Teriyaki Cauliflower Bowl

Eating more veggies can be hard.

There’s a tendency among Americans to reach for protein and carb-heavy meals. I’m, no doubt, a person who does this. I always try to have my protein (meat), my starch, and my veggie with lunch and dinner (all bets are off for breakfast). I still stick to this when meal prepping and planning.

Times are changing, though, and I guess I need to change with it. Instead of always having a meat with dinner, I need to incorporate more meatless options. I’ve been trying to do this over the last year or so, but sometimes it’s hard.

It’s hard to find a meal centered around vegetables without it containing a heavy amount of carbs and legumes. Most meatless options are based on beans or soy, both of which I try to avoid as much as I can. Making vegetables the star of the show is more difficult than you might imagine.

Enter: cauliflower. It’s the “in” vegetable right now and for good reason. It’s bulky, meaty, easy to adapt and pair with sauces and flavorings and cauliflower gives you a starch-like vibe without all the added carbs.

I love seeing cauliflower “wings” on the menu and in stores (that frozen bagged version is a guilty pleasure of mine). Cauliflower “steaks” are becoming more normal. Making cauliflower the lead in your dinner plans just feels right.

That’s why I chose to make teriyaki-style cauliflower and use it as the main in my rice bowls. I rounded out the dinner bowl with rice, avocado, edamame and red cabbage.

It was incredible.

I highly recommend trying cauliflower as your leading bowl topping from now on. Make a bowl Mediterranean-style with olives and feta, or Tex Mex style with corn salsa, beans and rice.

Enjoy!

Teriyaki Cauliflower Bowl

Servings: 4-6
Time: 45 mins
Difficulty: Easy
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An Asian-inspired bowl with teriyaki cauliflower, edamame, avocado, and cabbage.

Ingredients

1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets

2 TBS. olive oil

salt 7 pepper

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. Chinese five spice

1/2 cup water

1 TBS. cornstarch

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 TBS. brown sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 TBS. Hoisin

2 TBS. rice vinegar

2 cups cooked rice

2 cups shredded cabbage

2 cups cooked edamame

2 avocadoes, for topping

Sesame seeds, sliced green onions and lime wedges, for serving

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lay out cauliflower florets on a large baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil on top. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and CHinese five spice. Toss until cauliflower is well coated.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, stir together soy sauce, rice vinegar, Hoisin, garlic and brown sugar, cooking over medium heat. Mix cornstarch and water in a small bowl and then stir into soy sauce mixture. Cook, stirring, for 3-4 more minutes, until sauce thickens.
Place cooked cauliflower in a large bowl, and drizzle sauce on top. Toss until coated.
Make the bowls: start with a scoop of rice and top with cauliflower, some avocado slices, edamame, cabbage and sesame seeds.