I will start by saying that I love putting things into other things.
Food-wise, that means bowls, We’re talking soup, salad, cereal; anything that needs something to keep it together. Here we’re talking about a whole meal made of smaller parts but held together as one in a large container: the rice bowl.
This is common with vegetarian, vegan, health-conscious diets. If you’re not into those food regimes, not to worry. They are also easy, relatively quick, and provide for a number of meals (score 1 for “cook once, eat twice” thank you!). So we are running on all cylinders on this one.
My interest in rice bowls has been borne out of my burgeoning addiction to Pinterest. It was recently that I was scrolling through thousands of pins when I started to see scores of ones about rice bowls; many coming from the vegetarian, vegan, health conscious feeds I subscribe to. This one in particular ran across mine and got my attention: Spicy Sweet Potato and Green Rice Burrito Bowls. (Follow me while you’re out there!)
I was totally down for this jam! Not only sweet potato but spicy ones too! Not just rice but green rice! Not just a bowl but a burrito bowl, people. Are you kidding me? I once hawked burritos in a commercial. I got this.
The post did say to not be intimidated by the number of steps. Let’s just say it was a process, nothing too intricate, but true to the warning. Luckily I had some time to do prep work the day before so when it came time to making them, I was ready to go.
One of the ingredients listed was a Serrano pepper. While shopping I found some nice looking ones. Right next to them, though, were some equally nice looking Poblanos. I had watched recently an episode of Rick Bayles’ cooking show and he was making some extraordinary Mexican dish where he roasted them on the grill. So I went for a Poblano instead and threw them on the grill while cooking up the night before’s dinner. It turned out nicely charred. When it had cooled and I could peel its skin away, I could smell the smokey goodness. That same night I added the Poblano to the purée then refrigerated all of it until the next night. Adding the Poblano was exactly the right move to the rice which, in my not so humble opinion, was the bomb. It really brought the meal together. It is something I will definitely try again.
The other Small Kitchen Cooking twist I took was grilling the sweet potatoes instead of baking them. It’s summer now and I was already steaming up the house with the rice and beans so I decided to head outside & fired up the grill. I got the grill basket ready and everything heated up nicely and threw the potatoes on. The thing I hadn’t banked on was them cooking so fast as the grill tends to cook on the hot side if I don’t watch it (i.e. have a little vino while cooking and get distracted by something shiny). They turned out fine but were a little mushier then I prefer.
The last liberty I took was with some feta. The recipe was technically vegan but did offer up a number of garnishes: cilantro, lime, pepitas, and feta, calling out this would, of course, make it vegetarian instead.
While I was excited about the idea of a whole vegan meal, I gave into my dairy tooth & tossed in a little feta. This, I’ll say, added a great creamy dimension to the flavor and as well as enhanced the visual quality against the earthy hues of the beans & sweet potatoes.
All in all this was a fantastic meal! It was pleasing, great tasting, easy to make and made a couple of meals for two people, making it a much-appreciated mid-week meal. Not to mention I also used some of the leftovers in a frittata. So try it out. Follow the recipe or add some flair of your own. However you want to do it. Just stick something in you bowl!
Tell me what you think. Share your ideas too.
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