Whether for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, and complete with protein, fresh fruits or vegetables, and grains, a one-bowl meal checks all the boxes—delicious, nourishing, casual, filling, seasonal.

And in the hands of Maria Zizka its possibilities are even more exciting, with thirty brilliant combinations organized by base—oatmeal, chia, or yogurt for breakfast, and grains, noodles, or greens to build mains.

Plus, there are tips, tutorials, and substitution rules of thumb throughout, including how to customize your bowl to make it vegan, gluten-free, or protein-forward.

It’s all about mastering the five steps to building a bowl:

1. Start with a base
2. Include a protein
3. Consider a sauce
4. Add a couple of toppings
5. Garnish with something crunchy or bright

Get ready to create your own complete meal in a bowl.

One-Bowl Meals: Simple, Nourishing, Delicious is available at Amazon.com and Indigo.ca. 

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Fried leftover rice with kimchi

kimchi fried rice base  +  sunny-side-up egg  +  green onions  +  radish roots

Leftover rice is the secret ingredient to the best fried rice. It’s already a little dried out, so it crisps nicely in the pan. If you are starting from scratch, though, you can follow the rice-cooking instructions on page 48 for white rice or page 60 for brown rice, then spread out the cooked rice on a baking sheet and let it cool completely before frying.

Serves 2

Base

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 green onions, white and green parts, thinly sliced

3 cups (600 g) cooked and cooled short-grain white or brown rice 

½ cup (75 g) drained and chopped kimchi

1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari

Toppings

Sunny-Side-Up Eggs

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 large eggs 

Fine sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 handful of radish shoots (about 1 ounce/30 g; optional)

1 green onion, white and green parts, thinly sliced

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Pour in 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil and add the garlic and green onions. Cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Transfer the garlic and onions to a small plate. Pour in the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, swirling the pan to coat the entire surface. Add the rice, stir briefly to coat it in the oil, then spread it out in an even layer. Let cook, without stirring, until the rice crisps, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir the rice, spread it out again in an even layer, and cook, without stirring, for another 3 minutes.

Return the cooked garlic and green onions to the skillet along with the kimchi and soy sauce. Stir well and cook, without stirring once again, for about another 3 minutes, until there are some crispy browned rice grains. If the rice isn’t browned yet, repeat the process of stirring and then cooking without stirring for about 3 minutes. 

Divide the fried rice between 2 bowls and return the skillet to medium-high heat. Drizzle in the vegetable oil, swirling the pan to coat the entire surface, then crack in the eggs and season them with a pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook until the whites are set but the yolks are still runny, 2 to 4 minutes. 

Top each bowl of fried rice with a sunny-side-up egg, some radish shoots (if using), and a sprinkling of green onion.

Excerpted from One-Bowl Meals by Maria Zizka (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2021.