CAVA Meal Prep with Honey Harissa Tuna Balls & Saffron Rice
I fear this may become my new hyper fixation… come with me to meal prep CAVA at home! And because it’s tomato girl summer, we’re making Honey Harissa Tuna Balls using canned tuna for all those skin glowing omega-3s, protein, vitamins and minerals!
What we’re meal prepping:
- Buttery saffron rice
- Honey harissa tuna balls – so insanely yummy!!
- Herby cucumber salad
- (quick) Roasted red pepper hummus
- Lemon tahini dressing
- Pickled onions
- Spicy feta
- A few extra sides!
How long does this meal prep last?
Store properly in airtight containers in the fridge, this CAVA meal prep will last 4-5 days!
Cook with me!
CAVA Meal Prep with Honey Harissa Tuna Balls & Saffron Rice
Servings: 4
Ingredients
For the Saffron Rice:
- 1 cup Basmati Rice
- 1 ½ cups Water
- Good pinch of Saffron or ¼ tsp. ground saffron
- 2 tbsp. Unsalted Butter
- 1 tsp. Salt
For the Honey Harissa Tuna Balls:
- 3 cans Wild Planet Foods Wild Albacore Tuna
- 1 large Egg
- 3 tbsp. Fresh Parsley finely chopped
- 1 tsp. EACH: Salt Black Pepper, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, & Paprika
- 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
- ¼ cup Honey
- 2-3 tbsp. Harissa
For the Herby Cucumber Salad:
- 1 English Cucumber chopped
- ½ pint Cherry Tomatoes chopped
- 2 tbsp. Fresh Dill chopped
- 1 tbsp. Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
- Salt & Black Pepper
For the Quick Roasted Red Pepper Hummus:
- 1 can Chickpeas drained
- 1 cup Roasted Red Peppers drained
- 2 tbsp. Tahini
- 1 tbsp. Olive Oil
- Optional 2 Garlic Cloves
- Juice of 1 Lemon
- Salt to taste
For the Lemon Tahini Dressing:
- Juice of 1 Lemon
- ¼ cup Tahini
- ¼ cup Olive Oil
- ¼ cup Red Wine Vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup Water
- 2 tbsp. Fresh Dill finely chopped
For the Pickled Onions:
- 1 large Red Onions thinly sliced
- 1 cup White Vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup Water
- 2 tbsp. Granulated Cane Sugar
- 1 tbsp. Salt
For the Spicy Feta:
- 6-8 oz. Crumbled Feta
- 1-2 Jalapenos finely chopped
For Additional Sides:
- Fresh Cilantro chopped
- Avocado
- Arugula & Kale Mix
Instructions
For the Saffron Rice:
- In a glass with 3 tablespoons boiling hot water, stir in the saffron. Let sit as you prep the rice.
- Add the rice to a pot and rinse thoroughly under running water until water runs clear. Drain of any excess water.
- In the same pot, add the butter to sauté the rice 2-3 minutes over medium high heat.
- Stir in the salt and 1 ½ cups water. Bring to a boil, then cover with the lid to simmer on LOW for 15-20 minutes.
- Fluff the rice with a fork then stir in the saffron mixture. Let cool completely before storing.
For the Honey Harissa Tuna Balls:
- Carefully open and drain the canned tuna. Add to a bowl with the egg, parsley, and seasoning. Mash together with a fork until very well combined.
- Press into 10-12 balls.
- Add the olive oil to a skillet over medium high heat. Once hot, sear the tuna balls on each side for about 1 minute, until browned.
- Remove from the skillet to a plate, then reduce heat to medium to add the honey and harissa. Stir for 1-2 minutes, until the mixture becomes a thick glaze. Spoon over the tuna balls, then let completely cool before storing away in an airtight container.
For the Herby Cucumber Salad:
- Combine all ingredients until well combined. Store in an airtight container.
- For the Quick Roasted Red Pepper Hummus:
- Combine all ingredients in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Season with salt to taste.
For the Lemon Tahini Dressing:
- Combine all ingredients in an airtight container. Shake or mix to combine. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
For the Pickled Onions:
- Combine all ingredients in 16 oz jar. Store away in the fridge. It takes about 2 hours to overnight to pickle the onions.
For the Spicy Feta:
- In an airtight container, alternate layering the crumbled feta and finely chopped jalapenos. Seal with the lid and store in the fridge.
I truly hope you all enjoy this treasured recipe that has nestled its way into our hearts here in the ABM kitchen! ’till next time… xxL
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” ~ Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
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This was incredible – I see this definitely becoming a hyper fixation meal for me for the foreseeable future. Absolutely flavor packed. Admittedly have never been to Cava, so I can’t vouch for how close it is to theirs, but I can tell you this is beyond delicious.
This recipe is fire. I didn’t have enough tahini to make the dressing and didn’t care to make the feta and it was still so bomb. I also skimmed the instructions for the tuna balls and accidentally just mixed everything together. I ended up baking the whole thing in a low broil for about 15 minutes and it was still extremely good!! I love this whole thing!!
So yummy, took me much longer to actually make
Prepped the tuna meatballs and accidentally added the honey and harissa in the mix instead of using it for the glaze, and it still tasted so yummy! I was impressed that the tuna meatballs don’t really taste fishy once you put all the ingredients together, which I loved. I will say just doing the rice and meatballs took me an hour. I think this is a good recipe if you have a slow day at home and can take breaks between prepping, otherwise it’s at least 2-3 hours in the kitchen and a lot of cleaning up.
this is soooo much better than cava… i did skip on making hummus and the dressing. next time, i will definitely try making them by scratch 🙂