Banh Mi Bowl (Paleo, Whole30)
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This Banh Mi Bowl is like your favorite banh mi sandwich, but healthier! The base is made with cauliflower rice, then it’s topped with veggies, a sticky-sweet pork and a simple sriracha mayo.
Remember when I named a banh mi restaurant one of my favorites in Pittsburgh? Yeah well the other day I found myself craving banh mi but I didn’t want to leave my house. Enter: this homemade (and healthy!) banh mi bowl.
The best part about banh mi is the variety of flavors. Since this isn’t a typical banh mi sandwich and it is on the healthier side, I wanted to make sure the meat was marinaded perfectly, aka that it had tons of flavor. Let me tell you–this recipe is pure perfection, such an easy lunch recipe and it comes together in less than 15 minutes! I always say that 30 minute meals are my favorite, but 15 minute meals are even better.
Why this banh mi bowl is the best
- It’s made with healthy ingredients, like cauliflower, cucumber and carrots
- The marinade for the pork is insanely flavorful
- Anything with sriracha mayo is a winner in my opinion, including this bowl!
- It’s ready in just 15 minutes
Step-by-step instructions
This bowl comes together from start to finish in less than 15 minutes, so when I’m really not joking when I say it’s EASY.
Step 1: Cook the pork. Add pork to a skillet and cook it over medium heat until it’s no longer pink.
Step 2: Slice the vegetables. While the pork is cooking, prep the veggies–cucumber, carrots, and jalapeño–by slicing them. For this recipe, I bought shredded carrots, but you can also buy carrot sticks and slice them yourself if you prefer.
Step 3: Cook the cauliflower rice. Pro tip: buy pre-made cauliflower rice! Seriously, it makes life a lot easier. I like the frozen bags that you can microwave, but you can also buy the refrigerated kind that cooks over the stove.
Step 4: Make the marinade. Whisk the coconut aminos, arrowroot and ginger together in a bowl.
Step 5: At this point, the pork should be fully cooked. Add the garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes or until the garlic is fragrant, then reduce the heat to low, then pour the marinade over top and stir everything together for about 1 minute until the pork is fully coated the sauce gets kind of sticky.
Last, make the spicy mayo by stirring mayo and sriracha together, then drizzle it over top of the assembled bowl.
FAQs and Tips
Ingredient substitutions
Want to make a few changes? No problem. Here are a few that I think would work well:
Vegan: If you want to keep this vegan-friendly, simply use your favorite vegan “meat” substitution. Personally, I’d use either fried tofu or seitan.
Traditional: Use white rice! Traditional banh mi bowls are made with white rice instead of cauliflower rice, so if you want to go that route, I think it’ll taste delicious.
Isn’t traditional banh mi made with pickled vegetables?
Yes! Pickling vegetables is absolutely an option when making this bowl; however, it requires a little more prep work, and I wanted this bowl to be as quick as possible, so I opted to use raw veggies. Feel free to pickle the carrots ahead of time if you want it to taste truly authentic.
More Whole30 recipes
Banh Mi Bowl (Paleo, Whole30)
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground pork
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos
- 1 tbsp arrowroot
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 12 oz. cauliflower rice*
- 1/2 cup cucumber, sliced
- 1/2 cup shredded carrots
- 1 jalapeño, sliced and seeds removed
- cilantro for garnish
for the sriracha mayo:
- 1/4 cup mayo**
- 2 tsp sriracha***
Instructions
- Start by cooking the pork in a skillet over the stove.
- While the pork is cooking, slice the cucumber and jalapeño, and measure out the carrot sticks. Next, make the marinade by whisking the coconut aminos, arrowroot and ginger together in a bowl.
- Make the cauliflower rice according to the package instructions.
- At this point, the pork should be cooked. Add the garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat to low, then pour the marinade overtop and stir together for 1 minute or until the pork is completely coated and the sauce is slightly sticky.
- Divide the cauliflower rice into 2 bowls then top it with the pork and veggies. The final step is to make the sriracha mayo: simply whisk the mayo and sriracha together, then drizzle it over the bowls. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
This was SO good! But I’m so sad… we all gobbled it down… and then I realized I forgot to make the mayo-sriracha sauce. Boo! Guess I’ll gave to make it again very soon! Thanks for a great recipe!
Ha, yes! It’s so good, and even better with the sauce. I’m glad you liked it!
Hi. I haven’t made the recipe yet but will be making it soon! I have a question in regards to arrowroot! I don’t have any at home but will be buying some and I’m making sure I got the right kind. Is the arrowroot the starch/powder kind?
Sorry I somehow missed your comment — but yes, arrowroot is arrowroot starch/powder. You can also use cornstarch if you prefer, but it’s not Whole30 compliant if you’re trying to keep this whole30.
Honestly, it is such a tasty meal and easy to put together with minimal ingredients! My husband has IBS, and we are still trying to figure out what does and doesn’t trigger it. This dish not only was super flavorful and easy to make but didn’t upset my husband’s stomach. A win win all around
I added edamame and also did a quick pickling of the carrots and cucumbers for added flavor.
Thanks Carlee! Glad you enjoyed the banh mi bowl!
I do not leave comments on recipes but this was so good I had to comment. My partner who has the pallet of a three-year-old loved it, too. That says a lot. So easy. So delicious. Thank you!
Thanks so much Amber! I’m so glad you and your partner loved the banh mi bowl!
Thank you so much for sharing! We made this for lunch. Will definitely make this again very soon.
Thanks so much Terri! It does make an excellent lunch!
This is one of the best recipes I have ever made. I have made this for friends and all request the recipe. I did add rice wine vinegar to the carrots as a reader suggested. Thanks for this fabulous and healthy recipe.
That’s amazing! Thanks so much Ann! Glad you enjoyed it so much!
Soooo refreshing and delicious! I’ve made this dish 10+ times and the only thing I do differently from the recipe is a quick pickle on the carrots. I highly recommend doing so to get that tangy element. Thank you so much for the recipe, it has become one of our family’s favorites!
Thanks so much Audrey! I’m glad you liked the recipe so much!
So delicious! Love how quick & easy it is. Packed with flavor.
Thanks for the 5-star rating, Hannah!
I’m finally leaving a comment after having made this dish several times. I love this recipe, it is delicious and so easy to put together, and it’s so versatile with the veggie toppings you can use. Tonight my toppings were carrots that marinated in rice wine vinegar, edamame, cucumbers, avocado and of course the pork. No srichacha sauce due to health issues. Thank you for the recipe!
I’m so happy this has become a favorite!
Loved!