This vegan couscous buddha bowl combines perfectly roasted sweet potato and vegetables with fresh and light lettuce and cucumber, and is drizzled with a flavorful tahini dressing. A fun lunch idea or light dinner full of tasty ingredients!
Bowl recipes are always fun and provide so much goodness with fresh vegetables. You may like to see my low histamine salad bowl, which is always the most popular recipe here on the site, my butternut squash quinoa bowl and the baked fennel risotto is a very simple recipe where the oven does the work for you!
Love couscous recipes? I think you would like to see my tabbouleh with couscous recipe for a side dish, and couscous stuffed butternut squash for a cosy dinner idea too!
This vegan couscous buddha bowl focuses on couscous, adds nuts and seeds for a good crunch, and has a creamy tahini dressing. It's full of flavor and goodness!
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⭐ Why you'll love this recipe
- Cosy bowl food - best served on the couch in front of the TV with furry slippers on . . . (the latter isn't mandatory!).
- All the veggies - when roasted these veggies have a delicious sweetness that we add to with a touch of sweet paprika.
- Easy to make - a few steps, but all very simple to do.
🥒 Ingredients
All the ingredients and their quantities are set out in the recipe card below.
Some notes on a few of them:
- Roasted vegetables - pick fresh unbruised produce for the best flavor.
- Couscous - I often use wholegrain couscous, but regular is good too!
- Tahini - I suggest using light tahini, rather than dark tahini, to make the dressing.
- Pistachios and pumpkin seeds - choose unsalted varieties, and personally I would suggest those that have not been roasted as well.
📖 Variations to the recipe
Swap couscous for quinoa. While this is a couscous bowl, if wheat doesn't work for you then you can swap for quinoa or rice.
Swap pistachios and pumpkin seeds for others. Choose from another nut or seed. My low histamine readers may like to see my post on low histamine nuts and seeds.
🔪 Step by step instructions
Just a few simple steps to make this couscous buddha bowl:
Step 1
Line a baking tray with parchment paper and add an even layer of the diced sweet potato, bell pepper and zucchini (image 1). Drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle half the sweet paprika over the sweet potato. Toss to evenly coat. Roast the vegetables for 30 minutes.
Step 2
Make the couscous according to packet instructions, adding dried herbs (image 2). This is usually to pour over boiling water, then cover with a plate and set aside for 5 minutes. Fluff up with a fork when ready.
Step 3
Make the tahini dressing by combining the tahini and sweet paprika with water. Stir until it becomes creamy in consistency, adding more water or tahini as required (image 3).
Step 4
Finely slice the cucumber and radish, and dice or shred the lettuce (image 4).
Once everything is ready, combine all the ingredients in your bowl and drizzle with the dressing and sprinkle over the fresh parsley. Then enjoy!
💭 Recipe tips and notes
- Keep any eye on the vegetables in the oven. The zucchini may need a little less time than the sweet potato so, if required, remove from the oven a little earlier.
- Fluff the couscous up with a fork. It can stick together once 'cooked' with the boiling water, so use a fork to separate the grains.
- Adjust the amount of spice to taste. If you like more sweet paprika in your dressing then add a pinch more!
- Add more tahini to thicken the dressing, or more water to thin. Adjust as required, and to taste preference.
📋 Frequently asked questions
If it works for you, then definitely use other forms of couscous for this buddha bowl!
Definitely! Swap the fresh produce in and out to those you prefer or have to hand.
You may like to see my creamy herb tahini dressing! It would work so well on this buddha bowl.
📖 Recipe
Couscous Buddha Bowl
Equipment
- Small bowls
Ingredients
- ½ cup couscous
- 1 large sweet potato peeled, diced
- ½ bell pepper diced
- ½ large zucchini diced
- 2 lettuce leaves diced
- 8 cucumber slices
- 3 radishes sliced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon pistachios
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
- 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
- ½ tablespoon sweet paprika
For the tahini dressing
- 2 tablespoon tahini
- 2 tablespoon warm water
- ½ tablespoon sweet paprika
For garnish
- small handful fresh herbs
- pinch salt
- pinch black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200C / 390F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Add the diced sweet potato, zucchini and bell pepper to the baking tray and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle half the sweet paprika over the sweet potatoes and toss to coat. Roast for 30 minutes.
- Place the couscous and dried herbs in a bowl and pour on boiling water to cover. Then place a plate or dish cloth over the bowl. Set aside. Once cooked through fluff up with a fork.
- To make the tahini dressing, add the tahini, water and sweet paprika to a bowl and stir until it becomes creamy in consistency. To loosen the sauce, add more water to achieve the consistency you desire.
- Plate up the couscous, roasted vegetable and sweet potato mixture, nuts and seeds, as well as the lettuce, cucumber and radish. Drizzle with the tahini dressing. Add chopped herbs to garnish and season with salt and black pepper. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- Dice the sweet potato, bell pepper and zucchini into small bite size pieces. The zucchini may need to be removed from the oven a little earlier than the other vegetables.
- Fluff the couscous up with a fork before serving.
- Adjust the tahini dressing with more water to thin, or more tahini to thicken.
- Use unsalted nuts and seeds.
- Please note that nutritional information is offered as a courtesy. It is auto-generated and should be understood to be an estimate.
- wheat (cous cous), which scores 1 and has a ? as a liberator.
- sesame (tahini), which scores 1. Please note that sesame is a potential allergen and should only be consumed if known to tolerate.
- black pepper, which scores 2.
- check the mixed herbs for tolerated herbs.
Carol L says
Delicious dish. I cooked some quinoa instead of using couscous to make it gluten free. I thought it would be complicated but it was easy to make. Will definitely be making this again.
Claire says
So glad you enjoyed it Carol! And quinoa is such a good swap - I do it myself sometimes.