Mango and Squid Buddha Bowl is the perfect balance of hot, sour and sweet, topped with the crunch of peanuts and fried shallots.
Buddha Bowl or Goi Xoai
This recipe, vibrant in color from herbs and mango, protein rich from squid and grain, often rice, is actually my take on a fabulous Vietnamese dish a friend made for a television gathering.
As we approached the finale of The Great American Recipe on PBS, Goi Xoai, made from green mangos and cuttlefish, is what my friend Foo made.
His dish looked and tasted so amazing I knew I had to at least try the components of his traditional dish and make something of my own.
Mango and Squid
The flavors are both fresh, very Yin and surprisingly Yang, from chili paste, fish sauce and lots of garlic.
While I could never hope to create my friends dish as he did, since his heart and soul is Vietnamese, I did ask him if he would permit me to attempt his flavors and put my own spin on it. Hope you approve Foo!!
About Buddha Bowls
As the story goes, without getting into religious teachings here, let’s just say The Buddha went from riches to rags, by choice.
Taking a bowl of rice around from neighbor to neighbor for their charitable offerings of this and that to put atop his bowl of rice.
The Buddha Bowl really just started like that. A balance of healthy, nourishing bits and pieces of charitable offerings from those who valued his teachings.Â
Taking this concept a bit further, I’ve collected many bowls to serve small portions in because less is sometimes more.
What Goes Into A Buddha Bowl?
The quick answer is: Anything.
As we westerners have been taught to eat from the balanced food pyramid; grains, veggies, fruits, proteins, so too is the Buddha Bowl a balance of these very same food choices.Â
Visuals are the second most considered aspect when choosing what to put in a Buddha bowl. And no, a Buddha bowl is not a mish-mash of foods, resembling a casserole!
The visuals must be pleasing to the eye. Individual colors and textures, flavors and appearances are what we are after.
Asian Dining At Home
If you have ever eaten at a family style Chinese or Indian restaurant (or home), there is often a Lazy-Susan in the center of the table.
On it a huge variety of carefully chopped items in lots of small bowls have been placed. Some of the items of pickled veggies, or sautéed roots, smoked fish or slivers of fruits.
This style of dining reminds me of the Japanese version of a tapas, called Izakaya, also a spread of various small plates and bowls of healthy items.
Healthy Home Buddha Bowl
For the ingredients going into this Buddha bowl, I place the grilled squid, freshly chopped mango, marinated in chilies and lime and a variety of other flavors.
This, is very much what a Buddha bowl is and how it got its concept for becoming a trendy dish here in America.
Previously, the first recipe I created for a Buddha bowl, was a Shrimp Buddha Bowl with quinoa, a relatively new trending grain here in America.
Fresh Herbs and Mango
First I went looking for veggies I wanted in my bowl. But decided to stick with the ingredients I remembered in my friend’s dish had, which were an array of fresh herbs: mint, cilantro and Thai basil, and mango.
While the dish my friend had prepared was made with green mangos, I only had the bright orange mangos in my freezer. I thawed them and chopped them.
Don’t cringe my friend but it was all I had, and living in a non-tropical place we are lucky to get mangos when we can!Â
A Mango Sauce You Won’t Want To Miss Out On
This easy sweet and sour mango sauce recipe, with chili peppers, honey and smoked paprika, is idea for meat, seafood or veggie kabobs.
Having spent many years dining on Asian food, I realized that every culture has its own version of a sweet and sour sauce.
A sauce with both a bit of sour from a favorite vinegar, balanced with a favorite sweet, whether honey, agave or simply sugar, has a special way of flavoring savory dishes.
Squid As My Protein
Squid was what I had in the freezer as well, so I went with the small, sometimes sad looking squid sold in the freezer section.
It perked up nicely once grilled. A sprinkle of peanuts on top of this Buddha bowl and there is plenty protein.
Flavor and Sauce
My kitchen is most often fitted out with Mediterranean flavors so this part was the real challenge for me.
I didn’t have chili paste, but what I did have was a gazillion varied peppers and garlic scapes from my summer garden, in my freezer.
Yep, I do have more in my freezer than I do a pantry. Several chilis, garlic cloves, olive oil, and a splash of fish sauce went into the blender for my version of a chili paste.
Ingredients Needed
- Squid, tubes and tentacles, though shrimp can also be used.
- Mango is the star of this traditional Vietnamese dish and brings that sweet and yet sour flavor making this salad abundant in flavor.
- Thai Basil brings a very definite flavor to this dish, one that Italian basil can’t substitute, so leave it out if your are unable to find or grow it.
- Spring onion, though fried onions are served on top, which are sweet in flavor, spring onions bring a brighter onion flavor.
- Celery, brings the crunch and the hydrated earthy flavor.
- Cilantro, while a definite flavor that brings brightness to this dish as well, not everyone likes cilantro, so a fresh Italian parsley can be substituted.
- Lime, offers a unique flavor that lemon does not, so definitely use lime in this recipe.
- Rice vinegar, from fermented rice, offers a milder, slightly sweet flavor, offering a different vinegar experience than many other types of vinegar.
- Garlic offers not only an earthy flavor, but raw garlic brings a bit of heat to a cold salad recipe.
- Sugar, as you may know, offsets the vinegar bringing a sweet and sour balance to a dish.
- Chilies, can be the pepper you prefer most depending on the level of heat you are comfortable with.
- Fish sauce primarily adds a savory, salty and umami flavor to dishes and since squid is rather delicate in flavor fish sauce will boost the overall fishy taste to this dish.
- Olive oil is my oil of preference to this recipe rather than sesame oil simply because I feel it doesn’t interfere with the flavors we have built in this recipe.
- Shallots, or sweet onions fried and placed on the top for added umami and texture.
- Salt and pepper, as you like.
- Peanuts or cashews for a salty crunch to the overall dish.
Equipment Needed
- 2 Serving Bowls – beautiful ceramic serving bowls with chopsticks makes for a lovely presentation of this dish.
- Griddle – a large cast iron stovetop griddle makes cooking so many ingredients, fast and professional.
- Cutting board and a chopping knife.
- Blender or small food processor to puree the sauce once simmered.
- Heat resistant basting brush for the cast iron pan.
- Mixing bowl, these Pyrex bowls are always a favorite of mine simply because they are so versatile.
- Tongs, preferably stainless as they are easier to work with, tighter pinch when picking up small items, as opposed to the plastic covered type in which it seems everything slips out from them.
- Small saucepan, classic Farberware is always my favorite, stainless steel and it comes in a variety of sizes.
- Stovetop or burner
Mango and Squid Buddha Bowl
Equipment
- Saute pan
- Small saucepan
- 2 Serving bowls
Ingredients
- 1 lb Squid tubes and tentacles
- 2 cups Mango
- 1/4 cup Thai basil
- 4 Spring onions
- 3 Celery stalks
- 1 Cilantro bundle
- 2 Limes
- 2 tbsp Rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp Sugar
- 3 Garlic cloves
- 2 Small chili peppers
- 3 tbsp Fish sauce
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- 1 Shallot
- 1/4 cup Peanuts
- Salt – to taste
Instructions
- Slice the squid tubes into rings. Separate the tentacles into 2. Place the squid in a bowl. Squeeze juice from 1 lime throughout the squid and 1 teaspoon of salt. Let sit while other ingredients are prepped.
- Rough chop the cilantro, celery, basil and spring onions. Set aside.
- Slice the mango pieces into same sizes as the squid rings. Set aside.
- Finely slice the shallot and set aside.
- Place the chili peppers, garlic cloves, fish sauce and 2 teaspoons of olive oil in a blender. In a small saucepan, simmer the vinegar and sugar just until the sugar melts. Add to the blender and puree the sauce. Transfer the sauce back into the saucepan and keep warm.
- On a griddle, brush a little olive oil on the heated griddle and quick sear the squid until cooked, but still tender, about 5-minutes.
- In a small frying pan on medium high, drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil and quickly fry the shallot slivers. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, place the chopped greens, chopped mango, the cooked squid, drizzle the warm sauce on top and gently mix.
- In each bowl, place the warm squid and mango mixture, top with fried shallots and peanuts and serve.
Video
I believe the table... that place that draws people to gather, is the most powerful symbol of togetherness. All that happens before the table is set, the planning, the gathering, the preparing, are all an intricate part of the dance that create the mood of celebration to share with friends and loved ones.