To me, nothing beats easy meal prep. After years of eating a plant-based diet, one thing I know for sure is that it is ALWAYS easier when you have at least part of your meal prepared before it’s time to eat. Most of us have busy lives and making fresh food from scratch for every meal is typically not an option. The following dish is special because it has several components that you can make ahead of time, and each brings its own versatility to your lifestyle. The Cauliflower and Bang Bang Sauce and the Cucumber Salad can all be made ahead and can be enjoyed separately as well as together in this bowl. In fact, the cucumber salad has been on repeat in my house for the last few months, and no one ever tires of it! It is light and fresh and complements everything from a tofu scramble to black bean burgers to a spicy Bang Bang Cauliflower!
Ingredients
Bang Bang Cauliflower Ingredients
- 1 head of cauliflower
- 1 cup garbanzo bean flour
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp garlic granules or powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 pinch sea salt
- Sprinkle of Black Pepper
Bang Bang Cauliflower Directions
- 1. Break apart florets of cauliflower save the stems for smoothies.
- 2. Preheat the oven to 375° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- 3. Combine garbanzo bean flour water (you can thin with more water if necessary), garlic granules, paprika, sea salt, and black pepper in a bowl to create batter.
- 4. Dip each floret into batter and coat liberally. Shake off extra but make sure each one is well coated.
- 5. Place coated florets on sheet pan and bake for 25-30 minutes. Check on them repeatedly to ensure they don’t burn.
- 6. Remove florets from the oven when the time runs out or when your florets are slightly brown if you have a faster oven and spray lightly with olive oil. Briefly return cooked florets to oven to crisp up for a few minutes. But keep your eyes on them so they don’t burn.
- 7. Drizzle with BANG BANG SAUCE recipe below!.
Bang Bang Sauce Ingredients
- 1/4 cup sweet chili sauce
- 1 tsp garlic chili sauce
- 1 tsp Nama shoyu sauce
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 2 tsp lime juice
Bang Bang Sauce Directions
- Combine all sauce ingredients together.
Black Bean Pasta and Cucumber Salad Bowl Ingredients
- Black Bean Pasta or other bean pasta of your choice
- Olive oil
- One red pepper chopped and seeded
- Scallions diced
- 1-2 small tomatoes cut in quarters
- CUCUMBER SALAD recipe below
- Optional - spinach sprouts
Cucumber Salad Ingredients
- 1 cucumber thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 2 tbs maple syrup
Cucumber Salad Instructions
- 1. Combine rice vinegar and maple syrup.
- 2. Pour over cucumber slices.
- 3. Refrigerate for at least an hour to marinate but overnight works, too!
Instructions
ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS FOR BANG BANG CAULIFLOWER AND BLACK BEAN BOWL
- 1. Place cooked pasta in the center of the bowl (optional: line the bowl with spinach first if desired). Lightly drizzle olive oil on pasta to keep it from sticking.
- 2. Place Bang Bang Cauliflower on one section of bowl, alongside cooked pasta, drizzling any extra Bang Bang sauce to taste.
- 3. Place a section of cut tomatoes next to cauliflower, a section of chopped red pepper next to tomatoes, a section of scallions next to tomatoes, then add your cucumber salad and optional sprouts, until veggies fully surround your pasta.
