This colorful buddha bowl is made with forbidden rice, crispy baked tofu, and a creamy coconut almond lime dressing. It's meal prep friendly and makes for healthy lunches throughout the week.
Make rice: Combine rice and water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil (uncovered) on medium-high heat. Once boiling, immediately cover with a tight fitting lid and reduce heat to low. Simmer until the rice is tender and the water is absorbed, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let steam for 10 minutes.
Coat Tofu: Meanwhile, spread cubed tofu on a clean kitchen towel and pat dry. Transfer tofu to a medium bowl. Sprinkle with arrowroot powder, toss until evenly coated.
Cook tofu: Heat 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat (see note 3). Add tofu to the hot oil. Cook until crisp and golden brown on all sides, 12 to 15 minutes.
Make the Sauce: Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together coconut milk, almond butter, lime juice, Sriracha, ginger, and salt. Thin with water, if needed, until it's a pourable consistency.
Season tofu: Once the tofu is crisp, reduce heat to medium-low. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil over the tofu (while its still in the pan). Toss to coat, then sprinkle with garlic powder, coriander, onion powder, Chinese five spice, and salt. Toss to coat. Cook until the spices are deeply fragrant, 5 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently so the spices don't burn.
Prep Other Toppings: In a small bowl, combine carrots, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Toss to coat. Set aside other toppings.
Assemble: Divide rice into bowls. Top with crispy tofu, carrots, cabbage, and kale. Drizzle with the sauce. Garnish with scallions and serve with lime wedges.
Notes
Coconut milk: Full-fat coconut milk recommended. Since canned coconut milk tends to separate, shake the can thoroughly before measuring it out for this recipe.
Almond butter: You can use salted almond butter, but taste before adding the salt, in case you want to add a bit less.
Pan: I prefer to use a nonstick pan here, because it lets you get a nice golden-brown crust on the tofu. If you don't have a nonstick pan, you can use a seasoned cast iron pan. But since cast iron retains more heat, you'll likely need to reduce the heat slightly to prevent the tofu from burning near the end.