How To Prep A Nourish Bowl

Build a colorful, balanced nourish bowl with your choice of ingredients!

Nourish bowls also popularly known as macro bowls or buddha bowls are basically balanced meals in a bowl. They are easily assembled using your preferred food choices from each food group to provide a well-balanced, nutrient dense lunch or dinner. A plus is that nourish bowls work for all diet preferences and requirements such as gluten-free, vegetarian, dairy-free and more. You can simply select your choice of a grain, protein, 1-2 colorful vegetables and a dressing to get started.

Nourish bowls are perfect for speedy meal prepping since you can select no-cook ingredients like pre-cooked rice, canned beans or rotisserie chicken, raw veggies and pre-made dressing to build a bowl in just 10 minutes. You can also use other quick cooking ingredients like frozen veggies, fish, microwavable whole grains to create bowls in 30 minutes and under. There are endless variations to fit your needs and lifestyle.

Even though there is no recipe required since you are just assembling different food groups in a bowl, I love creating themed nourish bowls. For example, I often enjoy using Mediterranean-inspired ingredients like chicken seasoned with shawarma seasoning for my protein, quinoa for my grain, pickled radish and spinach for my veggies and hummus dressing. Take a peek below at my 5-step method to create a nourish bowl and get some more theme ideas.

Steps To Prep A Nourish Bowl For One

Step 1: Pick a theme.

Selecting a theme can help you narrow down the endless nourish bowl variations found on the internet when meal planning. It can also help you enjoy your current favorite foods in a creative way and spark an opportunity to explore new foods. Below are a couple theme ideas you can start selecting from:

Ethnic theme: Pick an ethnic theme like Mediterranean, Mexican, or Asian- inspired nourish bowls.

Current favorite food: Select a theme based on your current favorite foods like egg rolls or burritos. For example, if you love burritos, you can create a burrito-inspired nourish bowl with ingredients like brown rice, black beans, lettuce, tomatoes, salsa and guacamole.

Random Ideas: Vegetarian, seafood, BBQ and my favorite clean your fridge bowl where you have the opportunity to use up your leftovers.

Step 2: Fill 1/4 of your bowl with a grain base.

Adding hearty grains to your nourish bowl can provide you with fiber which supports satiety and bowel health. They also provide nutrients like B vitamins that support our energy levels and brain function. Whole grains like brown rice, quinoa, amaranth, whole wheat pasta are great options to add in your nourish bowl.

Step 3: Fill another 1/4 of your bowl with protein.

Protein can be an important part of your nourish bowl since it is an essential macronutrient that supports fullness. Protein choices like scrambled eggs, grilled chicken, baked salmon, and lean ground beef or turkey can be great picks. You can also build a plant-based nourish bowl with proteins like canned beans, lentils, tofu, and tempeh or combine these sources with the animal protein of your choice.

Step 4: Select 1-2 vegetables to your bowl

Add color to your bowl with fresh, frozen, or pre-packaged mix of vegetables. You can add raw veggies to your bowl as well as roasted, grilled, steamed or sautéed options. Some colorful options include purple cabbage, cucumbers, carrots, bell peppers, leafy greens, green beans, and mushrooms.

Step 5: Lastly, drizzle over your choice of dressing, dip, or sauce that compliments your bowl

Dressing can pack on flavor and add healthy fats to your bowl through choices like olive-oil based vinaigrettes or seed based dressings. You can also bump up the protein in your bowl by adding Greek-yogurt based dressing or sauce like Tzatziki. Other great options include hummus, salsa, guacamole, fresh squeezed lemon juice, and a soy-sauce based dressing.