VEGETARIAN BIBIMBAP // korean veggies + rice bowl

With all the craziness of moving and life and everything, I recently found myself in a bad-eating rut.

I was inspired by a fellow Instagrammer @ns0n and his lunchtime series featuring a book/juice pairing. I love how it combines healthy eating with reading, both things I wanted to do more of! I decided to follow suit and do a salad/book pairing of my own.

I tested it out last week with a simple quinoa-based tabouleh and loved it! I'm trying to make it a habit, continuing with this week's bibimbap: a Korean rice-bowl dish with sautéed, pickled, and raw veggies.

VEGETARIAN BIBIMBAP

Adapted from Oh My Veggies, Real Simple Food, Bon Appetit, and The Chicagoist
Makes 4-5 lunch bowls

Prepping this lunch was a bit time consuming, but the results were absolutely delicious, and you can customize your bowl however you like! Substitute meat or a fried egg for tofu, add bean sprouts, or try out Oh My Veggies' roasted sweet potatoes.

INGREDIENTS + INSTRUCTIONS:

Basic bowl ingredients:

• 4 cups cooked rice (I always go back to this resource for cooking rice on the stove)
• Kimchi
• 2 grated carrots

Marinated + baked tofu: 

(The same tofu I make for my vegetarian banh mi sandwiches!)

• 1 package firm tofu, sliced to desired size
• 3 tbs soy sauce
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1 tbs rice vinegar
• 1 tbs agave

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a shallow pan and let the tofu slices soak for 30 minutes. Remove slices from marinade, place on a greased baking sheet, and bake at 375F for 30 minutes, flipping halfway.

Garlicky spinach:

• 2 tbs sesame oil
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 bags pre-washed baby spinach 
• 2 tbs soy sauce
• 1 tsp rice vinegar
• Salt + pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat and sauté the garlic until golden brown. Add spinach and gently stir until the leaves are wilted. Add soy sauce, vinegar, salt, and pepper, and cook for an additional minute.

Quick refrigerator cucumber pickles:

• 1/4 c rice vinegar
• 1 tbs sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced
• 1/4 onion, thinly sliced

Stir brine ingredients together in a bowl until sugar and salt are dissolved. Add cucumber and onion and soak for at least 30 minutes, occasionally stirring. These should last in the fridge for about a week.

Sauteed shiitake mushrooms:

• 1/4 c soy sauce
• 1 green onion, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp garlic chili sauce
• 1/2 tbs rice vinegar
• 1 tbs sesame oil
• 6 oz shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced with stems discarded

Stir soy sauce, green onion, garlic chili sauce, and rice vinegar together in a bowl. Heat sesame oil in a saucepan over medium-hot heat and sauté the mushrooms until soft. Add 2 tbs of sauce to the mushrooms and cook for an additional minute.

Serve it up! Spoon some rice into a bowl and top with your favorite ingredients. Enjoy!

xo Diana