For a vibrant yet easy vegan dinner, these Roasted Veggie Buddha Bowls do the trick, packed with colorfully delicious flavors and drizzled with creamy, protein-packed Yum Sauce!
With the Season of Food coming up (aka October thru December), I thought it’d be a good time to resurface this old favorite recipe of mine!
It’s a dish that requires minimal effort, minimal dishes, and is perfect for the post-feast food hangovers that are all too common this time of year. Roasted Vegetable Buddha Bowls!
What goes into these veggie buddha bowls?
Roasted sweet potato and spiced chickpeas make up the base of these Buddha bowls, helping to make them ultra-filling and full of flavor. Fresh kale and pomegranate add some crunchy freshness. But my favorite part of these bowls? The beet pearl couscous!
When we were in Greece last year we ate a bright pink couscous that was the stuff of dreams. It was subtly beety with lemon juice and salt, and did I mention bright pink? So I whipped up an easy variation with shredded raw red beet and pearl couscous to be the healthy grain portion of these Buddha Bowls.
Best sauce for Buddha Bowls
And because no Buddha bowl is complete without a killer sauce, we’re topping it with our Vegan Yum Sauce, a high-protein unlikely combination of ingredients that’s ultra-creamy and full of flavor! If you’re looking for something a little different, these bowls would also be great with:
More of our favorite chickpea recipes
- Roasted Chickpea Gyros
- Chickpea Tikka Masala
- Roasted Beet and Chickpea Tacos
- Pumpkin Soup with Smoky Roasted Chickpeas
- Kale Salad with Roasted Chickpeas
Ingredients
Roasted Sweet Potato
- 2 medium sweet potatoes roughly chopped
- 1 medium red onion cut into large chunks
- 1 Tbsp olive oil 15 mL
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp each salt and pepper
Roasted Chickpeas
- 1 15-oz can chickpeas drained
- 1 Tbsp olive oil 15 mL
- 1 tsp cumin
- ½ tsp each garlic powder, smoked paprika, chili powder
- ¼ tsp each salt and pepper
Beet Couscous
- 1 cup pearl couscous* 190 g
- 1 ¼ cup water 295 mL
- ½ cup shredded raw red beet about 1/2 of a beet
- 1 Tbsp olive oil 15 mL
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice 15 mL
- Pinch of salt and pepper
The Rest
- ½ cup Yum Sauce click for the recipe
- 4 cups chopped kale
- ½ cup pomegranate arils
Instructions
- Yum Sauce: Blend together yum sauce real quick (recipe here – 5 minutes to make).
- Sweet Potatoes: Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). Toss chopped sweet potato with all Sweet Potato ingredients to evenly coat. Arrange in a single layer on half of a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Chickpeas: Pat chickpeas dry with paper towels then toss with all Roasted Chickpea ingredients. Spread onto the other half of the baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are soft and chickpeas are a bit crisp.
- Couscous: Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add couscous, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes, or until tender. When finished, fluff with a fork then stir in remaining Beet Couscous ingredients.
- Assemble: Add a handful of kale to each bowl, evenly dividing roasted veggies and couscous on top of each. Top off with a healthy heap of Yum Sauce.
Bryan says
The looks like it’s PACKED with flavor!! Oh I can’t wait to try it haha great recipe, thank you!
Sarah says
It sure is! Would love to hear how it turns out for ya, Bryan! š
Tiffany R says
Okay, this HAS to be one of my new FAVE meals! Seriously. Looking at it, it can seem a little daunting with all the different parts and whatnot, but it’s really not! I was about to get everything made at once in my little kitchen without being overwhelmed with dishes in the end. Once I made everything, it was super quick to assemble the bowls into containers for the week. I kept the sauce on the side and would pour over top when I heated everything.
The flavors are delicious too! I was a little on the fence with the beet couscous because sometimes beets can be a bit too earth for me, but everything blends really well. The earthiness compliments the sweetness provided by the sweet potatoes. And the yum sauce, ah, don’t get me started. I love yum sauce and just might have to start keeping a container of this one around the house. So good!
Did I mention how healthy this is for you?? You can feel good about it AND love what you’re eating!
Sarah says
Okay but really, the YUM SAUCE! My favorite part of this whole bowl! Happy you liked it, and love that you used it as meal prep!
Jennifer says
A beautiful dish of vibrant colours! Delicious flavour combinations. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Carey says
Any recs for yum sauce substitute?
Sarah Bond says
Tzatziki or romesco would be delish!