Is anyone feeling like a tropical meal to bring you out of those winter blues? My barbecue chickpea Hawaiian bowls are made with pineapple and coconut quinoa for fresh island flavor!
The barbecue chickpeas in this dish pair perfectly with the sweet pineapple. Pick a barbecue sauce that is not very sweet to help keep flavors balanced.
I added red cabbage to this bowl for color and crunch! Cilantro also adds great color and pairs well with the tropical flavors of the pineapple and coconut.
Every time I serve a bowl meal like this I get asked, do you mix it together, or just eat it? It’s really a matter of personal preference. How do you like your bowl meals? Mixed or keep all the flavors separate? Share with us in the comments!
Variations to the Barbecue Chickpea Hawaiian Bowls recipe:
- You can serve this bowl warm or cold. I prefer warm during the winter, so I heat up the quinoa and chickpeas before assembling the bowl.
- To add coconut flavor to the quinoa, I used coconut oil because I keep it stocked in my pantry. Use whatever coconut product you like to stock, such as coconut milk or coconut flakes.
- I use my rice cooker to cook the quinoa. It yields fluffy quinoa with no fuss, highly recommended!
- For a summertime bowl, try peaches and zucchini instead of pineapple and cabbage!
- ½ cup qunioa, rinsed
- 1 cup water
- 1 TBS coconut oil
- ⅛ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp red pepper flake
- 2 cups diced fresh pineapple
- 1 cup sliced red cabbage
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas
- ¼ cup barbecue sauce
- 4 sprigs cilantro (minced or whole)
- In a rice cooker or stove top pan, combine quinoa, water, and coconut oil. Cook until water is absorbed and quinoa is fluffy, about 15 mintues. Mix in salt and red pepper flake.
- Meanwhile chop all the pineapple and red cabbage.
- Toss chickpeas and barbecue sauce in a medium bowl. Heat in the microwave until warm. (Alternatively, you can also serve them cold.)
- Divide the quinoa between 2 bowls. Spoon in ½ cup barbecue chickpeas, ½ cup sliced red cabbage, and 1 cup pineapple chunks. Top with cilantro.
This recipe was inspired by Veggie Inspired. I shared this post at the Weekend Potluck and Fiesta Friday!
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