Every now and then I like to share things with you that aren’t exactly “recipes” but are just the random bowl meals that I make out of things found in my fridge. I’ve discovered so many great flavor combinations by experimenting with these bowl meals and I hope they inspire you as well. This Cottage Cheese Crab Bowl is my most recent favorite. It’s light and fresh for this early summer heat, but still filling enough to serve as a whole meal (for me, at least).
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What’s In This Bowl
This cottage cheese crab bowl was inspired by the classic sushi roll, the California roll, which contains crab (or often times imitation crab), cucumber, and avocado. I had been seeing imitation crab every time I stopped and Aldi and I eventually started craving it, so I bought a pack, I grabbed a cucumber, and threw them on top of the cottage cheese I had in my fridge. I also went a step further and sprinkled on a little bit of Everything Bagel Seasoning, and a light drizzle of sriracha for fun. It’s not fancy, but it’s soooo good!
P.S. If you have avocado on hand, it would go marvelously with these flavors, just like it does in the California roll.
What is Everything Bagel Seasoning?
Everything bagel seasoning has been taking the food market by storm lately. It’s basically the mix of ingredients that you’d find on top of an “everything” bagel, or sesame seeds, poppy seeds, flakey salt, dehydrated garlic, and dehydrated onion. I’m not sure who marketed this seasoning blend first, but the first time I saw it was at Trader Joes. It’s gotten so popular lately that several other grocery stores are now making their own version, including Kroger and Aldi.
What is Imitation Crab?
Imitation crab might throw some people off, and I totally get it. Imitation crab is basically fish that has been processed to taste and look more like crab. It’s probably not the most wholesome choice of proteins, but it’s so much less expensive than real crab and since I only eat it maybe once a year, I’m not going to sweat it. I’m all about everything in moderation, and I encourage everyone to make the food choices that they are comfortable with. Here is a great article from Healthline breaking down exactly what imitation crab is and how it compares to real crab, so you can decide for yourself: What is Imitation Crab and Should I Eat It?
Can I Substitute…
The whole idea of a “bowl meal” is that you allow yourself to be a little experimental, throw in whatever you have, and just go with it. So, can you substitute the imitation crab? Sure, go with what you have. Maybe a soft boiled egg, some canned tuna, real crab, cooked salmon, or smoked salmon. Can you substitute the Everything Bagel Seasoning? Sure, maybe try some plain sesame seeds, or just some freshly cracked pepper and flakey sea salt. Can you substitute the cottage cheese? Sure, try a bed of rice, or maybe some fresh greens. I can’t guarantee you’ll like any of these substitutes, but the point is that you try it and see for yourself. :)
Cottage Cheese Crab Bowl
Servings 1Ingredients
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese ($0.27)
- 1/2 cup chopped cucumber ($0.32)
- 1/3 cup imitation crab ($0.58)
- 1/4 tsp everything bagel seasoning ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp sriracha ($0.02)
Instructions
- Add the cottage cheese, chopped cucumber, and crab meat to a bowl. Top with everything bagel seasoning and a light drizzle of sriracha.
- Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to eat, up to four days.
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Nutrition
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How to Make Cottage Cheese Crab Bowls – Step by Step Photos
Chop about a ½ cup cucumber. Depending on the girth of your cucumber, you may want to either halve or quarter the slices to make them bite-sized.
This is the imitation crab meat that I got at Aldi. You can usually find it in the seafood department in grocery stores, but at Aldi it’s with the seasonal refrigerated items. So I’m not sure if they’ll continue to carry this item forever.
And here is the everything bagel seasoning I used. I’ve used different brands and each seems to have a different salt content, so you may just want to add your seasoning to the bowl according to your tastes. I find that this one from Aldi has a lot more salt than the one from Kroger (I prefer the less salt version).
To make the cottage cheese crab bowl, start with ½ cup cottage cheese, add ½ cup chopped cucumber, about ⅓ cup of the imitation crab, and then sprinkle on some of the everything bagel seasoning (I used ¼ tsp, but would have used more if it had less salt).
Finally, drizzle a little sriracha on top.
Then enjoy! This bowl meal preps really well, so feel free to make a few for easy grab and go lunches later in the week!
Why does this work? It’s tasty, refreshing, and easy to make. I totally wasn’t expecting it to be good.
Haha, I’m right there with ya. 😆
This is so good and refreshing! What an easy lunch to throw together. I found a salt-free everything bagel seasoning, so I can use as much as I want. :D
I didn’t think I’d want sriracha on it, but it definitely helps to tie it all together. The cottage cheese mutes the spice.
Forgot to leave a rating. . . . I
Three of my favorite foods always in my fridge and I never thought to put them together like this. I think it’s because I don’t eat much sushi. Anyway I made this with a couple tweaks; I put olive oil and fresh ground black pepper on the cottage because that’s my favorite way to eat it (wonderful with pita chips), I added a fourth favorite food with diced avocado (everything is better with avocado), and omitted the siracha. It was the perfect lunch after a long hot morning. Thank you for the inspiration – I’ll make this often!
The first time I tried this I used chicken and no seasonings. I didn’t have everything bagle and I’m not aBIG fan of Sriracha. It was sad, boring and tasteless. I just tried it again as written and WOW! It is SO GOOD!! Glad I have it a second chance
I was scared because I’ve never tried cottage cheese before – this was a fantastic step into that world. Texture usually bothers me, but here the curds had the consistency of rice to me, which was very appropriate. This filled my sushi craving wonderfully and didn’t break the bank! I’m really excited to try again with avocado – as well as budget bytes’ other cottage cheese recipes.
I bought my first ever bottle of sriracha and I’m worried it’s going to go to waste, because I’m not loving it, but! This is still a 5/5 recipe. Loved the rest, although I did my own veggies. I steamed 3 broccoli florets and a carrot in the microwave. Anyway, this is the first BudgetBytes recipe I tried and I had my doubts on how filling they would be, but I’m impressed. It kept me full for hours and hours.
I just made this for lunch today, and I’m already excited for lunch tomorrow! I didn’t have the everything bagel season, so I tossed on a couple dashes of soy sauce and OH. MY. YUM.
Its like a deconstructed sushi roll. It put me immediately in my happy place! :)
Loved this idea and see out to make it. I shopped late in the day so the store was out of Krab and Bagel Seasoning. I substituted shrimp and Nori Komi Furikake seasoning. It’s delicious. Thanks for including substitution ideas.
Aldi didn’t have the imitation crab so I picked up some frozen salmon for this. It turned out really great. I’m not all that into cottage cheese but all the flavors mixed together worked really well and this is perfect option for the keto-lite diet I’ve been doing.
I’m gonna try it again without the sriracha because it was so overpowering. It’s got potential.
So let me say that without the sriracha? This tastes exactly like sushi in a bowl. This is wonderful.
Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe
This bowl is so made for summer!
Would never have thought this weird combo of ingredients would taste so good! I’ve had it 3 times this week, and I’m off to Aldi now to restock the fixings for it! I’m addicted! The addition of avocado slices is delicious.
I had this for dinner yesterday and I was surprised that it kept me full well into the night. Thanks for this great, really LC idea!