Savory Quinoa Breakfast Bowl

Easy to make and packed with protein, this quinoa breakfast bowl is a simple recipe that is perfect for meal prep! It’s loaded with fluffy quinoa, sautéed kale, creamy avocado, dairy free pesto and the perfect soft boiled egg. 

We all know I’m a big buddha bowl fan. But until now, all of my buddha bowls were intended for lunch/dinner, so I figured it was time for a breakfast (buddha) bowl!

This savory quinoa breakfast bowl was brought about thanks to my serious cravings for a savory breakfast. I’ve always been a smoothie kind of gal in the mornings because it’s so quick, but lately I’ve been craving some savory.

It’s basically like a regular old buddha bowl, but it has egg in it to make it more acceptable to eat for breakfast. You can fully customize it to your own preferences, make it spicy, cheesy, lemony… whatever you want! Try my matcha pancakes for a sweet breakfast next!

Why you’ll love this recipe

• High protein
• Perfect for meal prep
• Easy to make
• Vegetarian & gluten free

How to make a soft boiled egg

Bring a small pot of water to a boil and with 1/2 tsp baking soda. This is an old trick I learned that really helps the egg shell come off easily when it’s time to peel. 

Otherwise, you end up peeling off some of the egg white along with the shell, and that’s just an annoying way to start your morning!

Once the water has boiled, reduce the heat to low and use a slotted spoon to carefully add in the eggs. Reducing the heat helps ensure the eggs don’t crack or break when you add them into the water.

Turn the heat back up to a boil and immediately a timer for 6 1/2 minutes. This amount of time will yield a soft boiled egg, but you can leave the eggs in the boiling water for up to 14 minutes for a classic hard boiled egg.

What I have pictured is 6 1/2 minutes. Even just 30 seconds makes a big difference in how well the yolk is cooked, so be sure to keep an eye on the clock if you want the yolk to be at all runny.

Once the time is up, add the eggs into a bowl of ice water. This will immediately stop the cooking process and also make it easier to peel the eggs. 

Carefully tap the bottom of the egg onto a hard surface to crack the shell. Use your fingers to peel off the rest of the shell. 

Building the perfect bowl

While there are 101 things you could put in a breakfast bowl, from eggs to potatoes, fruit, veggies and more, I’ve narrowed it down to the perfect combination of delicious things.

It all starts with a base of perfectly fluffy quinoa. Then, we’ll saute some kale with olive oil, salt and pepper to give it lots of flavor. Layer it over the quinoa with pesto, soft boiled egg, avocado and top it all off with some crushed red pepper flakes for a little spice.

You can add or subtract whatever you like. Throw in some chopped tomatoes or mushrooms with the kale, add a little hot sauce, black beans, whatever you like! Try my gluten free french toast next!

Ingredient swaps

Eggs. If you don’t like eggs or want to make this bowl vegan, you can simply leave the eggs out of sub for some chickpeas! Saute them with the kale to add a bit of flavor. You can also try it with my tofu scramble.

Nuts. Yes! To make this recipe nut free, use my nut free pesto recipe instead! It is made with hemp hearts instead of pine nuts like traditional pesto.

Spruce it up! I like to finish these bowls off with a sprinkle of hemp hearts, red pepper flakes and a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

Try these next!

• Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowl
• Banana Bread Granola
• The Best Egg Salad
• Almond Flour Pancakes

Lastly, if you make this recipe, be sure to leave a comment below and let me know how it turns out! As always, be sure to follow me on instagram and subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes!

5 from 9 votes

Savory Quinoa Breakfast Bowl

by: claire cary

Light, refreshing, and packed with protein, this quinoa breakfast bowl is a simple breakfast that is perfect for meal prep! It’s loaded with fluffy quinoa, sautéed kale, creamy avocado, dairy free pesto and the perfect soft boiled eggs.

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Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 15 minutes mins

Total: 25 minutes mins

2

1x2x3x

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 cup cooked quinoa about 1/3 cup dry
• ▢ 2 cups kale chopped finely with the stems removed
• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon pepper
• ▢ ½ avocado
• ▢ 4 eggs
• ▢ ½ batch dairy free pesto

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• If you haven’t already, prepare the quinoa and the pesto. 
• Bring a small pot of water to a boil and with 1/2 tsp baking soda. This will help the egg shell come off easily when it’s time to peel. 
• When the water has boiled, reduce the heat to low and use a slotted spoon to carefully add in the eggs. 
• Turn the heat back up to a boil and immediately a timer for 6 1/2 minutes. This amount of time will yield a soft boiled egg, but you can leave the eggs in the boiling water for up to 14 minutes for a hard boiled egg. What I have pictured is 6 1/2 minutes. 
• Once the time is up, add the eggs into a bowl of ice water. This will immediately stop the cooking process and also make it easier to peel the eggs. 
• While the eggs are sitting, add the chopped kale to a pan with the olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper and saute for just a few minutes until the kale wilts. It will become a very dark green color. 
• Carefully tap the bottom of the egg onto a hard surface (a counter works well) to get a crack in the shell. Use your fingers to peel off the rest of the shell. 
• Assemble your bowls with a base of quinoa and top with the kale, sliced avocado, the peeled eggs (sliced in half), pesto and red pepper flakes if desired. Enjoy!

Notes

Once prepared, these bowls will store in the fridge for about 3 days. I suggest saving the avocado until you’re going to eat it so it doesn’t turn brown and keeping the soft boiled eggs in the shell so they don’t dry out. 

If you want to add more flavor to the quinoa, cook it in either vegetable broth or chicken broth instead of water. 

To make this recipe nut free, use my nut free pesto recipe instead!

If you don’t like eggs or want to make this bowl vegan, you can simply leave the eggs out of sub for some chickpeas! Saute them with the kale to add a bit of flavor.

You can add or subtract whatever ingredients you like. Throw in some chopped tomatoes or mushrooms with the kale or add a little hot sauce for spice. 

Serving: 1bowl, as written / Calories: 506kcal / Carbohydrates: 32g / Protein: 21g / Fat: 29g / Fiber: 8.6g / Sugar: 1.5g

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