Easy Chicken Burrito Bowls
These easy chicken burrito bowls are piled high with cilantro lime rice, roasted corn, flavorful chicken, black beans and all the toppings your heart desires.
This quick and simple meal has become one of our go-to weeknight dinners! Best part? Everyone can customize their own plate (which is perfect for picky eaters!).
Why These Chicken Burrito Bowls are So Easy
These burrito bowls are a perfect weeknight meal! Many of the components can be prepped ahead of time making it even easier.
- Chicken + Marinade: Marinate the chicken for as short as one hour or up to eight hours. And if you’re in a time crunch, just give the chicken a couple minutes to bask in the marinade, and then cook it up – the flavor won’t be quite as pronounced, but the chicken will still be delicious.
- Toppings: Chop and prep all the toppings ahead of time, if needed.
- Beans: Drain and rinse the beans ahead of time and store in a container in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
- Rice: This recipe is a perfect way to use up leftover rice of any sort, like cilantro lime rice, garlic butter rice, cooked white or brown rice, etc. Other types of ingredients can be used in place of rice, like quinoa. I’ve included my favorite way to make cilantro lime rice in the recipe below.
Cooking Options: Cook the chicken in a skillet on the stovetop or in an air fryer. Instructions are included for both in the recipe. The chicken cooks with the marinade, making it extremely flavorful and delicious.
Key Ingredients for Chicken Burrito Bowls
So many of the ingredients for this recipe are easily adaptable if you need to swap in or out based on food allergies, food preferences, or what you have on hand.
- Chicken: Use boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chicken tenders or chicken thighs.
- Marinade: The simple marinade is a combination of olive oil, lime juice, red wine vinegar, chili powder, cumin, oregano and salt.
- Black beans: Canned black beans, rinsed and drained, add heartiness, protein and fiber. Other varieties of canned beans can be easily subbed in for the black beans.
- Corn: Many different types of corn will work in this recipe: canned corn kernels, rinsed and drained. Frozen corn kernels, thawed and patted dry (no need to cook). Fresh corn kernels, cut off the cob (no need to cook). For a tasty variation, I love using the frozen roasted corn from Trader Joe’s.Â
- Rice: Cooked brown rice, white rice, or quinoa works great in this recipe. For different flavor variations, you can use Mexican-style rice, cilantro lime rice, garlic butter rice, coconut rice, etc.
- Dressing: Homemade or store bought cilantro lime dressing can be used, as well as another type of dressing (like ranch). This is my go-to recipe for cilantro lime dressing.
And Don’t Forget…Toppings Galore: The beauty of this recipe is that you can use whatever toppings your heart desires! Our favorites are shredded cheese, chopped tomatoes and avocados, shredded lettuce, and crushed tortilla chips.
Additional Tips and Notes
This recipe is so easy to level up or keep simple (per the recipe).
Here are my favorite ways to level up these chicken burrito bowls:
- Make homemade cilantro lime dressing (this stuff is drinkable, it is so good). It keeps well in the fridge for a week or so.
- Simmer the beans with 1/2 to 1 cup of green or red salsa for about 5 to 10 minutes before serving. This adds tremendous flavor and a bit of extra sauciness.
- Use roasted corn – my favorite easy hack is to grab the frozen, roasted corn from Trader Joe’s. So tasty!
- Make cilantro lime rice (my favorite way to make it is in the notes of the recipe). While other types of rice can be used, these bowls are out-of-this-world delicious with cilantro lime rice.
Customizable, adaptable, and SUPER CRAZY DELICIOUS, recipes like this are my all-time favorite. I could eat some variation of these chicken burrito bowls every night of the week. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!
Easy Chicken Burrito Bowls
Ingredients
Chicken + Marinade:
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar (see note)
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced, or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon coarse, kosher salt
- Pinch of black pepper
Bowls:
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 ½ to 2 cups corn kernels (see note)
- 3 cups cooked brown rice, white rice, cilantro lime rice, or quinoa (see note)
- Cilantro lime dressing or other dressing of choice (see note)
Toppings:
- Chopped lettuce, tomatoes, avocados, shredded cheese, sour cream, salsa, crushed tortilla chips, chopped cilantro, olives, etc.
Instructions
- For the chicken, dice the chicken into 1/2 to 1-inch pieces and place in a resealable bag or bowl.
- Whisk together the olive oil, fresh lime juice, red wine vinegar, garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper. Pour over the chicken and toss to coat. Cover (or seal the bag) and refrigerate for one hour or up to 8 hours.
- Cook the chicken on the stovetop or in an air fryer.
- Stovetop: Pour the chicken and marinade into a nonstick skillet set over medium heat. Spread the chicken into an even layer and let cook undisturbed for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir or flip and continue cooking until the chicken is cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes longer.
- Air Fryer: Preheat an air fryer to 375 degrees for 2 to 3 minutes. Pour the chicken and marinade into the basket. Cook for 7 to 8 minutes until cooked through.
- To assemble, scoop a serving of rice or quinoa into a bowl or plate. Add chicken, black beans, corn, and whatever toppings you like. Drizzle with dressing. Enjoy!
Notes
Red Wine Vinegar: If you don’t have this type of vinegar, you can sub lime juice (bringing the total amount of lime juice to 1/4 cup) or another preferred type of light vinegar.
Corn: Many different types of corn will work in this recipe. Canned corn kernels, rinsed and drained. Frozen corn kernels, thawed and patted dry (no need to cook). Fresh corn kernels, cut off the cob (no need to cook). For a tasty variation, I love using the frozen roasted corn from Trader Joe’s.Â
Rice: These bowls are super delicious with cilantro lime rice. But you can use whatever rice you have on hand (cooked quinoa works well, too). For the cilantro lime rice pictured in this recipe, in a saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups white jasmine rice, 2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a vigorous simmer, cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook for 16 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes. Fluff the rice and stir in zest of 1 lime, 4 tablespoons fresh lime juice, and 1/4 cup chopped cilantro. (This recipe is the one in my cookbook using water instead of broth and stirring in the zest and lime juice after cooking.)
Dressing: This is my go-to recipe for cilantro lime dressing. Store bought cilantro lime dressing can be used, as well as another type of dressing (like ranch).Â
Serving: 1 serving, Calories: 641kcal, Carbohydrates: 82g, Protein: 41g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 97mg, Sodium: 378mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 2g
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
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We just can’t do cilantro in our family.  I am comfortable using a different rice, but do you have a suggestion for a sub for the dressing?  I thought ranch, but that doesn’t sound flavorful enough.
I bet a chipotle ranch would be good or I often use ranch and hot sauce together.
You could try salsa ranch- simply mix some salsa into a ranch dressing base.