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Southwest Chicken Bowls give a punch of flavor in every bite with the honey chipotle marinade and crisp veggies in every bite. Ready in 30 minutes.
Table of Contents
Why Make Southwest Chicken Bowls
These bowls have stand up flavor. The chipotle honey marinade serves as a base for the chicken and as a “dressing” for the bowls. Its sweet but also has a great heat to it that you can customize to your own level preference.
These bowls are customizable and pack in the veggies. You can choose as many or as little veggies as you like. You can make them low carb by serving over lettuce and ditching the rice. Try my Southwest Salad for a little more crunch.
Ingredients Needed
Chicken Breasts. I use boneless and skinless chicken breasts for this recipe. Try my Ginger Chicken Poke Style Bowls if you love chicken bites!
Chipotle Peppers. Chipotle peppers in adobo come in a can. You can find them in the international aisle in the grocery store. They can be spicy so be sure you get the mild/medium flavor.
Seasonings. Salt, pepper, cumin, paprika, oregano
Cilantro. Fresh cilantro is a big part of the chipotle honey marinade.
Onions. I prefer red onions for this recipe, they hold up great but you can use yellow onions.
Bell Peppers. Use any color of bell pepper you like.
All other ingredients and measurements can be found in the recipe card towards the bottom of this post.
Recipe Variations & Substitutions
Chicken Breasts. You can substitute chicken thighs if you’d like.
Rice. Substitute long grain white rice with any grain of choice. Additionally you can serve this meal with cauliflower rice or over lettuce to make it low carb.
Honey. You can use maple syrup in place of the honey.
Veggies. You can substitute any veggies out to your liking.
Steps To Make Southwest Chicken Bowls
Step One. Make the chipotle honey vinaigrette. Add all the ingredients into a small blender or food processor, pulse until everything is well blended. Add water to the dressing, pulse again and set aside.
Step Two. In a medium bowl, add the cubed chicken and half of the chipotle honey vinaigrette. Save the rest of it to dress the bowls with when serving. mix the chicken to ensure it’s evenly coated. Let the chicken marinate for 20 minutes or overnight.
Step Three. Preheat oven to 375º. On a large baking sheet, add the marinated chicken to half of the sheet. On the other half of the sheet, add the sliced peppers and onions. Spritz the veggies with oil to ensure they don’t stick. Cook for 20-22 minutes or until chicken reached internal temperature of 165º.
Step Four. While the chicken is cooking, start the long grain rice. This typically takes 20 minutes, cook according to package. Once everything is finished cooking, assemble the bowls. I start with rice on the bottom and then add all toppings, chicken and drizzle a generous amount of the honey chipotle vinaigrette over the top.
Recipe FAQs
Make them healthier by skipping the rice! This will cut several calories. You can serve these bowls over chopped romaine instead.
Yes! meal prep these bowls and have a great lunch or dinner ready to go throughout the week. They are also freezer friendly, sealed in an airtight container for up to 2 months.
Recipe Tips
Customize Toppings. Add any toppings of choice! Shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream all make for additional yummy toppings.
Don’t Overcook the Chicken. I high recommend you use a digital thermometer when cooking chicken to ensure the perfect cook!
Taste As You Go. Taste the chipotle honey vinaigrette as you go. If you are sensitive to spice, add less chipotle peppers, blend and taste it before adding more. You may want to adjust with a little honey, more cilantro or seasoning.
Other Chicken Recipes To Try
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Southwest Chicken Bowl
Equipment
- large baking sheet
- small blender or food processor
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breasts, cubed , *see notes
- 1 cup long grain white rice, *optional
- 1 bell pepper, sliced
- 1 small red onion, sliced
- 1 Jalapeño, sliced
- 1 cup corn kernels, thawed
- 1 cup canned black beans, rinsed
Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette
- 2 Tbsp lime, juiced
- 3 Tbsp chipotle peppers in adobo
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro
- 1 Tbsp honey
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- ¼ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp salt, *more as needed
- ½ tsp cumin
- ½ tsp paprika
- 1 clove garlic
Instructions
- Make the chipotle honey vinaigrette. Add all the ingredients into a small blender or food processor, pulse until everything is well blended. Add water to the dressing, pulse again and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, add the cubed chicken and half of the chipotle honey vinaigrette. Save the rest of it to dress the bowls with when serving. mix the chicken to ensure it's evenly coated. Let the chicken marinate for 20 minutes or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 375º. On a large baking sheet, add the marinated chicken to half of the sheet. On the other half of the sheet, add the sliced peppers and onions. Spritz the veggies with oil to ensure they don't stick. Cook for 20-22 minutes or until chicken reached internal temperature of 165º.
- While the chicken is cooking, start the long grain rice. This typically takes 20 minutes, cook according to package. Once everything is finished cooking, assemble the bowls. I start with rice on the bottom and then add all toppings, chicken and drizzle a generous amount of the honey chipotle vinaigrette over the top.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
These bowls were wonderful. They were very easy to make and they really had a ton of flavor. I might even say they are three times better than chipotle planning on making them again this week.
Thank you! Happy to hear this.
I always love when you post bowl recipes. This did NOT disappoint, it was exceptional, spicy and very satisfying. Thank you for all your hard work,
Thank you greatly for the feedback! I appreciate it.
This was a great and easy recipe to follow. These bowls have a lot of kick to them with heat but my kiddos still loved them.
This looks delicious! Can you saute the chicken in a pan on the stove with the dressing/vinaigrette or is best to cook the chicken in the oven? Thanks so much!
Hi Laurie,I haven’t tried it this way, but I suspect it would turnout just as great. Keep the heat on medium/low so you don’t burn the sauce and then turn it up towards the end to give the chicken a little more “char”. Let me know how it goes. xox.-Bailey