Veggie Protein Bowls – A Couple Cooks

May 17, 2025

11

These veggie protein bowls are my go-to weeknight dinner that’s nutritious, filling, and fast! With roasted candy potatoes and chickpeas, creamy cottage cheese, and a drizzle of honey mustard sauce, they’re easy and customizable—my reply to these viral beef protein bowls.

So I hold seeing these floor beef protein bowls bowls throughout social media, and whereas they appeared scrumptious, I wished to create a vegetarian model that might be simply as satisfying (since we eat the Mediterranean food plan). I swapped in chickpeas for the meat and these veggie protein bowls had been born – and so they is likely to be even higher than the unique!

The surprising hero of those protein bowls? Cottage cheese! I do know it would look like an uncommon addition, however it creates this creamy sauce-like component that brings all the things collectively whereas including a big protein enhance. Our children truly wolfed these down—and I really like the way it’s so easy, you don’t should suppose an excessive amount of while you make it!

Why these protein bowls work

The key to actually nice protein bowls is balancing flavors, textures, and diet. Right here’s why this mix works:

Texture and taste contrasts: The smooth roasted candy potatoes and crispy chickpeas play superbly towards the creamy cottage cheese and the contemporary, crunchy cabbage.
Important vitamins: Every element serves a function – advanced carbs from candy potatoes, protein from chickpeas and cottage cheese, wholesome fat from avocado and olive oil.
Customizable warmth degree: The honey mustard sauce will be stored delicate or kicked up with a couple of shakes of sizzling sauce, letting you management the spice degree. The unique beef protein bowls have sizzling honey, however I didn’t love how that tasted with cottage cheese. The mustard sauce is way more enjoyable!

Ideas for bowl meeting

This recipe comes collectively shortly, with more often than not being hands-off whereas the greens roast. It’s such a terrific meatless meal concept that I’ve made usually and at all times get pleasure from. Listed below are some tips about the tactic:

1. Roast the candy potatoes and chickpeas.

Toss diced candy potatoes and drained, rinsed chickpeas with olive oil, garlic powder, chili powder, and kosher salt. Unfold them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and roast at 450°F for about 25 minutes, till the candy potatoes are tender and browned and the chickpeas are barely crispy.

Professional tip: Don’t crowd your baking sheet! The greens want area to roast correctly. Use two sheets if crucial.

2. Make the honey mustard sauce.

Whereas the greens roast, whip up a fast honey mustard sauce. I like so as to add a couple of shakes of sizzling sauce for a spicy-sweet mixture that basically brings the protein bowls to life.

3. Assemble your protein bowls.

Begin with a mattress of coleslaw combine or thinly sliced cabbage, prime with the roasted candy potatoes and chickpeas, add a beneficiant scoop of cottage cheese (about ½ cup per bowl), fan out some avocado slices, and drizzle with honey mustard sauce.

Meeting tip: I desire drizzling the sauce over the greens and cabbage, not the cottage cheese, to keep up that good distinction between the tangy sauce and the creamy cheese.

Variations and protein adders

One of many causes I really like these protein bowls is how simply they adapt to what you will have readily available:

Grain addition: Add ½ cup cooked quinoa or brown rice to make these bowls much more substantial. (For fast weeknight meals, strive pre-packaged cooked rice.)
Totally different protein: To essentially amp the protein, add baked tofu, pan seared rooster, shredded rooster, air fryer rooster, or canned tuna or salmon (seasoned with salt and olive oil).
Different veggies: You possibly can add some other veggies you’d like—uncooked or cooked! Attempt broccoli, cucumbers, crunchy bell peppers, roasted brussels sprouts, and extra. You may as well throw in different veggies whereas roasting—I identical to preserving it easy with the candy potatoes and chickpeas.

Storing leftovers

These protein bowls are perfect for meal prep with a couple of easy methods:

Element storage: Retailer the roasted candy potatoes and chickpeas, cabbage, cottage cheese, and sauce individually in hermetic containers within the fridge. They’ll hold effectively for 3-4 days.

Avocado trick: By no means slice the avocado upfront as a result of it is going to brown. For make-ahead meals, add the avocado contemporary simply earlier than consuming.

Reheating tip: Solely reheat the candy potatoes and chickpeas (both in microwave for 1-2 minutes or in a skillet). Hold the cottage cheese and cabbage chilly for one of the best texture distinction.

Dietary notes

These protein bowls are vegetarian and gluten-free. For vegan, plant-based and dairy-free, add a tray of baked tofu and improve the bake time a couple of minutes; use maple syrup or agave within the mustard sauce.

I hope you’ll give these vibrant, nutritious protein bowls a strive! The mix of flavors, textures, and diet creates one thing a lot larger than the sum of its elements. They could simply turn into your new favourite weeknight dinner too—tell us what you suppose within the feedback under.

Print