Originally from Hawaii, poke (pronounced poh keh) bowls have become one of the latest global food trends. We first encountered poke bowls in Lisbon, and there is even a poke bowl restaurant in Shrewsbury. Originally the Hawaiian dish included fish, but it is an incredibly adaptable dish and can easily be totally plant based. The poke bowl has three main components:
1. A base – normally some sort of grain.
2. Toppings
3. A dressing
This is merely a suggestion. Let your imagination run and create your own poke bowl.
The Base
Ingredients
Method
Notes
1 tbs sunflower oil
175g wholegrain rice
175 g black rice
- Heat the sunflower oil in a pan
- Stir in the wholegrain and black rice, stir for a minute ensuring all the grains are coated in oil.
- Pour in one and a half times the volume of boiling water to rice, return to the boil, place a lid on the pan and reduce the heat to low.
- Gently simmer for 25 minutes then turn off the heat, and leave to stand for a further 15 minutes keeping the lid on.
You can use any grain or mixture of grains – quinoa, couscous, barley etc.
The grain can be cooked well in advance.
The Dressing
1.5 tbs lemon juice
1.5 tbs toasted sesame oil
1.5 tbs sunflower oil
1.5 tbs soya sauce
1 tbs maple syrup
1 tbs miso
0.5 tbs gochujang paste
- Mix all the dressing ingredients together.
Gochujang is a staple of Korean cuisine. It is a chilli paste that also contains rice and fermented soya beans. It is spicy and pungent. It is now readily available in many supermarkets.
Vary the ingredients for the dressing according to your taste. For example you can add wasabi or garlic to the dressing in place of the gochujang.
The Toppings
Use any combination of the following:
Bean sprouts
Carrot
Endame beans
Red or white cabbage
Cucumber
Avocado
Sweetcorn kernels
Kimchi
I slice the carrot into ribbons using a peeler. Alternatively cut into julienne or grate
Finely slice the cabbage
Cut the cucumber into small batons
Dice the avocado
1 tbs sunflower oil
Half a block of tofu cut into thick slices
2 spring onions – chopped
2 cloves garlic – finely chopped
0.5 tsp Korean chilli powder (taekyung) (optional)
2 tbs soya sauce
0.5 tbs tomato puree
1tbs toasted sesame seeds
- Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the tofu for 5 minutes on each side.
- Remove the tofu from the pan and fry the garlic and white part of the spring onion in the same pan (reserve the green part of the spring onion for garnish).
- Mix the soya sauce, chilli (if using) and tomato puree with 4 tbs water and add to the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes until slightly reduced and carefully stir the tofu back ensuring that every slice is coated.
- Mix 1 tbsp of the prepared dressing with the rice and divide into bowls.
- Arrange your chosen toppings.
- Garnish with the green tops of the spring onions and sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds.
- Serve the remaining dressing separately for people to drizzle over their bowls.
I really enjoy coming back to your blog from time to time! Thank you x
Thanks Clare.
Sorry it has taken so long to reply. We have been away. Hope all is well