Healthy Fajita Chicken Burrito Bowls
Delicious chicken burrito bowls are loaded with fajita chicken, bell peppers, black beans, sweet corn, red onion, cilantro lime rice, fresh romaine lettuce, avocado and an easy cilantro lime dressing. This burrito bowl recipe is super versatile and perfect for meal prep dinner or lunch. These easy, flavorful burrito bowls are sure to become a family favorite!
I finally tried making burrito bowls at home. And I’m in love. They’re so easy and fast to meal prep too!
I’ve made this recipe a couple of times now and it’s perfect for cooking up on Sunday afternoon and then dividing out the portions into meal containers for lunches or dinners for the next several days. Winning!
what is a burrito bowl?
A burrito bowl is a bowl filled with any burrito fillings that you’re craving, but without the tortilla. Burrito bowls usually contain a base layer of rice or cauliflower rice, and a filling made up of beans and vegetables. Then, they get topped off with a dressing or sauce. You can add any extras that you please, like avocado, lemon wedges, and/or cheese. I love to bulk up my bowls with crisp, fresh shredded romaine lettuce. Burrito bowl recipes are completely customizable! Go ahead and add in your favorite ingredients and feel free to substitute my suggestions with your own preferences.
ingredients for chicken burrito bowls
A good burrito bowl can really contain anything you like. Don’t get bogged down by the list of ingredients, just use your favorites and ones that you have on hand. Here’s what I love to use:
- Rice. You can use any rice that you have available, even the quick microwavable variety works great. But for the BEST flavor, I highly recommend my cilantro lime rice recipe or cilantro lime cauliflower rice.
- Fajita chicken + bell peppers. These are fajita chicken burrito bowls, so I seasoned my chicken with taco seasoning and cooked the chicken and peppers up like I would if were making fajitas. You could also use fajita seasoning to flavor the chicken. Another great protein option for your burrito bowl is to use crockpot salsa chicken instead of the fajita chicken.
- Vegetables. In this burrito bowl, we’re using a mix of black beans, corn, red onion, and romaine lettuce. Add in or take away as you prefer!
- Dressing. The cilantro lime dressing for this chicken burrito bowl is incredible! However, if you’re short on time, Trader Joe’s cilantro dressing is one of my favorites and Bolthouse makes a delicious avocado ranch that would be a tasty option.
- Extras. Experiment with flavors and top your bowl with any favorites! My husband likes to add Pico de Gallo, guacamole and jalapeños and I always top my bowl with shredded cheese, avocado slices and a squeeze of lime juice. Yum!
Pro tip: Want to make your bowl vegetarian? Simply omit the chicken!
how to make chicken burrito bowls
Just a few simple steps and you’ll have the most flavorful burrito bowl ever!
- Cook the rice. If you’re making my cilantro lime rice, you’ll want to get that cooking. It’s effortless, but does take about 20 minutes to cook. While that’s cooking, you can be preparing other ingredients for your burrito bowl.
- Prepare the chicken and bell peppers. Season and cook both the chicken and bell peppers in a skillet over medium high heat.
- Make the dressing. While the chicken is cooking, you can stir together the ingredients for the dressing.
- Assemble your burrito bowl. Once all of your burrito bowl ingredients are prepped and ready, it’s time to put everything together in a bowl. See below for details on how I like to assemble my burrito bowl.
assemble your burrito bowl
How you put ingredients together to make your burrito bowl is really just a matter of preference, but here’s my favorite way to layer all of the burrito bowl components.
- Base layer. Start with a base of rice and chopped or shredded lettuce (if using). Top with sliced chicken and bell peppers.
- Filling layer. Arrange the vegetables – beans, corn, and red onion and any others to the sides and over the top.
- Add extras. Additional ingredients can be added before or after you drizzle on the dressing. These can be added over the top or to the sides. There’s no wrong way to make a burrito bowl!
- Dressing. Drizzle your sauce or dressing over the top and finish the bowl off with freshly chopped cilantro, a squeeze of lime juice, salt, and pepper to taste and enjoy!
burrito bowl variations
I’m obsessed with this chicken burrito as written! It’s my go-to and I very rarely change it up, but here are some other ingredient options that would be equally wonderful.
Base
- white rice
- brown rice
- tortilla chips
- cauliflower rice
- quinoa
- spaghetti squash
- lettuce
Filling
- chicken, shrimp, ground beef, ground turkey, salmon, cod
- beans (black, kidney, garbanzo, refried or pinto)
- vegetables (zucchini, bell peppers, carrots, onion, mushrooms, corn or chili peppers)
- tomatoes or cherry tomatoes
- lentils
- roasted, cubed sweet potato or butternut squash
Sauce/Dressing
- salsa
- taco sauce
- sour cream or Greek yogurt
- cottage cheese
- guacamole
- any Mexican style dressing
Extras
- grated or crumbled cheese
- sliced avocado
- lime juice
- jalapeños
- Pico de Gallo
- diced mango or pineapple
- fresh cilantro
storing leftover burrito bowls
Burrito bowls can last about 5 days in the refrigerator. The cooked ingredients can be stored together (chicken, rice, bell peppers). This will allow you to conveniently reheat them in the microwave all together. I suggest storing the chilled components in separate containers (lettuce, beans, corn, onion), so they will stay as fresh as possible.
how to meal prep burrito bowls
Burrito bowls are fabulous to make in advance and enjoy later. You’ll just want to be sure to pack the cooked ingredients together and the fresh ingredients separately. I like to make individual servings in meal prep containers. Here’s how:
- Divide cooked and cooled rice between 4-6 containers.
- Top with cooked and cooled chicken, bell peppers, beans and corn. Cover and store in the fridge.
- Prep lettuce and red onion and any other fresh ingredients in separate plastic bags or airtight containers, so you can reheat the warm ingredients without heating the fresh ingredients.
- Make cilantro lime dressing and divide into 6 small airtight containers.
- I store everything in one spot in my fridge, so it’s all easy to grab, place in a lunchpack and go!
I hope you guys love these flavorful, veggie-packed burrito bowls as much as my family does! They’re healthy, crowd pleasing and way better than anything you could get at chipotle!
These are great to have prepped and ready for those times when we want something substantial and nutritious on the table fast (story of my life). No matter what combination of ingredients you decide to use, it’s sure to be amazing! Serve with chips, homemade salsa and jalapeño margaritas for extra deliciousness!
If you try this chicken burrito bowl recipe, let me know! Leave a comment and if your family loves it as much as mine does, be sure to give it a five star ⭐️ rating! Also, tag @kimscravings on Instagram with a picture of your creation. It’s so fun to see what you’re cooking! Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more healthy delicious recipes straight to your inbox.
Chicken Burrito Bowls
Ingredients
For the rice:
For the chicken and peppers:
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenders
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 3 tablespoons white flour , (use gluten-free flour as needed)
- 1-2 tablespoons olive or avocado oil
- 2 large bell peppers, cut into strips (any color)
For the dressing:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice , (about 1 lime)
- 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
For the burrito bowls:
- 5 cups romaine lettuce leaves, washed and dried
- 1 (14-15 ounce) can corn, drained and rinsed
- 1 (14-15 ounce) can black beans or other preferred beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 red onion, chopped
- 1 avocado , peeled, seeded and sliced
- Optional toppings: guacamole, pico de gallo, low-fat sour cream, salsa, fresh cilantro
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
For the rice:
- Start the rice cooking first, as it will take the longest. Use my Cilantro Lime Rice recipe or another favorite rice. Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice works great too for a lower carb option.
For the chicken and peppers:
- If not using raw chicken tenders, ground chicken breasts to even, thin pieces or slice large breasts evenly in 2 halves. Salt and pepper the chicken pieces. In a bowl, stir together the taco seasoning and white flour. Generously dredge each piece of the chicken breasts in this mixture.
- Warm a large, non-stick skillet with oil to medium high heat. Once the oil is heated, add the chicken to a single layer in the skillet. Cook for 3 minutes on one side and then flip to the other side and cook for another 4-6 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Set aside to allow to cool.
- Add the peppers to the same heated skillet (no need to wash skillet and drizzle with a little extra oil only if needed), and cook until soft and slightly charred. Season with salt and pepper.
For the dressing:
- In a small bowl, large glass measuring cup or jar, add dressing ingredients and whisk to combine.
Assembly:
- Chop or slice the cooked and cooled chicken.
- Coarsely chop the lettuce into small pieces.
- Place lettuce on the bottom of 4 bowls. Divide the rice, chicken, peppers, corn, black beans, onion and avocado evenly among the bowls.
- Top each bowl with toppings of your choice and, if using, drizzle dressing evenly over the bowls.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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A new favorite for my family! I prepped these to have on hand for the busy work week and it was so convenient and tasty! Thanks for a great recipe!
I always love a good bowl and this was so delicious and healthy. A new favorite!
This was so tasty and nutritious! Even my picky husband enjoyed this recipe! Lol
Five star rating for a five star recipe! My whole family loved this!
I just got home from the grocery store and I can’t believe I forgot rice! I have tri-colored quinoa I’m gonna use as a replacement
This was awesome. I love that it’s nutritious and it tastes great. It also gives you a lot of flexibility with what you season it with. Great recipe!
These fajita bowls are so delicious. I am a vegetarian just didn’t add the chicken. Really enjoyed this colorful dish!
Yum! This was so good. I made the recipe as written and it is definitely a new favorite that I’ll be making again and again!
We made this with leftover chicken and rice and loved it. Your dressing was so delicious. I’ll be making that for other salads too!