This Indian vegetarian chickpea bowl is so delicious and you are going to get compliments when you make them!!
Why do I love bowl recipes? There are many components, which make it appear exciting and the audience (your family) is thrilled. My husband literally said “oohh..nice!!” when he saw my plated bowl; and he is never the type to say oohh. Also, kids love to pick and choose their favorite components, they feel in charge.
And here’s a chef’s secret – all the components have super-simple processing steps. They just appear complicated when you put them all together.
One more secret: I used just 1 pan shown below to heat/roast the components, pour it out into a bowl, wash and repeat.
It all started when I looked at my leftovers and wondered how to make this exciting for the family…
From that above to the photo below… Mmm…mmm, now that’s what I’m talking about….
Step by Step Photos
Rice
Crumble the day old rice so that it is spreads out and not stuck together like 1 block.
To a hot pan, melt butter, add chopped coriander leaves + stalk. Saute for 30 seconds.
Add rice and stir for a minute.
Flavor with lemon juice and salt. Rice ready!!
Chickpeas
To the pan, add 1 tsp of butter and 1 tsp of Chana Masala (this is a Indian masala specifically designed for chickpeas, use garam masala as substitute)
Toss in cooked chickpeas and stir for about a minute.
Remove from heat, add salt, chat masala (tangy Indian spice, use lemon juice as a substitute).
Chickpeas ready!!
Spicy Cauliflower
Cut cauliflower into bite sized florets
Place florets in a casserole. Add salt + boiling water to florets and cover the casserole for 2 minutes (slightly longer if you like it well cooked).
Drain the hot water. Add butter to a pan, add blanched cauliflower florets.
Let it roast for about 5 minutes in medium heat, stirring the veggies every so often.
On the side, mix chili powder, garam masala and turmeric powder with 1 Tbsp of butter.
Add spiced butter to cauliflower and roast for a few more minutes.
Cabbage Indian Quick Pickle
In a pan, add mustard oil and let it get hot. (Mustard oil packs a punch, works great for pickles. But if you don’t have mustard oil, substitute any neutral oil). Add mustard seeds, let it pop.
Add hing (aesofatida), chili powder, turmeric powder to hot oil and pour the hot oil over shredded cabbage.
Add lemon juice, salt to the pickled cabbage and stir.
Cucumber Raita
Are you prepared for the super intense raita recipe???
You sure…
Ready??
In a bowl, mix chopped cucumber, salt, sugar and yogurt.
Raita ready :)!!
Recipe
Indian Spiced Vegetarian Chickpea Rice Bowl
Course: Chickpeas, RecipesCuisine: IndianDifficulty: Easy4
servings10
minutes20
minutesThis vegetarian chickpea bowl has chana masala flavored chickpeas, rice with coriander leaves, cauliflower roasted with garam masala, an Indian cabbage quick pickle and easy cucumber raita. Wholesome and delicious!!
Ingredients
- Flavored Rice
2 cups cooked rice
1 tbsp butter
Handful of chopped coriander leaves and stalk
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp Salt
- Chickpeas
1.5 cups cooked chickpeas
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp Chana Masala
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp chat masala (which also contains salt)
- Roasted Cauliflower
1 medium cauliflower chopped into florets
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp kashmiri chili powder
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
2 tbsp water
- Cabbage pickle
2 cups shredded cabbage
2 tbsp mustard oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp hing (aesofatida)
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Juice of 1/2 lime
Salt
- Cucumber Raita
1/2 chopped cucumber
1 cup yogurt
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
Directions
- Flavored Rice
- To a hot pan, melt butter, add chopped coriander leaves + stalk. Saute for 30 seconds. Add cooked rice and stir for a minute. Flavor with lemon juice and salt.
- Roasted Chickpeas
- To the pan, add 1 tsp of butter and 1 tsp of Chana Masala (use garam masala as substitute). Toss in cooked chickpeas and stir for about a minute. Remove from heat, add salt, chat masala (use lemon juice as a substitute).
- Roasted Cauliflower
- Cut cauliflower into bite sized florets. Place florets in a casserole. Add salt + boiling water to florets and cover the casserole for 2 minutes (slightly longer if you like it well cooked). Drain the hot water.
- Heat butter in a pan, add blanched cauliflower florets. Let it roast for about 5 minutes in medium heat, stirring every so often. Use 2 tbsp of water to loosen them if they start sticking to the bottom of the pan.
On the side, mix chili powder, garam masala and turmeric powder with 1 Tbsp of butter. Add spiced butter to cauliflower and roast for a few more minutes. - Cabbage Pickle
- In a pan, add mustard oil and let it get hot (use any neutral oil as substitute). Add mustard seeds, let it pop. Add hing (asafetida), chili powder, turmeric powder to hot oil and pour the hot oil over shredded cabbage. Add lemon juice, salt to the pickled cabbage and stir.
- Cucumber Raita
- In a bowl, mix chopped cucumber, salt, sugar and yogurt.
Conclusion
As you can see the steps are mighty easy, just a few salient tips to remember:
- Flavor every component – that will make your bowl special (even if it is just as simple as salt and lemon juice).
- I only used Kashmiri Chili powder throughout to keep the heat level low. In a standard Indian recipe, you would use a chili with more heat, since the heat is required to play off the bland rice or roti/chapathi. However, since rice is only 1/5 of the bowl, high heat is not recommended.
- Play with textures – Rice and chana are comparatively soft. The cauliflower and cabbage have a mild crunch to them. The raita is creamy and crunchy. You can make tons of substitutions based on what is available in your kitchen, like instead of:
Rice: Use quinoa, couscous, bulgur etc
Chickpeas: Use black eye peas, kidney beans
Raita: Use guacamole
Cabbage Pickle: Use carrot or daikon for your pickle
Roasted cauliflower: Roasted sweet potato
I hope this Indian Spiced Vegetarian Chickpea Rice Bowl was useful to you. I know moms around the world are tired of kids asking for something new and exciting all the time.
But, we don’t need to learn exotic cooking techniques… Just a slight shift in perspective and a slight rearrangement of the plate!! My kids enjoyed this dish, I hope yours do too.
Do post your thoughts and comments below. As always, I look forward to seeing them.
Looking for similar fun recipes? Try:
- Cauliflower rice stuffed burrito
- Red Rice Pinto Taco Bowl
- Kichdi Bowl with Salad toppings
- Chipotle Vegan Burrito Bowl
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The spices I use in my kitchen:
Chat Masala
Chana Masala
Thanks Swetha! I always look forward to your posts. I love love love bowls, myself. Although, I don’t make them quite often.. Yours looks like the perfect balance between simple and easy preparation and yummy bowl 🙂 some other great ingredients I love to to add are shredded beet, broccoli, hard boiled eggs (goes great with the warm grains), and avocado. Look forward to trying your recipe out!
Such great ideas!! Thanks for sharing Jelena, and for your kind words!! 🙂