Let’s be honest, “healthy eating” often gets a negative rap. People don’t think that they can eat healthy foods that taste delicious AND leave them feeling satiated. Well I am here to tell you that you are wrong, my friends. As lame as it sounds, salad bowls are probably my single most favorite meal. All you really need to know to be successful are what I like to call the five “foundational elements” of building the perfect bowl. This post doesn’t give you an exact recipe to follow, but my hope is that by giving you the tools to help you feel confident in the kitchen, you will be able to create a custom meal that really works for you. I promise that by following this very simple formula, your life will change for the better.

Just to note, I always make enough food for about 4-5 meals, so this is great to prep at the beginning of the week.

My “Perfect Salad Bowl” Formula

• A mix of raw and roasted vegetables

  • I am a big fan of variety, which is why I like to add a mix of raw and cooked vegetables to most of my meals. For example, I will almost always use cucumber, shallot, or a bell pepper in my salad, and then choose 1-2 veggies to roast. This changes from season to season, but some of my favorites are broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, snap peas, brussels sprouts, sweet potato, etc. In my opinion, roasted veggies really elevate your bowl and add texture and color. I usually just throw whatever I am making on a baking sheet, drizzle olive oil, add some basic spices like salt, pepper, cumin, paprika, or cayenne (whatever feels right in your soul) and roast them at about 400F for 15-25 minutes. Roasted veggies taste just as delicious when they are cold, so don’t be scared of leftovers.

• A legume such as a bean, pea, or lentil (depending on what your body can tolerate)

  • I tend to gravitate towards chickpeas, but you can use lentils, great northern white beans, black beans, black eyed peas, lima beans, etc. I like to soak my beans overnight and then cook them, but that adds a layer of complexity to the overall process. I suggest using canned beans if you are trying to save time or aren’t fully comfortable in the kitchen yet – just thoroughly rinse your beans with water until the liquid is completely clear and add them to your bowl.

• A grain or a pasta (depending on if you are gluten free)

  • I love to add a grain or a pasta to bulk up my salads. Gluten-free options include quinoa, rice (including wild rice), millet, and buckwheat. You can also add couscous, barley, bulgar, etc. In my opinion, a rice cooker is the best way to make any grain and worth the cheap investment, but if you don’t have one, just follow the instructions on the package.

• Healthy fats

  • I will usually add avocado, an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, or some type of nut or seed to sneak in some extra healthy fat, which will help keep you feeling full for longer.

• A delicious dressing to tie it all together

  • Dressings are the heart and soul of any salad and really give it that “wow factor.” You don’t want to skip out on this part! Here are 3 simple dressings you can easily whip up to elevate your meal.

  • If you don’t want to bother making a dressing, I would recommend Primal Kitchen. Most store bought dressings contain extra sodium and sugar, unhealthy fats, and shelf stabilizers and additives that you want to avoid. Primal Kitchen uses real, clean ingredients and each product is vetted for quality and premium sourcing. They have tons of flavors such as green goddess, buffalo ranch, caeser, italian, sesame ginger, bbq, etc. They are a brand I really trust. You can use the code StasiaNikova to get 10% off your order.

You will notice that I don’t have any meat or fish listed above. Although I wouldn’t consider myself a vegetarian, I don’t cook meat or fish at home (although I will order it out when I’m in the mood for it). As someone who doesn’t eat animal protein regularly, it is important for me to get all 9 of the essential amino acids, which is why I always add a variety of grains, veggies, legumes, and healthy fats into my diet. I don’t want to bore you, but as a quick overview, there are 9 essential amino acids that your body needs to function and thrive, but it can’t produce them on its own, which means we need to get them from food. You can get all of the essential amino acids either through animal proteins or by eating a variety of plant proteins. And as they say, variety is the spice of life! If you’d like to learn more, you can check out this article from MindBodyGreen.

I know this sounds a bit complicated, but once you’ve mastered the art of adding random things that look good to you together, it is incredibly simple. I hope this is the beginning of a new, very long love affair with salads. Comment below if you have any questions.