What’s the difference between a salad and a bowl? It’s a question I ponder every time I order a bowl, and ask the server, “Instead of the rice, would you mind using salad greens as a base?” One of my (many) pet peeves is a restaurant bowl that’s 75% white rice — I toss/waste most of it. Which begs the question: if I order a bowl and ask for it to be made with lettuce, does it become a salad? Or is it still a bowl? Perhaps a salad bowl?

For deep questions such as this, I turn to my new techno-friend, ChatGPT. Here’s what it (he/she/they?) told me:

In salads, everything’s all mixed up, and in a bowl, ingredients tend to be separated, artistically arranged atop a base of grain like quinoa or barley.

ChatGPT’s job is to be a know-it-all, so I also learned:

  • Bowls are modern, trendy, often Instagram-worthy, and suggest a full meal, and
  • Because salads are typically served as sides, when eaten as a full meal, they suggest someone is dieting.

I decided to push harder, with a tougher question:

Q: Why does labeling a meal a salad or a bowl even matter?

A: “Don’t overthink it,” Chatgpt told me.“It’s your food. Call it whatever makes you want to eat it. Some days it’s a salad, some days it’s “stuff I dumped in a bowl and called lunch.”

And to that I say, bon appétit! … While noting the irony of a computer program admonishing me not to overthink.

Summer Salads & Bowls That Can Swing Both Ways

Lemon Tahini Bowl: Full disclosure: I have never made this bowl exactly as the recipe specifies. I’m not a fan of beets, so I typically double-up on the broccoli. The beauty of bowls is their uber-customizability. The star of this one is the simple, flavor-packed dressing. The tahini base, rich in anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory super-powers, can be thinned (with water!) for salads made with delicate leaves, or thickened up for their tougher cousins, spinach and kale.

Summer Buddha Bowl with Turmeric Chickpeas: Nothing says summer like corn on the cob, cherry tomatoes, fresh zucchini, and arugula. This one has it all. Tofu and chickpeas add a ton of protein, for those gorgeous (not too) sunny days when you just can’t stop hiking, biking, or doing whatever people do to train for a marathon or triathlon. (This recipe is for my friend Dan, a 60-year old, whose time in the Boston Marathon decreased when he went 100% plant-based).

Banh Mi Noodle Bowl: I love, love, love rice noodles, and this bowl calls for the right amount, 2 ounces — unlike most bowls of my favorite soup, pho, which often contain what seems to be a pound of noodles. If you like pickled veggies and a bit of sriracha heat, this bowl’s for you.

Tropical Quinoa Salad Bowl with BBQ Chickpeas: Looks like Jessica in the Kitchen struggled with the distinction between salads and bowls, too. According to Jessica (and me), this doubles as a salad and a bowl. Maple-lime quinoa, chickpeas smothered in BBQ sauce and warmed until they become sticky, rest Instagram-ably on a bowl of greens. Yep. It’s both grain and greens. And a perfect hot weather meal – no matter what it’s called. Or whether or not you snap a photo before you dig in.

Gluten-Free Baked Falafel: This is not a bowl or salad, per se, but rather an ingredient that lives as happily in a bowl as it does in a salad. Go wild, and fold it with salad ingredients into a soft tortilla, and call it a wrap! The falafels are a great way to use up all the parsley and cilantro in your herb garden, yearning to be picked. (Hint: Whatever you do with the falafel, drizzle it with the Lemon Tahini Bowl dressing).