I always say that I learned to cook when I became a vegetarian. Being raised in Paris by two Spanish parents, meat and fish have always been part of my food & diet culture. So, when I became a vegetarian and was still living with my parents, the deal was for me to cook more and come up with ideas for dinner. That’s when I started to buy cookbooks and scroll through numerous veggie blogs to find meals that weren’t boring, and that my family and I could enjoy together. Seven years later, I’m still looking for inspiration every day – and I’m also gaining confidence in the kitchen. I’ve always enjoyed making food, and I’m always on the lookout for new techniques and ways to cook. Last summer, my boyfriend shared with me this video of smoked watermelon (available at Duck’s Eatery in NYC) that looks just like ham. I was so impressed that I decided to try something similar myself – and that’s how the recipe for this Vegan Poke Bowl with Cooked Watermelon started!

Since living in Berlin, I’ve seen new Poke Bowl restaurants emerge every year – if not every couple of months. I can now count three in my neighbourhood alone. The great thing about poke bowls is that you get to personalize your dish: you can choose all the toppings you love, and change them according to your mood or season, creating a new and special dish each time. I guess that’s probably why they’re so popular!

Watermelon is the main ingredient in this recipe; the texture is really incredible when cooked.  The marinade gives it a deep red color, and it transforms into a firmer ‘meat’ after cooking – resembling raw tuna both in texture & in taste. A few non-vegetarian colleagues at work even said it looked and tasted like the real thing. So I think you’ll love the recipe – whether you’re vegetarian or not!

As for the toppings, you don’t necessarily need to follow my ideas; you can definitely play around with different veggies. The only ‘rule’ I have for any type of bowl in general is to add 2-3 different kinds of vegetables, something crunchy, something spicy, and something funky ? Just let your creativity talk and try out this recipe!

p.s. That beautiful wooden bowl (one of my absolute favorites!) was a limited edition collaboration between Coconut Bowls & Hippie Lane ♥

Vegan Poke Bowl
with Cooked Watermelon

~ makes 4 bowls ~

Ingredients

Watermelon & marinade:

• ½ medium-sized watermelon, diced
• 3 tbsp. low sodium soy sauce or coconut aminos
• ½ lime, juiced
• 1 tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 tsp. tahini
• 1 tbsp. mirin (or rice vinegar)
• a generous pinch of garlic powder
• a small thumb of grated ginger
• shichimi togarashi, to taste*

Optional: ½ tbsp. maple syrup

Rice:

• 2 cups sushi rice, uncooked
• 2 cups water
• ¼ cup rice vinegar
• 2-3 tsp. shichimi togarashi, or more to taste*
  
  

Sauce:

• 2 heaping tbsp. vegan aioli
• 1 heaping tsp. sambal oelek, or more to taste*
  
  

Toppings:

• edamame
• carrots, grated
• radish, thinly sliced
• cashews (roasted with some sesame oil & soy sauce)
• kimchi, homemade or store-bought (just make sure it’s vegan)
• shichimi togarashi, to taste*
  
  

Steps:

For the cooked watermelon:

1. Preheat oven to 200°C.
2. Add cubes of watermelon to a baking dish. Mix the marinade ingredients and pour over the watermelon. Mix well so that every cube is fully coated. 
3. Place the dish into the oven and cook for about 30 minutes, flipping the cubes halfway through.
4. Once cooked, add the watermelon to a bowl and leave to marinate for a couple of hours (or overnight, if possible) in the fridge.*
   
   

For the rice & veggies:

1. While the watermelon is baking, prepare the sushi rice. Rinse the rice and cook according to the instructions on the package.
2. When the rice is done, add the rice vinegar and shichimi spice. 
3. While the rice is cooking, you can prepare all your veggies; if you’re using frozen edamame, just cook them for about 5 minutes in salted boiling water. 
4. Prepare the sauce by mixing the vegan aioli and sambal oelek.
   
   

To serve:

1. As soon as everything is ready, heat up some soy sauce and sesame oil in a small saucepan. Once it’s been properly heated, add in the cashews and lightly roast them for a couple minutes.
2. When you’re ready to eat, serve your watermelon on top of some sushi rice. Add your toppings of choice, add some more lime juice, and top with vegan spicy aioli and some shichimi spice & sesame seeds.  Enjoy your vegan poke bowl 🙂
   
   

Recipe notes:

*Shichimi Togarashi is a Japanese chili seasoning that can be easily found in most Asian supermarkets. If you’re not able to find any, it’s totally fine – you can just omit it from the recipe, or replace it with another spicy mix of your choice.

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