Southwest Chicken Bowl
Southwest Chicken Bowls are made with honey-chipotle chicken, roasted peppers and onions, rice, black beans, and corn, all finished with the same sweet and smoky vinaigrette used to marinate the chicken.
Servings: 4
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
- Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs both work. Cut the chicken into similar-size pieces so it cooks evenly.
- Adjust the heat: Taste the honey-chipotle vinaigrette before adding it to the chicken. Use less chipotle for a milder sauce, or add a little more honey if you want to soften the heat.
- Keep the reserved vinaigrette separate: Divide the sauce before it touches the raw chicken so the remaining half is safe to drizzle over the finished bowls.
- For a salad version: Swap the rice for chopped romaine and build the bowls the same way.
- Doneness: Cook the chicken until the thickest pieces reach 165°F.
- Storage: Refrigerate leftovers for up to 4 days. For meal prep, keep the vinaigrette and fresh toppings separate and add them after reheating.
- Freezing: The chicken, rice, beans, and corn can be frozen for up to 2 months. The roasted vegetables will be softer after thawing, so I prefer adding fresh toppings and vinaigrette after reheating.
Nutrition
Serving: 1.5cup | Calories: 531kcal | Carbohydrates: 61g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 678mg | Potassium: 792mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 1113IU | Vitamin C: 50mg | Calcium: 48mg | Iron: 2mg