Soft quinoa coated in a creamy avocado dressing with oven roasted vegetables and fresh salad, this quinoa buddha bowl is nourishing and beautiful! Make sure to cook a little extra — it makes for great leftovers too!
1cupmixed quinoa(~150g) use mixed or a single variety
1Sweet potato
2carrots
1zucchini
1red onion
2tbspOlive oil
Saltto taste
Pepperto taste
2cupsmixed salad greens
4-5cherry tomatoeshalved or quartered depending on size
FOR THE AVOCADO DRESSING
1Avocado
½cupfresh coriander(cilantro)
½lemon(juice)
Instructions
PREPARE ROASTED VEGETABLES:
Preheat oven to 180ºC [350ºF | Gas Mark 4]
Wash, scrub, and chop the vegetables into bit size chunks or fingers.
In the pot that you will make quinoa, mix together Olive oil with salt and pepper. Toss the vegetables in the pot and then spread on a baking tray. Switch on the grill of the oven and roast for 10 mins.
PREPARE QUINOA
Wash the quinoa under running water in a fine mesh colander. Quinoa seeds have a naturally occurring bitter coating called saponins which gives it a bitter flavor. Rinsing helps remove that.
Add the rinsed quinoa to the pot used to make the Olive oil dressing for roasted vegetables. Top with double the amount of water and a little salt.
Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer and cook until all the water is absorbed. About 10-15 mins. *
AVOCADO DRESSING
Blend together avocado, cilantro, and lemon juice until smooth. Add some water to thin down if it is too thick. Taste and adjust seasoning.**
ASSEMBLE THE QUINOA BOWL
In a bowl, add a little cooked quinoa, roasted vegetables, and fresh salad. Drizzle over avocado dressing and serve.
To eat, mix it all up and enjoy!
Notes
*You will know that the quinoa is cooked when it is puffed up and you will see a curly little “tail” come out of each quinoa seed which is, in fact, the seed’s germ or bran. This tail that sprouts out when quinoa is perfectly cooked is super nutritious.
**You can make more dressing and freeze extra. It will stay well in the freezer for up to a couple of months.
Nutrition Information is the approximate information for 1 of 4 servings of the vegan quinoa Buddha bowl.