IMG_9166As a person with a full schedule it can feel really hard sometimes to cook my own meals.

At the busiest of times, I find myself slipping into the habit of ordering even BREAKFAST via Seamless multiple times a week.

Yes, there are tons of healthy options available to me in NYC, and I don’t have trouble choosing what to eat.

Whether I want something super healthy or indulgent, I trust my gut and don’t feel guilty.

But still, when I’m eating out a lot something just feels off.

It feels like I’m leaving too much of an environmental footprint between the packaging used, production to make the meal, delivery time, and so much more that I’m probably not aware of.

It just feels excessive and it starts to wear me out.

And no matter how paleo, vegan, or whatever-healthy-diet-trend it is, it’s never quite as healthy and fresh as what you would prepare for yourself at home.

It’s just impossible to do in a restaurant setting. There’s always some compromise, whether prepped food has been sitting around for a day or extra salt has been used to make up for less-than-flavorful, out-of-season vegetables.

When you get used to the convenience of takeout – even if it’s healthy – it can feel really challenging to get into the kitchen.

But once you break the habit, it feels so nourishing and simple to feed yourself right.

I broke my bad Seamless habit by getting back into making dinner bowls and streamlining my system.

Today, I want to share my process with you so you can feel energized, light, slim, satisfied, and focused.

So, I bring you the Good Taste way to make a simple 20-minute dinner bowl taste AMAZING.

Because you know I refuse to compromise on taste. I just can’t. I’ll be grumpy and fussy and just an altogether mess.

When you eat food that tastes and feels amazing, you can show up so much bigger in the world.

Take these steps to make your next (or first) incredible weeknight meal in only 20 minutes.

THE STEPS

1. Pick a theme. Whenever you’re making a mix-and-match bowl at home or hitting the salad bar, the biggest mistake is taking a little bit of everything. I’ve done it MANY times and it always ends up not tasting that great and leaving me feeling scattered and unsatisfied.

Yeah, the individual components may taste amazing, but all together it usually just doesn’t work. Choose a theme like Asian, Italian, or Mexican, and stick to that flavor profile.

2. Choose your base – and season it. Choose a grain or green as your base, cook it properly, and season it well. I see a lot of people throw a plain, bland grain – or the worst, plain raw kale – underneath a bunch of goodness, and it ruins the whole bowl.

Then they wonder why they’re reaching for cookies at 11pm. Because their dinner was underseasoned and unsatisfying.

If your quinoa is mushy or your kale is not massaged properly, it throws off the whole meal. Plus, when food tastes good it turns on your digestive enzymes and makes the elimination process so much more effective. Goodbye, bloating and lethargy.

When seasoning your base, stick with your theme and don’t be afraid of salt. Salt is key for good taste (pun intended), electrolyte balance, and it actually REDUCES bloating. Don’t fear salt.

3. Pick a protein. Choose salmon, shrimp, steak, or tempeh – whatever makes you happy. If you want to save time, you could even pick up a protein from a high-quality prepared food spot – like Citarella or Hu Kitchen for my NYC people – and save time on your bowl. But cooking a protein only takes a quick sear on each side in most cases.

Dicing your protein in bite size pieces makes the eating process much more enjoyable and digestible. If your food is smaller you’re more likely to chew it well. Good chewing is key to digestive health. Your food should be almost liquid before you swallow it.

4. Add greenery. If you’re doing a grain base, add your greens on top. Try sautéed kale, steamed bok choy or broccoli, or even diced leftover grilled asparagus. If you already have a green base, you could add more veggies like grilled or sautéed mushrooms and zucchini. I love how much creative room the bowl format gives you!

Again, season this well. Use a great Himalayan pink salt and then add your favorite seasonings that go along with your theme. If you’re a novice cook start small, taste it, and keep adding seasoning until it tastes and smells amazing.

5. Accessorize. This might be my favorite part. My ultimate bowl topping is raw fermented sauerkraut, and for good reason. Sauerkraut adds amazing flavor and has millions of beneficial bacteria, which is key for gut health, a slim waist, high energy, clear skin, and a clear mind.

You can add sesame seeds, hot sauce, avocado, shaved cucumber, crumbled blue corn tortilla chips, thin sliced baked sweet potato (crispy!)…your options are endless! Accessories can totally make a bowl – don’t skimp on them.

THE FLOW

Now I’ll take you through how this 20-minute meal process actually goes down.

Here’s exactly what I did last night to put together a meatless Monday bowl:

  • Rinse red quinoa in strainer, transfer to pot with water and salt and pop it on the stove to cook for 15 minutes according to instructions on package. Flip oven on to 350° F.
  • Wash and pat dry sweet potato and chop into very small cubes. Arrange in one layer on baking tray, drizzle with coconut oil, and grind on some Himalayan pink salt. Pop in the oven and set one timer for 15 min. Quinoa is not a fussy grain and it’s fine if it cooks a few minutes longer than the instructions.
  • While that’s going on, rinse kale, remove from ribs, and chop into bite-size pieces. Let it chill out for a little bit while I do some exercises on my yoga mat. Save a paper towel by letting it air dry.
  • Come back into the kitchen and bring a pan up to medium heat with some sesame oil in it. Toss the kale in and sauté. Throw in sesame seeds and pink Himalayan salt, stir. Turn heat off when slightly wilted and bright green.
  • Turn the quinoa off and transfer a me-sized portion to a small mixing bowl. Sprinkle in some rice vinegar, grated pickled ginger (high-quality store bought), Chinese 5-spice, and good salt. Toss with a spoon. Transfer to the bowl I’m gonna eat out of.
  • Take sweet potatoes out of oven and arrange on top of quinoa. Add kale next to them.
  • Accessorize! I added ruby kraut, dried Thai basil, a little additional salt, and a drizzle of hot sauce.
  • Enjoy!

If I was doing a protein, I would’ve seasoned it with salt and pepper then quickly seared it off in a different pan next to the kale, or maybe even sliced it, sautéed quickly, then added the kale right in there and cooked ‘em together.

See how easy it can be to make something quick, healthy, and delicious at home, any night of the week?

Now I want to hear from you!

Does eating out a lot make you feel kinda shitty? Me too.

What kind of bowl will you make this week? Mexican themed with spicy shrimp and extra guacamole? Italian with grilled chicken, tomato, mozzarella and basil?

Share with me in the comments below.