3 Nourishing Grain Bowls That Taste As Good As They Look

It can be hard sometimes to assemble a meal that hits every spot. You might have all the goodness and greens you could ever crave but the flavour is bland. Or you might get a dish that's packed with flavour but texturally falls flat. Your meal might fill you up but it's not left you properly satisfied.

The beauty of a grain bowl is that you can bypass those problems. Want more texture? Add crunch with some seeds! Need more flavour? Boost it with the dressing. Grain bowls are an endlessly riffable, filling meal and the perfect work from home lunch – with a little prep you can pull one together in your kitchen, no problem.

For all these reasons we were excited to delve into Nina Olsson's new book, Bowls of Goodness: Grains + Greens. Inspired by her Scandinavian roots, Nina's recipes use the grains and flavours of rye berries and dill as a base, often adding complementary Japanese flavours using products which she acknowledges we are now privileged to be able to source in Europe thanks to migration patterns, increased travel to Japan and the popularisation of recipes shared by Japanese chefs via the internet.

From here she riffs on traditional flavour profiles (like the classic Reuben sandwich or a tuna pasta salad) and morphs them into nutritious, filling and exciting to eat grain bowls. What's more, this book focuses on ingredients which are explicitly environmentally friendly. Click on for three of our favourite recipes.