Vegetarian meal prep bowls are incredibly easy to make, packed with nutrients, and they taste delicious! This meal prep recipe can help you save time and money during busy weeks.
Why should you spend time making vegetarian meal prep bowls?
Taking time to plan and prep meals for the week can be an important part of a healthy eating lifestyle, especially if you are eating a vegetarian or vegan diet. Here are just some of the benefits of meal prepping:
- Save money. Planning in advance can help you to save money in several ways:
- Buy ingredients on sale or in bulk.
- Eat out less. When you prepare tasty meals ahead of time, you’ll be less tempted to go out to buy expensive lunches or dinners.
- Save time. By taking a few hours out of your week to prepare your meals for the week, you’ll end up saving a lot of time during the week. Aside from saving time each day planning, preparing, and cooking your meals, you can avoid extra trips to the grocery store for last minute ingredients.
- Portion control. Meal prepping can be an important aspect of maintaining a healthy weight. By planning your meals ahead of time, you can choose healthier ingredients and there’s less chance you’ll opt for unhealthy choices. You’ll also be able to control the portions you prepare.
- Less food waste. By planning your meals and preparing everything at once, you’ll have a better chance of using up all the ingredients you buy before they go bad.
Vegetarian Meal Prep Ingredients
The key ingredients in the vegetarian meal prep bowls are farro, chickpeas, cheese, and tahini. The remaining ingredients are just fresh veggies and a few pantry staples, such as honey.
What is farro?
Farro is a type of hulled wheat typically used in salads, soups, and side dishes. It has a slightly chewy texture and is often compared to barley. Check out my post to learn How to Cook Farro 4 ways.
To freeze cooked farro for future use, divide the cooked farro into single servings or family-sized servings and place them into airtight containers or heavy-duty freezer bags. If you are using freezer bags, make sure to flatten the bags so that they take up less space in the freezer.
What is tahini?
Tahini is a paste of ground toasted, hulled sesame seeds. It is delicious in dips, and is a primary ingredient in Mediterranean cooking. We use it in the tahini dressing recipe.
Tahini has relatively high levels of calcium and protein, making it a good choice for the dressing on the meal prep bowl.
How to make vegetarian meal prep bowls vegan-friendly
Because cheese is in the meal prep bowls, this is not a vegan recipe. Additionally, the tahini dressing recipe calls for honey. As a result, this vegetarian meal prep recipe is not vegan.
To make the recipe vegan, substitute agave nectar for honey, and either omit the cheese or use vegan cheese. As a result, even vegans can enjoy this healthy meal!
Vegetarian Meal Prep Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 English cucumber or 4 mini cucumbers
- 1/4 red onion
- 5 oz feta cheese - (150g)
- 2 cups cooked chickpeas
- 2 cups cooked farro
- 24-32 grape tomatoes
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp tahini
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- sea salt
- pepper
Instructions
- Wash and cut the cucumber into bite-sized pieces. Peel and thinly slice the red onion and cube feta cheese.
- Build your meal prep containers by evenly dividing cucumber, grape tomatoes, chickpeas, farro, onion, and feta amongst 4 containers. Put on the lid and store in the refrigerator.
- Dressing: For the dressing, add fresh lemon juice, tahini, honey, olive oil, sea salt, and pepper to a tightly sealable container and shake until well combined.
- Add about 1/4 of the dressing to one bowl right before eating. Mix well and enjoy!
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Tobi says
This is the first time I’d tried farro and I can’t believe how pleasantly surprised I am! My servings are on the side of snack sized, but still delicious! I’m trying to eat more plant based and really increase my fiber mainly because of menopause.
Thank you so much for the great recipes! I look forward to more :)
Debi Barnhart says
Hi could you give an idea or two to substitute for farro? I’m Celiac, and cannot eat wheat. I’m trying to come up with something, but I’m blank. I admit I’m tired, if I do think of some items, I can let you know…
Lorena Grater says
If you can eat quinoa, quinoa would be the best replacement. If not, then I recommend brown rice.
Debbie Fuller says
Fresh Italian parsley added for garnish would be wonderful and round round out the Mediterranean flavors!!
pru says
I’ve made this salad/bowl quite a few times since you posted it – my family and I love it. Also, thank you for the intro to farro. Its been a nice addition to our diet!
Lorena says
I’m sooo happy to read I encouraged you to try a new whole grain :)
Simone Claro says
Very good!!!!😘