I make Buddha Bowls a lot. Almost weekly. I make them for myself for cooking demos, and they are almost mandatory when I'm cooking at yoga retreats. They are always a hit! Everybody loves them. Plus, they are a great way to get rid of scraps of food that are still in the fridge.

The best thing about Buddha Bowls is that you can cater yours to your liking. There really is no set-in-stone recipe. However, the key is definitely to have a really, really great dressing. Below, I've shared the recipe for one of my favourite dressings, but you could choose to top your bowl with whichever dressing you like.

Most recently, I was cooking for a yoga retreat organized by Anne Tessier near Tremblant, Quebec.  Below is a photo of the Buddha Bowl I prepared for the yogis. It had wild rice, chickpeas, grated raw beets and carrots, avocado, thinly sliced kale, roasted delicata squash, green onions, kimchi, pea shoots, black sesame seeds, and my all-time favourite tahini dressing.  And yes, it's as delicious as it looks! But no, it's not complicated at all. It's just a matter of chopping up a bunch of delicious things and throwing them into a bowl, and then pouring a really decadent (yet nutritious) dressing on top. Scroll down for my Buddha Bowl "recipe.”

Let's get started! Here's what you'll need to make your own Buddha Bowl:

Base ingredients:

Your choice of cooked grains (quinoa, buckwheat, millet, brown rice, wild rice, sorghum, teff or amaranth)

Your choice of protein (beans, lentils, chickpeas, edamame, tofu, tempeh, etc.)

Plus any combo of veggies:

steamed or roasted sweet potato, squash, or potatoes cut into bite-sized pieces

broccoli or cauliflower (cut in tiny florets), steamed, roasted or raw

finely chopped greens (kale, romaine, arugula, spinach, etc.)

thinly sliced cabbage

onion or scallions

grated carrot

grated raw beets or cooked/steamed beets

cucumber, cut up into small pieces

chopped celery

sliced avocados

sauerkraut or kimchi

Plus garnish options:

sprouts or pea shoots

sunflower seeds

hemp seeds

sesame seeds

dulse or kelp flakes (or any other seaweed for that matter)

ground flax seeds

Plus a dressing of your choiceOR my all-time favourite tahini dressing:

1/2 cups tahini (sesame paste)

1/2 cups olive oil

1/2 cups water

1/4 cup tamari

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Small piece (half thumb size) fresh ginger root, minced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

Black pepper to taste

Directions: Blend all the ingredients in a blender until smooth. Add water to loosen if it’s too thick. Dressing will keep in the fridge for one week.

Finally, to assemble your Buddha Bowl:

Combine 1/4 cup cooked grains and 1/4 cup protein of your choice, along with any combination of vegetables and garnishes. Drizzle about 1/4 cup of dressing on top. Serve immediately and enjoy!

You can also batch prepare your Buddha Bowls by storing single servings in containers. Reserve your dressing and add it just before you're about to eat.