I’ve been making these healthy veggie bowls for two days in a row for dinner. And I would do it again and again because:
- They are really delicious and healthy at the same time.
- It’s a well-balanced and nutritious meal.
- There is a lot of room for experiment. The choice of vegetables, legumes and dressing is up to you. If you like to eat seasonal, healthy veggie bowls are your new best friends.
- You can make them for brunch, lunch or dinner. It’s perfect for workdays as you can take a veggie bowl with you in a jar.
- It’s a great make-ahead meal.
- You can use leftover vegetables.
- It’s not a salad, it’s better than a salad!
- It has a lot of delicious flavors combined in one hearty meal.
- It’s vegan.
- It looks cool!
I think these 10 reasons should convince you that healthy veggie bowls are worth making. They consist of three parts: vegetables, legumes and dressing. Whatever your vegetable preferences are, if you are preparing healthy veggie bowls, make sure to add at least 4-5 kinds of vegetables. The more the better. I used sweet potatoes, corn, napa cabbage, carrots and scallions (plus avocado, if you count the dressing). I roasted sweet potatoes and stir fried the rest of vegetables in a wok. I added chick peas but you can choose any other legume high in fiber, like peas, lentils or beans. The last step is the dressing. I used avocado and coconut milk dressing, but you can substitute it with yoghurt or just olive oil and vinegar.
How to Make Healthy Veggie Bowls
I started by roasting sweet potatoes and chick peas in the oven with olive oil and spices. 
Meanwhile, I stir fried the vegetables in a wok and prepared the dressing. I gave it a slight Asian touch by adding ginger, chilli and garlic while frying. The whole meal was ready in about 30 minutes. Here is how I made it:
Healthy Veggie Bowls: Roasted and Stir Fried Veggies with Avocado Dressing
Ingredients
For the roasted sweet potatoes and chick peas:
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 sweet potato
- 170 grams or 6 oz chick peas, boiled
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
For the stir fried vegetables:
- 4 big leaves of napa cabbage, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
- 1 teaspoon small chilli pepper, chopped or 1/3 teaspooon ground chilli
- 1 corn cob
- 2 medium-sized carrots, peeled
- 3 whole scallions
- sunflower oil to fry
For the dressing:
- 1 avocado, peeled, pitted
- 3 tablespoons coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 garlic clove
- salt
To serve:
- 1 tablespoon black sesame
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 ºC or 355 ºF.
- Combine ground coriander, paprika, ginger and cumin. In a pan, fry the spices for 1-2 minutes, until the aroma appears.
- Peel the sweet potato and cut in cubes. Combine half of the spice mixture with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the sweet potatoes. Mix well. Transfer to a baking tray or form and bake for 20 min.
- Mix the second half of spice mixture with the chick peas and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Set aside.
- Combine ginger, garlic and chilli in a bowl. You might want to prepare your vegetables in advance before you stir fry them, as it's a fast process and there is no time for chopping.
- Slice the carrots with a potato peeler in long stripes.
- Remove the corn kernels from cob with a knife.
- Chop the scallions.
- Prepare the dressing: mix together avocado, coconut milk, lime juice, olive oil and garlic in a food processor or with a mixer. Add a pinch of salt.
- After 20 min of roasting the sweet potatoes, stir them with a spatula and add the chickpeas on the backing tray, as shown on the picture above. Bake for 10 more minutes.
- In a wok or skillet, sauté the napa cabbage in a tiny bit of oil over medium heat until it softens (2-3 minutes), stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper.
- Take two bowls and distribute the napa cabbage evenly into both bowl.
- Put the wok back on the stove. Add a bit of oil and one third of the garlic-ginger-chilli mixture. Add the carrots to the wok and sauté for 4 minutes or until golden, stirring occasionally. Transfer to the bowls.
- Repeat the procedure with corn and scallions.
- Stir the chick peas and sweet potatoes and bake for 5 more minutes.
- After they are done, fill the vegetables, the sweet potatoes and the chick peas into the bowls.
- Pour the dressing over everything and sprinkle it with black sesame seeds and the remaining scallion rings.
- Enjoy!
I became addicted to these healthy veggie bowls since I made them first. It’s my “go to” recipe for the weekday dinner or make ahead lunch. What are your favorite vegetables? What would you put in your healthy veggie bowl? I’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment below.
Greetings, Elena
Marisa Curro
Sunday 26th of March 2017
Could hemp or unsweetened almond milk be used as a replacement for the coconut milk?
Elena Szeliga
Monday 27th of March 2017
Hi Marisa! Absolutely! Whatever works for you. However, the dressing might be a little more liquid, but I don't think it's a problem at all. Hope you like the recipe!
Joy
Tuesday 14th of June 2016
Are these dried chickpeas that you boil to soften or are they canned? If dried, how long do you boil? Thanks!
Elena Szeliga
Tuesday 14th of June 2016
Hi Joy! I actually pre-boil the dried chickpeas (it usually takes up to 2 hours, depending on how old are your chickpeas). If you soak them overnight, it takes about 40-50 minutes to boil them. For this recipe, you can totally use canned chickpeas, just drain the liquid and they are ready to use. Let me know how it goes. Hope you'll enjoy these bowls!
ftf
Sunday 13th of December 2015
Looks amazingly delicious recipe. Thank You for sharing <3
Elena Szeliga
Tuesday 15th of December 2015
I'm glad you like it! ;) Thanks for your feedback!
Cathleen @ A Taste Of Madness
Monday 28th of September 2015
I have never made a veggie bowl, but I am definitely wanting one after seeing yours! This looks so good!
Elena Szeliga
Monday 28th of September 2015
I'm happy to hear that! You won't be disappointed for sure :)