Bowls are a staple in a vegan’s cooking repertoire. Toss in some grains or noodles, make a great broth or sauce, top with vegetables and herbs and you’ve got a quick, whole meal for a crowd. But - as a vegan now of many years, I felt that I’ve made every version of this classic possible. It can get tiring after a while, and you lose inspiration in figuring out what combination to create next. I was expecting to see a book full of recipes i’ve already made, but I was (gladly) mistaken.
Bowl brings together new ideas, a more complex profile of ingredients, and techniques that I normally wouldn’t have thought of for a weeknight staple. One of my favorite parts is that he gives recipes for each season of the year, giving inspiration no matter the weather or your grocery options. He gives drink pairings for each type of bowl, whether beer, wine, sake or cider. He shows you how to make ramen noodles and a huge variety of dumplings from scratch.
If you’ve ever tried a new type of cuisine, you sometimes don’t have the right tools or ingredients, which may discourage you from moving forward with it. He gives step-by-step tool & ingredient explanations, making it easy to bring less-known ingredients to your own kitchen. If you’ve never known the difference between soba and udon, or why you might use long-grain rice over short-grain rice, this is a thorough guide to creating beautiful bowls from the ground up.
And beautiful is a great way to describe this book - the idea of a component-rich dish such as a bowl, using such fresh ingredients, is a recipe for a gorgeous meal every time you make one.
While not a vegan-specific book, every dish is easily veganized as they contain very few optional animal biproducts (and no animal flesh at all.) Volger is very vegan-conscious throughout, making you aware of fish-based store-bought sauces and brands of vegan kimchi, to name a couple of examples.
This book shows you how to make super fresh, delicate but filling, nutritious weeknight dinners that will inspire you in any season of the year, and challenge you to try something new at the same time.
WHO THIS BOOK IS FOR
Someone looking to have a guide to versatile, flavorful, and interesting weeknight dinners that go beyond sandwiches and pasta.
THE BEST PART
The seasonal, whole-food approach to cooking. (Something we’re always looking for here!)
STANDOUT RECIPES
- cashew-scallion noodles
- kimchi fried rice bowl
- grilled vegetable couscous bowl
- fragrant wonton soup
- chickpea potstickers
Bowl by Lukas Volger is out now, available at Indiebound, Amazon, or Barnes & Noble, in print or as an e-book.