by Novella Lui, RD
Bowls are popular right now, and for good reasons. They let you quickly put together a meal with a variety of nourishing ingredients while offering flavour and convenience. Bowls also make it easy to enjoy plant-based foods like vegetables and fruits. Since they are simple to make, you can get creative and try endless combinations for your weekly meals.
In this blog post, you will find seven globally-inspired flavour ideas to try in your bowls, plus five helpful tips for assembling a delicious bowl.
7 globally-inspired flavour profiles
Every bowl requires star ingredients that define the dish’s identity, taste, aroma, and texture. Still, the sauces, spices, seasonings, and garnishes used to complement the bowl could also boost and/or balance the main flavours, appearance, texture, sound, and smell, turning your bites of the food into a story.
Chefs and home cooks draw inspiration from cuisines from around the world, with each cuisine using ingredients rooted in their traditions and cultures. In other words, each global flavour is distinct and unique from one another.
Here, we share seven global flavour profiles and common ingredients you can try in your bowls. Keep in mind that flavours can even vary within regions of the same culture.
- Mediterranean and Middle Eastern flavours offer a creamy and nutty profile, with olive oil, garlic, lemon, and tahini as some of the key condiments.
- Italian dishes use olive oil, balsamic vinegar, herbs, tomatoes, and lemons in their recipes, producing a bright and savoury flavour profile. Try our Veggie Lemon Orzo Bowls and Tomato-Mushroom Pasta Bowl—both are easy to make and full of flavour.
- Mexican cuisines use cilantro, chili, and lime, creating smoky and tangy flavours. Our One Pot Beef Burrito Bowls recipe is an excellent way to enjoy burrito flavours sans the wrap.
- Indian cuisines use curry spices, turmeric, and coconut milk, offering an aromatic curry spice flavour. Our Curry Fall Harvest Buddha Bowl with Coconut Basmati Rice is worth a try and will become one of your weeknight favourites.
- Korean cuisines typically use gochujang, sesame, and rice vinegar in their dishes to create sweetness, spiciness, and umami.
- Chinese dishes use soy sauce, garlic, ginger, shallots, rice vinegar, and oyster sauce, creating a combination of umami, sweet, and salty.
- Japanese cuisines use soy sauce, mirin, rice vinegar, yuzu, and miso, offering umami and a hint of sweetness in dishes.
5 tips on building your own “global bowl”
Now that you have a general idea of these global flavours, pick one that aligns with your craving. Then, follow the steps below to build your own delicious bowl.
1. Choose your veggies and fruits
Each vegetable and fruit has its own flavour and texture profile that naturally guides the type of bowl you create. Try using two to four kinds of veggies and fruits to make a bowl—this is a good way to create a meal that looks appealing and appetizing, and lets you explore a variety of produce and flavour combinations.
What you include will also depend on what you have on hand and what texture you hope to create.
To name a few, leafy greens, tomatoes, cabbage, bell peppers, radishes, snap peas, bok choy, and cucumbers give crisp and crunch. Root vegetables like carrots and sweet potatoes are hearty. Fruits like avocadoes offer creaminess; oranges and pineapples provide tanginess; and mangoes add sweetness.
When choosing the veggies and fruits for your bowl, think about how much time you have for meal prep. If you have extra time, roasting root vegetables, zucchinis, eggplants, cauliflowers and broccoli, can add warmth and depth to your bowl.
2. Pick your grain or starch
The grain or starch forms the base of your bowl. Since they have mild flavours and go well with proteins, veggies, and fruits, your choice of grain can change the bowl’s texture and taste.
The grain or starch you choose can also set the style of your bowl. For example, Asian-inspired bowls often feature rice or noodles that absorb sauces well. Mexican-inspired bowls may use rice, black beans, and corn to complement the bold spices. Italian and Mediterranean bowls may use farro, couscous, quinoa, or bulgur for a nutty, hearty texture.
If you want a grain-less or a starch-free bowl, try cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles, or spaghetti squash as an alternative to the rice- and noodle-based bowls.
3. Choose your protein
Protein is an important ingredient in any bowl. Whether you use an animal-based or plant-based protein (or both), protein adds flavour, texture, and nutrition. Here are some ideas for protein to use in your global-inspired bowls:
- Chinese, Japanese, and Korean-inspired: tofu
- Korean-inspired: bulgogi beef
- Japanese-inspired: sashimi-grade salmon and tuna cubes
- Mexican-inspired: black beans and ground meat
- South Asian-inspired: chickpeas, lentils, and paneer
- Mediterranean-inspired: shrimp, chickpeas, lentils, and feta
4. Add your favourite sauce or seasoning
When it comes to assembling bowls, premade sauces and seasonings enhance the flavour of your bowl. While these store-bought sauces and seasonings are a timesaver, the downside is that you have no control over the ingredients used.
Alternatively, consider making your own blends to add sweetness, saltiness, tang, spice, or umami to your bowl, depending on what you are craving. Refer to the globally-inspired profiles above for inspirations.
5. Garnish your bowl
Based on the type of sauce or seasoning you have chosen, top off your bowl with garnishes for extra crunch and flavour. For example, use tortilla strips or pumpkin seeds for a Mexican-inspired bowl, or shallots, peanuts, and sesame seeds for an Asian-inspired bowl.
If you are looking for added crunch and tang, add a heaping spoon of sauerkraut, pickled onions, kimchi, pickled daikon, or pickled carrots.
About the author
Novella Lui is a registered dietitian who is passionate about supporting people in building healthy relationships with food by sharing simple and practical tips. As a food, nutrition and health writer, she combines her interest in evidence-based nutrition and health education through content creation.
