Southwest Chicken Bowl

Name: 🌶️ Southwest Chicken Bowl
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 6 Tbsp avocado oil (divided); 2 Tbsp lime juice; 1 Tbsp rice vinegar; 2 Tbsp Taco seasoning; 1 lb chicken thighs, boneless & skinless (trimmed & cut into bite-sized pieces); 1 yellow onion (chopped); 1 red bell pepper (de-seeded and chopped); 1/2 tsp Kosher salt (divided (or 1/4 tsp regular, table salt)); 15 oz can black beans (drained & rinsed); 15 oz can corn, fire roasted (drained & rinsed); 3 8.5 oz microwavable brown rice packets; our Chipotle crema; Cholula; avocados (sliced); shredded Mexican cheese; tortilla strips; cilantro

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Our Southwest Chicken Bowl really fits the bill on a busy night when you need to make something fast that's also filling and delicious. Our ONE PAN chicken bowl has all the yummy stuff: flavorful chicken, juicy peppers, sweet corn and beans, piled high on a bed of rice. Top the bowl off with some avocado, shredded cheese, fresh cilantro, and a dollop of our tangy Chipotle crema. The flavors are very 🌮 taco-esque, and honestly, who doesn't love tacos?! ❤️😋

southwestern flavor chicken bowl with avocado, cilantro and veggies

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👍🏽 Why WE Love this Southwest Chicken Bowl
👏🏽 Why KIDS Love this Southwest Chicken Bowl
🛒 Ingredients
👩🏽‍🍳 Cooking Instructions
😋 How to Customize
✔️ Expert Tips and Tricks
👧🏽 Tips for Picky Eaters
❓ FAQ
🐓 Make these Cute Chicken Napkin Rings!
🍽️ Yummy Southwest / Mexican Flavored Recipes
🌶️ Southwest Chicken Bowl

We make a lot of bowls in our house, like this teriyaki beef rice bowl. By 'bowl' we basically mean a meal with a grain base (e.g. rice or quinoa), a meat protein, veggies, a bunch of toppings to choose from, and a sauce. It's the perfect meal because the kids can build their bowls as they like (great for picky eaters!), and our bowls are fairly nutritiously balanced. Bonus: making the bowls gets your kids to see, ingredient-by-ingredient, exactly what goes into their food.

👍🏽 Why WE Love this Southwest Chicken Bowl

Bear with me here. Genuinely, there are so many reasons we love to make this bowl, that it was hard to narrow them down:

Fast - this takes roughly 25 minutes to cook (not including assembling the bowls), making this the perfect weeknight meal.
Pantry staple meal - we had over half the ingredients for this meal already. Maybe you do too!
Easy to set up - we set up the rice, chicken mix and garnishes all in a row, assembly-line-style. This makes it easy for everyone to dish up. And it's easy to put away or pull back out on nights when everyone is eating at different times.
Easy to clean up - you only have to clean ONE PAN and a bowl (excluding your veggie chopping stuff).

If you love the flavors of southwest / Mexican-inspired dishes, check out our Steak Quesadillas (a family fave for us) or delicious Chicken Fajita Tacos.

closeup of yellow bowl filled with chicken and southwest flavored veggies

👏🏽 Why KIDS Love this Southwest Chicken Bowl

Fun to dish up!
Customizable - you can factor your kids' tastes into the making of this southwest chicken bowl. Swap in/out any veggies, seasonings, and toppings.
Nutritious without flaunting it - we are definitely hitting up all the food groups with this chicken bowl (minus fruit, which you can have for dessert)!
Great for school lunches and your kids can help make their lunch.

🛒 Ingredients

Notes on key ingredients are provided below. Please see the recipe card for a full list of ingredients and quantities.

Ingredient Notes

Chicken - I prefer chicken thighs because they're juicier and more flavorful, but chicken breasts work too! Just make sure they're not too thick.
Lime juice 🍋‍🟩 - don't skip this one because it adds so much flavor! Store bought lime juice or fresh limes both work. In a pinch, you could substitute lemon juice.
Taco seasoning - this is essential! While you can totally put together your own seasoning from scratch, if it ain't broke....
Bell pepper - any color will work!
Kosher salt - this recipe uses Kosher salt, but if you only have table salt, use half the amount.
Rice 🍚 - our fave is Ben's brown basmati rice because it's healthier and fast.
Don't forget our killer Chipotle Crema! It seriously completes the dish.

Substitutions

Chicken - sub 🔁 tofu or steak
Avocado oil - sub 🔁 olive oil
Rice vinegar - sub 🔁 white vinegar or red wine vinegar
Bell pepper 🫑 - sub 🔁 chopped poblano peppers, canned Chipotle peppers (just note these are spicy), canned green chilis, or Ro-tel (a personal fave of mine)
Veggies - add or sub 🔁 halved cherry or grape tomatoes, chopped tomatoes, fire roasted tomatoes, pico de gallo, pinto beans, garbanzo beans, 🌽 regular canned or frozen corn, hominy, de-seeded jalapeños, tomatillos, fresh garlic, etc.
Brown rice - sub 🔁 white rice, Mexican or Spanish rice, quinoa, polenta, sauteed greens, or even lettuce to make it a salad!

Toppings

Oh my gawd, there are so many topping options! Ready for our faves?!

bowl of garnishes for a southwest chicken bowl — *Pictured clockwise from top left: Cholula hot sauce, tortilla strips, cilantro, shredded cheese, avocados & limes*

🧡 Garnish options: avocado, shredded Mexican cheese, cotija, fresh cilantro, sliced black olives, a squirt of lime juice, Fritos, & tortilla strips.

🧡 Sauce options: our Chipotle crema, sour cream, salsa, pico de gallo, guacamole, & chimichurri.

🧡 To add HEAT: hot sauce (my faves are Cholula, Sriracha & Secret Aardvark Sauce), spicy salsa, adobo sauce, pickled jalapeños, red pepper flakes, & fried jalapeño crisps.

👩🏽‍🍳 Cooking Instructions

This southwest chicken bowl is a great choice for weeknight meals because it's so quick and easy to make. Here are the steps:

white bowl filled with chicken in marinade

Step 1. Combine marinade ingredients and chicken in a bowl. Set aside to marinate.

chicken, red pepper and onion cooking in pan

Step 2. On the stovetop, cook onion & red pepper in oil for 5 minutes. Then add chicken and cook 5 minutes more.

lid going on pan of chicken, beans, corn and red bell pepper

Step 3. Add beans & corn to the pan. Reduce heat to low, cover with lid, and cook for 5 minutes more.

two yellow bowls filled with southwestern chicken and avocado

Step 4. Assemble your bowls! Grab a bowl, and add a scoop of rice and chicken mixture. Top with garnishes and a drizzle of our Chipotle crema.

Kid Steps:

Divide and conquer! Between you and your lil' sous chef, one can put the chicken marinade together while the other chops the veggies.
Kid-sized kitchen tools can help a lot. This Beginner's Chef Knife for kids is great for chopping veggies. And Thermoworks' mini spatula is perfect for stirring with little hands.
Set a fun timer. Your kids will love this adorable cat timer 😸⏲️ from Kikkerland.
Setting up the garnishes is an easy, manageable task. Have your kiddo set them all out in a row so people can make their bowls themselves.

😋 How to Customize

You can easily satisfy different dietary needs with this recipe, especially when it comes to the garnishes. To make this recipe gluten-free and dairy-free, just double-check your taco seasoning's ingredients. To make this vegetarian and/or vegan, swap the chicken for tofu or extra veggies, and double-check your taco seasoning's ingredients. To make the bowl 🌶️ spicier, add a bit of cayenne or red pepper flakes to the marinade and some hot sauce to your assembled bowl.

✔️ Expert Tips and Tricks

Chicken thighs can be fattier than breasts, so allow a little extra time to trim off the fat. I find that kitchen shears ✂️ work best for this task.
For crunchier peppers, add the peppers in step 3, at the same time as the corn and beans.
Note that chicken is fully cooked at 165° F. If you need a super accurate meat thermometer, check out the Thermapen.

steaming pan of southwest chicken and veggies

👧🏽 Tips for Picky Eaters

Keep the chicken mixture and rice separate, just in case...
Because so many different veggies will work in this recipe, let your kids pick some of them.
Garnishes garnishes garnishes! Let your kids go nuts with picking them out. If you can get your picky eater excited about dinner, that's a win!

❓ FAQ

Should I use chicken thighs or breasts?

Either works! We prefer chicken thighs because they have more flavor and cook faster. If using chicken breasts, just make sure they're not too thick. You can pound them down with a meat mallet wrapped between saran wrap, if need be. If using frozen chicken, just make sure to thaw completely and drain it before making this recipe.

How long can I store the leftovers?

Refrigerate the chicken leftovers in an airtight container for 3-4 days. I would recommend making fresh rice when you reheat the chicken.

Can I meal prep chicken bowls?

Yes! Once you've made the recipe and it's cooled a bit, spoon the chicken mixture into six containers. These will store really well in the fridge. Rice and garnishes don't store as well; so, on the day you want to eat the meal, add those ingredients to your container. If you're using a microwavable rice packet, this will take no time at all!

🐓 Make these Cute Chicken Napkin Rings!

chicken napkin rings holding yellow napkins

A fun craft to go along with this southwest chicken bowl is a Chicken Napkin Rings Craft. With just a few basic craft supplies and some toilet paper rolls, your kids can create incredibly adorable chicken napkin rings!