Bowls were originally inspired by the chicken rice bowl at Heritage Asian Eatery in downtown Vancouver. As I am now living in Victoria, I miss these bowls SO MUCH and there isn’t anything here that is quite like it (or is of good enough quality). So, when I find myself getting a Heritage Asian Eatery craving, I make this bowl. While Heritage’s bowl uses a whole chicken leg, I opt for using a chicken breast that has been cubed up as it makes for much easier eating. I did however keep the wood-ear mushrooms in this recipe along with the ginger scallion sauce and the 6-minute egg. There is just no substitute for these… I have to have them every time.
Along with the Heritage Asian Eatery staples, I also add some fresh vegetables including avocado, cucumber, shaved carrots, radish, scallions and some fresh sprouts. I found a really great sprout mix from Christina’s Garden on Maine that is sold at my favourite grocery store in town, The Root Cellar. I like the mixed blend of purple daikon sprouts as they are piquant in flavour and they add a whole lot of crunch to the top of my bowl.
While this is my preferred mix, you can add just about anything to this bowl to make it your own. Here are some yummy based and toppings that you can add:
Base: rice (white or brown), quinoa, lettuce, swiss chard, spinach, farro
Veggies: carrots, avocado, cucumber, radish, beans, sweet potato, tomatoes, mushrooms, zucchini, peas, red pepper, edamame
Protein: chicken, beef, pork, seafood (shrimp would be fantastic), tofu, eggs, lentils
Sweet: dried fruits, fresh apple, orange segments, mango, berries
Garnish: cilantro, parsley, sesame seeds, basil, mint, fried onions, sliced dried seaweed
No matter what combination of toppings that you add to this bowl, it is guaranteed to be super colourful! Also, with Pride celebrations coming up in the coming weeks, this is the perfect rainbow-filled recipe to make to celebrate! If you are having a Pride Party, set out bowls of the chopped and prepared toppings and have your guests create their own bowls- how fun would that be! You can also do this if you have picky kids as they can add whatever toppings they like.
And there you have it! A beautiful, nutritious and delicious recipe for the week! I hope you enjoy making this Asian Heritage Rice Bowl and I hope you experiment on making your own variation! Let me know in the comments below what ingredients you would add to your bowl!
For the full recipe, click here!
