Like many cooks I know, I don’t always follow recipes for grain bowls at home. Instead, I tend to use up what I have in the fridge and pantry, mixing and matching, figuring out how to make odds and ends delicious.
A perfect grain bowl has four basic components, all of which are generously seasoned individually so they each taste great — even before they’re piled together in the bowl! Take this ideal farro broccoli bowl with lemony tahini from Melissa Clark.
Break it down, and you’ve got:
Base: Boiled farro
(Other options: rice, lentils, quinoa, barley or a mix of these things)Dressing: Lemony tahini
(Other options: lemon and olive oil, blistered tomatoes, ginger-scallion sauce)Topping: Roasted broccoli, jammy-yolked eggs
(Other options: crispy tofu, avocado, fried mushrooms, vegetarian kimchi)Garnish: Sliced radishes, scallions, hot sauce
(Other options: pickled chiles, fried garlic, furikake, za’atar)
Look at it this way, and the possibilities for a heap of boiled farro are endless. You could toss farro and chopped radicchio in a little vegan Caesar dressing, put roasted chickpeas on top and garnish it all with herbs, lemon zest and walnuts.
Or you could make a quick miso vinaigrette, and put sautéed edamame, wilted greens and raw sliced snap peas on top, garnishing it all with pickled onions and chile crisp. Reach for the things that you like! Make it up as you go.