26 Healthy Vegetarian Bowl Recipes to Make Ahead
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These vegetarian bowl recipes are perfect for your weekly meal prep. In one meal-prep session, you can easily make enough servings for lunches throughout the week. These bowls are full of delicious veggies and hearty grains, and they get plenty of satiating protein from ingredients like tofu and beans. Recipes like Green Goddess Grain Bowl and Edamame & Veggie Rice Bowl are healthy, delicious and will keep you full throughout the day.
Many of these dishes are flavored with sauces or dressings, such as roasted red pepper sauce, chile sauce and hummus dressing. And wherever possible, we employed time-saving techniques to reduce prep, giving you more time back in your day. We use precut cauliflower, microwave quinoa pouches, precooked wild rice packets and beets, prebaked tofu, prewashed baby kale and store-bought hummus. And we offer a recipe that uses an Instant Pot pressure cooker.
Grain Bowl with Chickpeas & Cauliflower
This beautiful grain bowl is packed with healthy ingredients like quinoa, chickpeas, kale and cauliflower—all drizzled with a lemony tahini sauce. The fast one-bowl meal makes a satisfying weeknight dinner or packable work lunch. If you don’t have za’atar, you can substitute 1/2 teaspoon each ground cumin and coriander.
Meal-Prep Roasted Vegetable Bowls with Pesto
Your co-workers will be jealous when you pull out this healthy lunch of roasted veggies and brown rice. Put together four lunches when you have time, and you will have packable lunches (or ready-to-eat dinners) for several days. Just grab a container on your way out the door in the morning.
Sweet Potato & Cauliflower Rice Bowl
In this riff on a healthy grain bowl recipe, we use cauliflower rice instead of a whole grain like brown rice to cut back on carbs and load up on veggie servings. A simple citrusy drizzle, inspired by Cuban mojo sauce, finishes these vegan rice bowls, perfect for lunch or dinner.
Vegan Grain Bowl
This easy grain bowl has so much to love—sweet potatoes, protein-packed chickpeas, creamy avocado and homemade tahini dressing. Make the full recipe on the weekend, and pack it into individual serving containers for ready-to-go lunches for work all week.
Green Goddess Grain Bowl
This healthy grain bowl packs in the greens with peas, asparagus and a creamy yogurt dressing. Tofu adds protein while keeping it vegetarian, but for omnivores, you could swap in cooked shrimp or chicken for a satisfying dinner or packable lunch ready in just 15 minutes.
Vegetarian Protein Bowl
This vegetarian protein bowl has everything you need for a complete meal in one bowl. Beans not only boost protein but also add creaminess to the farro mixture. Chimichurri sauce brightens the dish.
Edamame & Veggie Rice Bowl
The ingredients in this vegan grain bowl recipe can be prepped ahead for an easy lunch to pack for work. The tangy citrus dressing is a refreshing contrast to the sweet caramel of the roasted sheet-pan veggies.
Bean & Veggie Taco Bowl
Simple brown rice and black beans serve as the backdrop for sautéed veggies and taco toppings!
Coconut Black Rice Bowls with Tofu & Purple Asparagus
Black beans, black rice and black sesame seeds all contain anthocyanins, potent antioxidant compounds that have been shown to reduce inflammation. So “forbidden” rice isn’t just striking, it’s also a serious nutrition upgrade. Simmering it in coconut milk adds a rich aroma and flavor.
Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls
A bold, smoky marinade elevates roasted cauliflower in this meal-prep version of our popular Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Tacos. To cut down on prep time, look for precut cauliflower in the produce department. You can also save time by using microwaveable quinoa pouches instead of cooking quinoa.
Gochujang-Glazed Tempeh & Brown Rice Bowls
If you’re a tempeh skeptic, you’ve probably never had these firm soy-based slabs slathered with a sweet-and-spicy barbecue sauce. We give this easy BBQ tempeh combo a punch of umami with tamari and add a little heat courtesy of gochujang.
Chickpea & Quinoa Grain Bowl
It seems grain bowls have as many variations as there are stars in the sky, and there is no wrong way to build one! But we prefer to sometimes keep things classic and simple with hummus, quinoa, avocado and loads of veggies.
Chickpea & Quinoa Bowl with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Quinoa and chickpeas pack this vegetarian grain bowl with plenty of plant-based protein. Whip up a batch of these Mediterranean meals, and pack in containers with lids to stash in the fridge for easy, healthy grab & go lunches all week long.
Pressure-Cooker Grain Bowl
Whip up this healthy vegetarian grain bowl with ease in your Instant Pot. Pressure-cooking the sweet potato is faster and yields the perfect texture. A drizzle of homemade spicy dressing takes this easy dinner to the next level.
Crispy Chickpea Grain Bowl with Lemon Vinaigrette
Our favorite part of these vegetarian grain bowls is the tangy lemon vinaigrette, which ties together a satisfying combo of quinoa, toasted pumpkin seeds, and roasted chickpeas and kale. Whip them up for easy meal-prep lunches or a healthy and satisfying dinner.
Teriyaki Tofu Rice Bowls
With a handful of shortcut ingredients from your local specialty grocery store, you can prepare an entire week’s worth of high-fiber meals in about 15 minutes. Look for precooked wild rice packets to cut down on prep time. Topping these bowls with prebaked tofu also trims the minutes needed to make this quick meal-prep lunch.
Lemon-Roasted Vegetable Hummus Bowls
Brimming with colorful roasted vegetables, these plant-based, meal-prep lunch bowls are high in fiber to keep you full through the afternoon. Feel free to use your favorite store-bought hummus to cut down on prep time, or make a batch of your own. You can also sub in an 8-ounce microwaveable quinoa pouch to minimize cooking.
Jackfruit Barbacoa Burrito Bowls
Jackfruit, a tropical fruit with a dense, chewy texture, is a blank canvas that takes on flavors well. In these vegan burrito bowls, the jackfruit is simmered in a warm and spicy chile sauce that’s so good that you’ll never know you’re eating a plant-based protein instead of pork or beef.
Vegan Superfood Grain Bowls
This nutrient-packed grain bowl recipe comes together in 15 minutes with the help of a few convenience food shortcuts like prewashed baby kale, microwavable quinoa and precooked beets. Pack these ahead to keep on hand for easy meal-prep lunches or dinners on busy nights.
Turmeric Rice Bowl with Garam Masala Root Vegetables & Chickpeas
This fragrant turmeric rice bowl topped with leftover spiced roasted root vegetables and chickpeas is inspired by flavors from India for an easy, vegetarian dinner.
Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl
This black bean and quinoa bowl has many of the usual hallmarks of a taco salad, minus the fried bowl. We’ve loaded it up with pico de gallo, fresh cilantro and avocado plus an easy hummus dressing to drizzle on top.
Vegan Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Bowl with Creamy Green Sauce
In a vegan riff on green goddess dressing, cashews provide a creamy base with tons of flavor from herbs and apple cider vinegar. Drizzle it all over this bowl of quinoa and roasted vegetables to make a satisfying vegan dinner or easy packable lunch that is ready in just 30 minutes.
Chickpea & Veggie Grain Bowl
This high-fiber vegetarian grain bowl is packed with colorful veggies and plant-based protein to keep you feeling energized and satisfied.
Farro & Vegetable Bowls with Lemon-Shallot Herb Sauce
These hearty grain bowls make the perfect lunch or dinner. You can use any assortment of roasted vegetables you like. The herb sauce adds brightness, while chopped pistachios provide crunch. Use any leftover sauce as a spread on a sandwich or drizzle over fried eggs.
Vegetarian Sushi Grain Bowl
Skip the hassle of making sushi rolls at home, and just go for this grain bowl. Start with a base of brown rice and add veggies, dressing and creamy avocado for a delicious and easy meal.
Vegan Burrito Bowls with Cauliflower Rice
These meal-prep vegan burrito bowls are healthier and more flavorful than takeout. Make them early in the week for grab-and-go meals when days are busy. We use frozen cauliflower rice, a low-carb substitute for white or brown rice, to cut down on prep time.
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