Mediterranean Rice Bowl (Printable Version)
Fluffy rice topped with Mediterranean vegetables, chickpeas, feta, and lemon-tahini dressing.
# What You Need:
→ Rice Base
01 - 1 cup basmati or long-grain rice
02 - 2 cups water
03 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
→ Proteins
04 - 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
→ Vegetables
05 - 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
06 - 1 cucumber, diced
07 - 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
08 - 1/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives, halved
09 - 1 red bell pepper, diced
→ Toppings
10 - 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
11 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
→ Lemon-Tahini Dressing
12 - 3 tablespoons tahini
13 - 1 lemon, juiced
14 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
15 - 1 clove garlic, minced
16 - 2 tablespoons water
17 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
18 - 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
# How to Make It:
01 - Rinse rice under cold water until the water runs clear. In a saucepan, bring 2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil. Add rice, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes or until water is absorbed. Remove from heat and let steam, covered, for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
02 - In a small bowl, whisk together tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, minced garlic, water, salt, and pepper until smooth. Adjust consistency with additional water if needed.
03 - Divide cooked rice among 4 bowls. Top each with chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, olives, and red bell pepper.
04 - Sprinkle each bowl with crumbled feta and chopped parsley.
05 - Drizzle generously with lemon-tahini dressing and serve immediately.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- The lemon tahini dressing pulls everything together with almost no effort, and it tastes like something from a restaurant.
- You can prep every component ahead and assemble in minutes, which makes it a weeknight lifesaver.
- It is endlessly adaptable: swap grains, change vegetables, add protein, and it still works beautifully.
02 -
- Tahini behaves unpredictably when cold, so if your jar has been refrigerated, let it sit at room temperature before whisking or the dressing will seize and turn grainy.
- Do not skip the rice resting step after cooking, those five minutes off heat with the lid on make the difference between fluffy grains and a sticky clump.
03 -
- Soak the sliced red onion in ice water for five minutes to tame its sharpness without losing its crunch.
- Warm the rice slightly before assembling, even room temperature rice absorbs the dressing better than cold rice straight from the refrigerator.