Buddha Bowls-The Much needed Tranquility
What a turn of events it has been since November 8th (read demonetisation) here in my part of the world. Sheesh! I don't even know who is real anymore...People just aping others and jumping onto the bandwagon for no rhyme or reason leaving all their common sense and logic behind.
Pure hypocrisy in full bloom. I literally watched people bash up one another online with words/sarcasm and shoving down their ideologies just because they think that's the only right way to gag the others and settle scores. Everybody known and unknown to me wanted their five minutes of fame no matter how senseless they sounded!!! What a shame!!! Awful caustic shares spitting out froth and venom that went on and on and on 24/7 triggering more hatred and lack of serenity!
Felt deeply saddened for the voiceless animals!!!
Do the bulls even know that such demonstrations took place on account of them? Everybody got several plots mixed up and pent up anger was in the forefront the moment the Pandora's box was opened. It was just not about the bulls or our culture anymore...Oh Boy! I am speechless! The breed of bulls were discussed, the milk we humans steal from the cows was discussed, several bans were discussed, celebrities were all over the news channels and newspapers and even at the beach trying to outshine one another...I rest my case!
In the midst of all this I looked at the bust of Buddha that I have at home just because it gives me a great deal of Zen and he gazed back knowingly at me and I headed towards my kitchen and started on my Buddha Bowls.
Buddha bowls are almost like our Indian thalis with deliciousness written all over it. It is colourful and almost maintains the same degree of nutritional aspect in them- some carbs, a protein, some greens, nuts, a fruit and the works.
I came across these Buddha bowls while rearranging some music CDs of ours at home. I was googling some Buddha Bar music https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddha_Bar_compilation_albums that we had at home and a few such recipes loomed up in my search within a search within a search...You get the gist right? And boy was I fascinated! It's almost like what I mix and match at home while trying to incorporate some healthy eating but now I have an exotic name to call it-BUDDHA BOWLS :)
Basically, you need a couple of ingredients that would make your bowl look very luring, colourful and magical! It has to captivate your guest's or your own undivided attention-the jaws must literally drop to the floor. It has to be the cynosure of all eyes!!!
Take a clean bowl and layer it at first with any kinds of greens that you love-let it be red cabbage, lettuce, rocket, baby spinach whatever, over that you would layer it with a handful of a healthy cooked grain-it may be brown rice, millets, some healthy pasta etc. To the side you will arrange a protein-it may be chickpeas, tofu, baked beans, sprouts, black eyed-peas, peas etc. Although I did see a few bowls using chicken as a protein, my understanding is that Buddha Bowls are basically vegetarian! Please correct me if I am wrong and I will do the necessary edit.
There are Vegan Buddha Bowls too so please do your research to interchange the ingredients and find the right substitutes!
What I did was cooked my foxtail millet in spinach and peas, so that took care of the millets, the greens and the protein part. This is followed by some healthy fats to the side-it maybe Avocado, Sesame seeds, Cashews or Tahini. As I didn't have any of these at hand, I just used some store-bought walnuts and yogurt to flavour the entire dish ( I did have sesame seeds but I was ready with my chia seeds as a contrast in colour against the entire dish)
So in my bowl the iceberg lettuce rests at the bottom, then the spinach plus peas foxtail millet, I added grilled cauliflower florets to the side, oven baked pumpkin, raw Delhi Carrots (those red ones instead of the usual orange) and raw Radish. It has to be seasoned well and some dressing poured over it like a hummus/lime juice/grated ginger/cheese powder...I used a mulberry yogurt and garnished with those walnuts and chia seeds. I did add a few strawberries for colour as they were in season and to play with them against my lips...Oh well...a lil Queen of Sheeba/Cleopatra/Helen of Troy moment there :P
Buddha bowls can be customised to your whims and fancies. Keep your favourite veggies and grains in mind and make them as colourful as possible. Do season well as that matters a great deal. My grilled cauliflower was seasoned well, so were the baked pumpkin with a few familiar herbs, the yogurt was sweet and berriyish which added to a nice sweet flavour to the dish...that's totally optional! Interchange with a nice dressing or a hummus.
C'est tout! A real stress buster one pot meal from all that hullaballoo and insanity that literally shook my state and held it to ransom. Use fresh ingredients, time manage and keep all the ingredients-both cooked and raw ready to plate. Dig in my friend...loads of work in this recipe but imagine the health benefits and this tiring prep leads to such an enchanting hearty meal!
I delivered as promised on Instagram...requested you to watch out for this post before the day ended and here I am! Try listening to some music from the Buddha Bar albums while prepping your bowl-it's very soothing!
Life has so much more to offer...let's use our wisdom and rational to filter out and iron out petty differences.
Pure hypocrisy in full bloom. I literally watched people bash up one another online with words/sarcasm and shoving down their ideologies just because they think that's the only right way to gag the others and settle scores. Everybody known and unknown to me wanted their five minutes of fame no matter how senseless they sounded!!! What a shame!!! Awful caustic shares spitting out froth and venom that went on and on and on 24/7 triggering more hatred and lack of serenity!
Felt deeply saddened for the voiceless animals!!!
Do the bulls even know that such demonstrations took place on account of them? Everybody got several plots mixed up and pent up anger was in the forefront the moment the Pandora's box was opened. It was just not about the bulls or our culture anymore...Oh Boy! I am speechless! The breed of bulls were discussed, the milk we humans steal from the cows was discussed, several bans were discussed, celebrities were all over the news channels and newspapers and even at the beach trying to outshine one another...I rest my case!
In the midst of all this I looked at the bust of Buddha that I have at home just because it gives me a great deal of Zen and he gazed back knowingly at me and I headed towards my kitchen and started on my Buddha Bowls.
 |
| Fox millet cooked in a spinach and peas mix. |
Buddha bowls are almost like our Indian thalis with deliciousness written all over it. It is colourful and almost maintains the same degree of nutritional aspect in them- some carbs, a protein, some greens, nuts, a fruit and the works.
I came across these Buddha bowls while rearranging some music CDs of ours at home. I was googling some Buddha Bar music https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddha_Bar_compilation_albums that we had at home and a few such recipes loomed up in my search within a search within a search...You get the gist right? And boy was I fascinated! It's almost like what I mix and match at home while trying to incorporate some healthy eating but now I have an exotic name to call it-BUDDHA BOWLS :)
Basically, you need a couple of ingredients that would make your bowl look very luring, colourful and magical! It has to captivate your guest's or your own undivided attention-the jaws must literally drop to the floor. It has to be the cynosure of all eyes!!!
Take a clean bowl and layer it at first with any kinds of greens that you love-let it be red cabbage, lettuce, rocket, baby spinach whatever, over that you would layer it with a handful of a healthy cooked grain-it may be brown rice, millets, some healthy pasta etc. To the side you will arrange a protein-it may be chickpeas, tofu, baked beans, sprouts, black eyed-peas, peas etc. Although I did see a few bowls using chicken as a protein, my understanding is that Buddha Bowls are basically vegetarian! Please correct me if I am wrong and I will do the necessary edit.
 |
| Superb Detox bowls |
 |
| The black thingies sprinkled over the dish are the Chia seeds. |
There are Vegan Buddha Bowls too so please do your research to interchange the ingredients and find the right substitutes!
What I did was cooked my foxtail millet in spinach and peas, so that took care of the millets, the greens and the protein part. This is followed by some healthy fats to the side-it maybe Avocado, Sesame seeds, Cashews or Tahini. As I didn't have any of these at hand, I just used some store-bought walnuts and yogurt to flavour the entire dish ( I did have sesame seeds but I was ready with my chia seeds as a contrast in colour against the entire dish)
So in my bowl the iceberg lettuce rests at the bottom, then the spinach plus peas foxtail millet, I added grilled cauliflower florets to the side, oven baked pumpkin, raw Delhi Carrots (those red ones instead of the usual orange) and raw Radish. It has to be seasoned well and some dressing poured over it like a hummus/lime juice/grated ginger/cheese powder...I used a mulberry yogurt and garnished with those walnuts and chia seeds. I did add a few strawberries for colour as they were in season and to play with them against my lips...Oh well...a lil Queen of Sheeba/Cleopatra/Helen of Troy moment there :P
Buddha bowls can be customised to your whims and fancies. Keep your favourite veggies and grains in mind and make them as colourful as possible. Do season well as that matters a great deal. My grilled cauliflower was seasoned well, so were the baked pumpkin with a few familiar herbs, the yogurt was sweet and berriyish which added to a nice sweet flavour to the dish...that's totally optional! Interchange with a nice dressing or a hummus.
C'est tout! A real stress buster one pot meal from all that hullaballoo and insanity that literally shook my state and held it to ransom. Use fresh ingredients, time manage and keep all the ingredients-both cooked and raw ready to plate. Dig in my friend...loads of work in this recipe but imagine the health benefits and this tiring prep leads to such an enchanting hearty meal!
I delivered as promised on Instagram...requested you to watch out for this post before the day ended and here I am! Try listening to some music from the Buddha Bar albums while prepping your bowl-it's very soothing!
 |
| Picture Credit :Google Images |
Life has so much more to offer...let's use our wisdom and rational to filter out and iron out petty differences.
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