Shredded chicken, with two kinds of salsa, guacamole, pinto beans all together with cilantro rice with a dollop of sour cream, this is one healthy Chicken Burrito Bowl! There are a lot of components that goes in a Burrito Bowl, and often it can feel intimidating. But trust when I say that I get all this done in less than 40 minutes!
List of the different components added in this Chicken Burrito Bowl
Shredded Chicken – I love shredded chicken in burrito bowl and my recipe of shredded chicken is so easy, and it comes out perfect effortlessly. Packed with flavors, you can use this shredded chicken for other recipes too.
Pinto Beans – My husband needs his share of beans in the Burrito Bowl. I use dried beans that I soak overnight, which makes it faster to cook in an electric cooker.
Salsa verde / Green Sala –We make this tomatillo salsa a lot, and it works great not only in this easy Chicken Burrito Bowl but also as a dip.
Tomato Sala / Pico de Gallo – This is everybody’s favorite tomato salsa, easy chopping and mixing.
Corn – I love corn in this Shredded Chicken Burrito Bowl. It adds a mild sweetness at every spoonful, which works beautifully with all the other components.
Guacamole – For me, it is impossible to enjoy a burrito bowl with a heap spoon of guac on the side.
Cilantro Rice – You can use brown rice or quinoa if you like. You could also just use salad instead of rice.
All these components I make at home, and it comes together very quickly. Apart from these I definitely need sour cream, some chips and my son need extra dose of cheese on top. It was a fun Mexican Bowl feast!
How to make shredded Chicken for the Burrito Bowl
I marinate the chicken overnight with the spice rub that I make at home. It’s just a handful of spice powder. You could, simultaneously, use whatever spice blend you choose.
Chicken Thigh with bone is what I often prefer, but you can use boneless meat too.
I cook the chicken in my electric cooker by placing the wire rack inside. I prefer to cook the chicken in broth for extra flavor, but you can use water too.
Layer the chicken on the wire rack and then pressure cook for 13 minutes.
Remember to shred the chicken while it is still slightly hot. I just use two fork, and it falls apart easily.
Preparing the Pinto Beans
My husband loves beans in a Chicken Burrito Bowl.
You can use canned beans too for a super fast cooking process.
For dried beans, just soak them overnight and once the chicken is cooked, remove the wire and add the soaked beans to the broth. It takes about 30 minutes to cook. I also add some sliced onion along with the beans.
Preparing the toppings
Cilantro Rice - I like white rice, but you can use brown rice too. Just mix chopped cilantro leaves and salt to cooked rice along with little salt and your cilantro rice is ready.
Salsa verde or green salsa - We love green salsa. I often make a big batch as it lasts very well in the refrigerator. The color too stays quite vibrant.
I use tomatillo, jalapeño, garlic and cilantro. You can just blend it all together, and it's done. But, I prefer to char it on grill on a pan before I blend as it adds a mild smoky flavor too.
The sauce says bright green for a long time.
Sweet corn - I boil some sweet corn for a few minutes then mix butter, salt and pepper.
Pico de Gallo (Tomato Salsa) - Red onion, tomato, cilantro leaves is chopped into very tiny pieces, and mixed with salt, freshly cracked black pepper and lemon juice.
Guacamole - I make guacamole right at the end just before serving. Cilantro leaves, onion, jalapeño is mixed with avocado, lemon juice and salt.
Enjoy Chicken Burrito Bowl warm as soon as prepared.
Can you make this dish in advance?
Except for Guacamole, I do make everything in advance! And I make everything in big bulk, so I can enjoy it for a couple of days.
If you are missing your Chipotle Burrito Bowl, try this simple Chicken Burrito Bowl as home.
You could wrap everything in tortilla and enjoy as burrito wrap. Or use the shredded chicken, beans and rice to make Chicken Enchilada. Endless options and it always results in a delicious meal.
RECIPES TO TRY:
Tawa Chicken Taco
Chicken Enchiladas with Green Chutney
Chicken Tostadas
Chicken Burrito Bowl
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 2 chicken thighs (bone in)
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon dreid oregeno
- 2 tablespoons paprika powder
- 2 tablespoons cumin powder
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 2 tablepsoons lemon juice
- 2 cups chicken broth or water
for the beans
- ½ cup dried pinto beans
- 1 small red onion (sliced)
For the Green Salsa/ Salsa Verde
- 4 tomatillos
- 3 jalapenos
- 2 garlic cloves
- handful of fresh cilantro leaves
For sweet corn topping
- 2 cups sweet corn
- 1 tablespoon butter
- Pinch of salt
- Freshly cracked pepper
For the Cilantro Rice
- 2 cups cooked rice
- ⅓ cup fresh cilantro (finely chopped)
for Tomato Salsa/ Pico De Gallo
- 1 small onion (finely chopped)
- 1 tomato (finely chopped)
- ⅓ cup cilantro leaves (finely chopped)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- Salt as per taste
- Freshly cracked pepper
For Guacamole
- cilantro leaves (finely chopped, about 1 cup)
- 1 jalapeno (finely chopped)
- 1 small red onion (finely chopped)
- 2 avocados
- Fresh lemon/lime juice (about 1 and ½ tablespoons)
- salt to taste
Instructions
- In a bowl add all the dry spices mentioned for chicken marination, mix it with oil. Then score the chicken thigh and massage the spice paste all around. Let it marinate for at least 4 hours, or overnight for the best flavor.
- Also soak the dried beans in enough water for overnight.
- In an electric pressure cooker ( I used Mealthy Multipot), pour the broth and player the wire rack on top. Then layer the chicken thighs on the wire rack. Cover with the lid, seal the vent and then select pressure cooker. Let it cook for 13 minutes. Don't release the presure when done, let it release on it's own.
- Then open the lid, and remove the chicken pieces from there to a tray. Remove the rack and to the same broth, add the beans. Also add the sliced onion. I did add any extra salt because the broth had salt. Select bean mode and cook for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, let the steam release on it's own and then open the lid.
- While the bean cooks prepare rest of the topping.
- Start by shredding the chicken using two forks. It shreds faster and quite easily when you do this while the chicken is still hot. You might want to gets your hands in to remove all the meat you can. Then set it aside once done and discard the bones.
- Next up, the green salsa! In a cast iron skillet in medium high heat, layer the jalapeno, tomatilla and garlic. Remove the peel of the tomatilla and garlic. Do not trim off the stems of the jalapeno. Char it for 5 minutes tossing and turning. Once done, cover and leave aside for 5 minutes. The heat will soften the tomatillo and jalapenos.
- After 5 minutes, put everything in a blender (remove the stems of the jalapeno). Add the cilantro that wa kept aside for the green salsa. Season with salt and blend to either smooth texture or course as per your liking. Please note that the measurement will make lot more than you need, just store in air tight glass jar and keep in the refrigeartor. It stays vibrant green for several days and tastes amazing as dip too.
- Next, make the tomato salsa. Put all the ingredients mentioned for the tomato salsa to a bowl, mix and keep aside.
- For the sweet corn toppings, Just boil the frozen corn for 5 minutes then strain it to a bowl. Add the butter, salt, pepper and keep aside.
- To make the cilantro rice, mix the chopped cilantro to cooked rice along with salt for seasoning.
- Prepare the guacamole, by mashing the avcados in a big bowl. Add the chopped onion, chopped jalapeno, cilantro leaves, lemon juice and salt. Mxi it around and mash it. Keep in mind that this is one topping you want to make right at the end so it stays fresh green and vibrant.
- By the time you are done prepping the toppings, the beans should be cooked. Because it was cooked in the broth, it needed no extra seasoning ot spices. If you feel it's too watery, then sleect the saute mode and reduce the water as per your liking.
- After from all these toppings, I also like sourcream, shredded cheese and some chips to complete this Chicken Burrito Bowl feast.
- Add toppings as per your liking and enjoy it warm.
mjskitchen
This is definitely my kind of meal. Everything fresh, thrown into a bowl for a complete meal AND with lots and lots of flavors. An awesome bowl of food.