This taco rice bowl will be your new favorite healthy dinner. Chipotle flavored ground meat, veggies and brown rice.
This blog post is sponsored by Success® Rice. Recipe and opinions are my own.
Table of contents
Why Make This Taco Rice Bowl
This taco rice bowl is an easy weeknight dinner that is perfect for meal prep. You can customize this recipe and change it up a little throughout the week with leftovers. This recipe has a great balance of nutrients. I useSuccess Boil-in-Bag Brown Rice for this recipe, which is easy to cook and leaves no mess, less dishes for cleanup.
With Success’ simple boil-in-bag technique, there’s no measure and no mess while you’re cooking. So, you can whip up some tasty, delicious rice without having to cross your fingers that it turns out perfectly every time! This recipe can be made with ground turkey or beef! Both are great flavorful options. Taco Rice bowls are great to use up leftover produce in the fridge.
Ingredients Needed To Make Taco Rice Bowls
- Ground Turkey. I use 90% lean ground turkey for this recipe. I also use lean ground beef as well for this same recipe. Either will work wonderfully and pair great with the flavors.
- Onion. I like to use yellow onion; it is milder in flavor and offers aromatics.
- Garlic. I always use fresh garlic cloves; it offers the best flavor and aromatics.
- Chipotle Peppers In Adobo Sauce. This adds a little heat, great deep flavor and is wonderful mixed into the meat. You will find this in a can down the international aisle at the grocery store.
- Seasonings. Cumin, salt, pepper, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, oregano. This is my go-to taco seasoning for most of my recipes, I love the combination.
- Tomatoes. These will be chopped and added to the meat mixture. I use roma tomatoes, but any will do, you can also use canned tomatoes, but this will add a little more sodium to the nutrition panel.
- Success Boil-in-Bag Brown Rice. I chose to use brown rice but you can use white rice as well! Both are wonderful with this recipe.
- Black Beans. I love black beans so much and they offer a great texture and fiber to this taco bowl. Feel free to use pinto beans in place.
- Optional Toppings. Fresh cilantro, salsa, cheese, avocado, tortilla chips, sour cream.
How To Make This Recipe
Step One. Start browning your ground meat. Heat oil in a skillet or nonstick pan on medium/high heat. Add the ground meat. Once the meat has browned, about 5-8 minutes later, add in spices, chopped garlic, chopped onion, chopped tomatoes, jalapeño, tomato paste. Mix everything together.
Step Two. With a small blender, blend up chipotle peppers and water so it's a smooth consistency. Add it to the meat mixture and let it simmer for a few minutes. Meanwhile, get the rice cooked according to the package.
Step Three. Set meat aside and assemble your bowls. Add the rice, ground meat mixture top with chopped cilantro, salsa, cheese and any other mix ins you enjoy with your tacos. I love to add sour cream and avocado.
Tips & FAQ's
Yes, you can make this taco rice bowl with quinoa or white rice if you do not want to use brown rice.
Make this recipe healthier by using lean ground turkey or chicken. Skip the cheese and you will save yourself some calories.
I do not find this recipe very spicy. I would say it is on a medium to mild level. If you are very sensitive to spice, skip the jalapeño and cut the chipotle measurement back a bit with only 3 tbsp of chipotle peppers and adobo sauce.
Make Ahead & Storage Tips
To Make Ahead. Make these taco rice bowls for meal prep by cooking and assembling the bowls. Keep all the fresh ingredient toppings off and to the side until you are ready to serve (avocado, lettuce, tomato, sour cream).
Storage Tips. To store leftovers, keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat by covering and microwaving for 2-3 minutes.
You can also freeze this recipe for up to 3 months. Just keep all fresh toppings off or to the side until you are ready to serve.
Recipe Variations
Meat. Use ground beef, ground chicken or a vegan substitute in place of the ground turkey.
Rice. Use any grain of choice. Cauliflower rice will also work.
Beans. Swap black beans for pinto beans or refried beans.
Veggies. Add chopped zucchini, spinach and mushrooms to the meat mixture to pack in more veggies.
Instead of chipotle peppers, you can use your favorite salsa in place of it or in addition.
Other Taco Inspired Recipes To Enjoy
If you loved this recipe let me know! Also, follow me on Instagram & Pinterest for even more fun recipes to make you feel good from the inside out. Thanks for being here.
Taco Rice Bowl
Equipment
- 1 large skillet or nonstick pan
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ⅓ cup onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 lb lean ground turkey
- 2 cups brown rice or 2 bags of Success Boil-in-Bag Brown Rice
- 4 tbsp water
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ¼ cup chipotle peppers in adobo sauce *see notes
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 3 roma tomatoes, chopped
Optional Toppings
- ⅓ cup shredded cheese
- 1 15oz can of black beans *see notes
- ⅓ cup salsa for topping
- 1 small jalapeño optional
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro
- 1 lime optional for extra flavor
- 1 avocado, sliced
Instructions
- Start browning the ground meat. Heat oil in a skillet or non stick pan in medium/high heat. Add the ground meat. Once the meat has browned, about 5-8 minutes later, add in spices, chopped garlic, chopped onion, chopped tomatoes, jalapeño, tomato paste. Mix everything together.
- With a small blender, blend up chipotle peppers and water so it's a smooth consistency. Add it to the meat mixture and let it simmer for a few minutes. Meanwhile, get the rice cooked according to the package.
- Set meat aside and assemble your bowls. Add the rice, ground meat mixture top with chopped cilantro, salsa, cheese and any other mix-ins you enjoy with your tacos. I love to add sour cream, lime squeeze and avocado.
Christiana
This was so delicious my kiddos loved it, wasn’t too spicy and it had a lot of flavor. Thanks so much!
Morgan Tian
Made this for my boyfriend and we both LOVED it. I used regular white rice and added Eve extra chipotle peppers because we love spicy. Everything came together quickly and it was flavorful.
James
Mmmm. Taco bowls for the win!
Suzan Holl
I love your recipes they have been a big part of my weight loss journey but will please include the serving size?
Thank you❤️ .
Bailey
Hi Suzan! Yes I will be more mindful of filling in the serving sizes for the nutrition label. Serving size is a guesstimate since my calorie calculation doesn’t calculate that at this moment! But often times it’s a 1.5- 2 cups on recipes such as this for four. I hope that helps a bit!
Tammy
This was really good! I used refried beans instead of black beans and wow, like a burrito in a bowl, filling too! I’ll be making this again
Alexis
Loved this! So easy & delicious, perfect for meal prep too!
Bailey
So great to hear that! Thanks so much for making it.
diane
such an easy recipe! it was great for meal prep.