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Get creative with these easy rice bowl recipes! Rice bowls are a great way to pack protein, veggies, and more into a delicious all-in-one weeknight dinner or healthy lunch.

rice bowl recipes

Easy Rice Bowl Recipes to Try ASAP

Whenever I’m at a loss as to what to make for dinner, bowls are the answer! Rice bowls are a fabulous way to turn a bowl of cooked rice and any ingredients I have in the fridge into a well-rounded meal. They’re one of my favorite ways to improvise with leftovers, too. Begin with a base of rice and go from there! 

Below, I’ve rounded up a collection of easy rice bowl recipes to get you started. Find your favorites to make for a healthy weeknight dinner, or prepare them ahead for lunches all week long. Plus, easy ideas and variations, along with helpful tips for the best rice bowls!

Why You’ll Love Rice Bowls

Wondering what to add to a bowl of white rice? With the recipes below as inspiration, you’ll never run out of tasty ways to convert a fridge full of ingredients into filling, nourishing meals. Here’s why you’ll be obsessed:

  • Healthy. Rice, and especially brown rice, is a healthy grain that’s a high source of folate. Topped with        your favorite proteins and veggies, rice bowls are a great way to get in your daily vitamins and minerals.
  • DIY. The recipes in this round-up offer delicious inspiration. But, ultimately, you choose what goes into your rice bowl! Customize your favorite bowls with proteins, veggies, or what you have on hand. See the sections below for details.
  • Great for meal prep. Rice bowls are some of the best all-in-one meals that you can prepare in advance and easily customize. If you’re looking for meal prep ideas, consider adding rice bowls to your weekly routine!

What Is a Rice Bowl?

A rice bowl involves a variety of proteins and veggies served over a bed of rice. They’re the ultimate meals for mixing and matching all kinds of healthy ingredients. Here’s a basic outline of what’s in a rice bowl:

  • Rice – Start with a base of basmati or jasmine rice, brown rice, or cauliflower rice for a low-carb option. Or, if you prefer, substitute rice with quinoa or lentils.
  • Protein – Next up, your choice of protein. You’ll find rice bowls made with chicken, beef, seafood, and more, plus plant-based protein like tempeh and tofu.
  • Veggies – Pair your proteins with fresh, steamed, or roasted veggies, sauteed vegetables, and fresh greens. Arugula, kale, and spinach are all great options.

Are Rice Bowls Good for You?

Rice bowls are easy to make and satisfying whether you’re looking for new healthy meal ideas, vegetarian recipes, and more. As with most recipes, how healthy your rice bowls are depends on what goes into them! Luckily, as you’ll see below, there are plenty of ways to fill your bowls with wholesome, nutritious ingredients.

21 Healthy Rice Bowl Ideas

Get started with these easy and healthy rice bowl recipes! Feel free to follow these recipes to the “T” or change them up with your favorite ingredients.

Spicy Canned Salmon Salad Rice Bowl

1. Spicy Canned Salmon Salad Rice Bowl

I’m all about the convenience of canned fish like salmon and tuna. This easy rice bowl recipe is inspired by my favorite spicy salmon sushi roll. It’s the ultimate high-protein lunch that’s easy on the wallet, too.

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Sweet Potato Black Bean Bowls
These Shrimp Fajita Bowls are a tasty and easy dinner that your whole family will love! Served over a bed of cilantro-lime rice with peppers and onions, avocado and salsa.

3. Shrimp Fajita Bowls

These Mexican-inspired shrimp fajita bowls are an easy dinner filled with juicy shrimp, peppers, and onions, with avocado and salsa served over cilantro-lime rice. A family favorite!

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Roasted Salmon Rice Bowls with avocado and cucumber

4. Honey Sriracha Roasted Salmon Rice Bowls

This is an easy recipe made from sweet-spicy roasted salmon tossed in a honey sriracha glaze, served over a bed of fluffy rice. Topped with your favorite veggies (ours are creamy avocado and cucumber!), it’s a tasty meal in one.

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Tofu Rice Bowls with veggies
Buffalo Chicken Rice Bowls
Chicken Taco Poblano Rice Bowls in a glass meal prep container.

7. Chicken Taco Poblano Rice Bowls

Mild poblano peppers make a mouthwatering, smoky addition to these flavor-packed chicken taco bowls. These rice bowls are quick enough to make for weeknight dinners, and easy enough to prepare ahead for delicious lunches all week!

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Glazed Salmon Rice Bowl with Bok Choy
Spicy Sriracha Tofu Rice Bowls

9. Spicy Sriracha Tofu Rice Bowls

Looking for a new meatless meal to bring into regular rotation? Look no further than these spicy sriracha tofu bowls. This recipe is packed with flavor, easy to customize, and ready in no time.

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This easy Buddha Bowl is made with roasted broccoli, butternut squash, and onions piled on top of whole grain rice and topped with sliced avocado, a sunny-side fried egg, and crunchy pecans.

10. Heather’s Buddha Bowl

This easy buddha bowl is jam-packed with delicious ingredients and dietician approved! It’s made with roasted veggies, creamy avocado, crunchy pecans, and a sunny-side-up egg layered over while grain rice.

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This easy meal-prep honey-sriracha chicken dish, which can also be served as a main dish, is made on a sheet pan and comes together quick!
Shrimp Dumpling Lettuce Wraps
Bring the flavors of the Mediterranean to work with these Greek Chicken Meal Prep Rice Bowls – the perfect recipe to make ahead!

13. Meal Prep Greek Chicken Rice Bowls

These Greek chicken meal prep rice bowls are jam-packed with fresh Mediterranean flavors, and they’re SO easy to make ahead. They’re made with tender brown rice toped with zesty marinated chicken and Greek salad tossed with crumbly feta.

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If you’ve ever had the classic Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich, you probably know the bread can easily overpower the pork, pickled carrots and all the wonderful flavors, so I scrapped the bread and put all the goodies in a bowl over brown rice (it’s great over any grain) in my slim remake which is easy to make any night of the week!

14. Slow-Cooker Banh Mi Rice Bowls

Inspired by a Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich, this recipe lightens things up, packing all those Asian-style flavors and ingredients into a nourishing rice bowl. It’s made with juicy slow cooker pulled pork, pickled carrots, and crunchy veggies. Perfect any night of the week!

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Chicken Brown Rice Bowl

15. Chicken Brown Rice Bowl (Zinque’s Le Bowl)

This recipe is a delicious one-bowl meal modelled after one of my favorite restaurant dishes! It’s simple to make with brown rice, arugula, tomatoes, and shaved gruyere cheese. I top mine with juicy chicken and a lightened-up sriracha yogurt dressing.

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Spicy Tuna Poke Bowls made with chunks of fresh tuna, avocado, cucumbers, spicy mayo, scallions cut on the bias served on a bed of steamed rice.

16. Spicy Tuna Poke Bowl

Make your own poke bowl with fresh tuna, cooling avocado and cucumbers, and a drizzle of spicy mayo served over a bed of rice. This easy recipe walks you through it!

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Ahi Poke Bowl with Mango

17. Ahi Poke Bowl with Mango

This Hawaiian-style poke bowl idea is a breeze to prepare at home. Topped with marinated chunks of Ahi tuna, avocado, sweet-tangy mango and crunchy macadamias., it’s an explosion of flavor and satisfying texture!

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Korean Beef Rice Bowls takes about 20 minutes to whip up, so quick and easy, loaded with flavor for under 400 calories!

18. Korean Beef Rice Bowls

Flavorful Korean beef served over perfectly-cooked rice is a quick and healthy meal idea, with under 400 calories per serving. And don’t worry, it still has TONS of flavor!

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Asian Turkey Meatballs with Rice
Salmon Bowl

20. Seattle Asian Salmon Bowl

Fresh salmon fillets get a delicious makeover in these Asian salmon rice bowls. They’re made from tender salmon served over rice with crunchy veg, topped with soy-wasabi vinaigrette. Prepare to be addicted!

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For busy families looking for delicious, healthy meals that will keep everyone’s stomachs full and happy, lentils and rice with eggs and bacon are economic, easy to prepare and make enough for plenty of leftovers!

21. Lentils and Rice with Eggs and Bacon

Who says you can’t enjoy rice bowls for breakfast, too? This healthy and savory breakfast bowl is loaded with saucy lentils and fluffy rice topped with bacon and chopped hard boiled eggs. Easy to prepare and super filling!

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How Can I Make My Rice Bowls Even Better?

Once you have your assortment of protein and vegetables ready to go, there are tons of ways to assemble a rice bowl that’s extra full-of-flavor. Try these ideas:

You can also trade out any sauces and dressings with your own choices. Here are some homemade favorites:

More Rice Bowl Recipe Tips

You’ll see, there really isn’t a wrong way to prepare a rice bowl. But a few last-minute tips never hurt:

  • Don’t cook the rice too quickly. Bring the pot to a boil, and then lower the heat. Heating the rice too fast will cause the water to evaporate, leaving the rice undercooked. Check out how to cook brown rice for more rice cooking tips.
  • Prepare ahead. Rice bowl recipes are perfect for meal prep. Get a head start and prepare a week’s worth of bowls that you can enjoy for easy lunches and dinners. 
  • Store sauces and dressings separately. When preparing your rice bowls ahead of time, I recommend leaving off the sauces until you’re ready to serve. You can still prep the sauce or dressing in advance, and refrigerate it separately in an airtight container.
  • Get creative! Rice bowls are excellent “clean out the fridge” meals. Change up the protein, grains, and veggies depending on what leftovers you have handy. Mix and match ingredients to your heart’s content, for endless variations!

FAQs

Do you salt the water before boiling rice?

It’s recommended! Like pasta, salting the water used to cook rice will yield flavorful, seasoned rice. You don’t need a lot, maybe a half teaspoon of salt for each cup of rice, but it does make a difference.

Do I need to stir rice while it cooks?

Nope. It’s better if you don’t stir rice while it’s cooking. Agitating the rice can break up the grains and stir up the starches, leading to a mushy outcome.

Should rice bowls be hot or cold?

They can be both! Rice bowls, like poke bowls, are often served cold. Meanwhile, there are plenty of ways to enjoy your rice bowls warm depending on the ingredients you choose.

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