Chicken Taco Rice Bowls

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Quick and easy Chicken Taco Rice Bowls are a tasty weeknight meal made with chicken breasts, fresh pico de gallo, cheese, and tortilla chips.

A bowl with chicken, cheese, jalapenos, and rice with tortilla chips around the edges.

I’ve been on the look out for easy and filling meals that I can make during the work week in a short amount of time.   What I’ve found is that a lot of these meals are stir fry meals, sheet pan dinners, or skillet meals.

I have about 10 of these that I rotate during the month but sometimes we get tired of them.  That’s when I start looking for new dishes.

These Chicken Bowls checked all the boxes for me.  They have a protein, a starch, plenty of flavor, and all the add ins you could want!  I love how customizable these taco bowls are.

Ingredients:

  • chicken breasts
  • olive oil
  • red onion
  • cilantro
  • roma tomatoes
  • lime
  • taco seasoning
  • salt and pepper
  • frozen corn
  • rice
  • cheddar cheese
  • sour cream
  • tortilla chips

Make the Pico de Gallo:  In a small bowl combine 1/4 cup of chopped red onion, chopped tomatoes, cilantro, juice of 2 limes, salt, and pepper.   Mix well and set aside.

Make the Chicken:   Heat the olive oil in a skillet.  Add the chicken and cook for 4-5 minutes mixing occasionally.  Add in the remaining red onion and taco seasoning and cook for 3-4 minutes.  Add in the corn and 1/2 cup of water and cook for 3 minutes or until corn is heated through.

Putting the Bowl Together:  Divide the rice between 4 bowls.  Place tortilla chips around the edges of the bowl.  Divide the chicken and onion mixture and place on top of the rice.   Top it off with cheese, sour cream, and pico de gallo.

Pin Image: A bowl with chicken, cheese, jalapenos, and rice with tortilla chips around the edges, text, a bag of corn, a bag of rice, a red onion, a bag of cheese, tomatoes, limes, and a pack of chicken.

The nice thing about this dish is that you can prep some of it ahead of time.  The pico de gallo can be made up to 24 hours in advance.  The chicken can be cut up a day in advance as well. The onions can also be chopped up to 24 hours ahead of time.

I started by cooking the chicken.  After it was mostly cooked I added in the red onions and taco seasoning.  Then the corn goes in.

To assemble the bowls I started with the rice.  You can use any type of rice for this.  I usually use the microwave rice because it’s quick and easy and doesn’t require use of the stove.

Can I use a different protein?

You sure can!   The cook times will be different but you can use ground beef, beef steaks, pork chops, or even tofu.  Each of these will take on the flavors of the taco seasoning and work well in the bowls.

Can I use store bought pico de gallo?

You can but it takes less than 5 minutes to make so why would you want too?  Go ahead and make your own, it’s totally worth it.

What other add ins can I use in these bowls?

You can add in anything that you would put in a taco.  Some good ideas would be salsa, guacamole, grilled peppers, grilled onions, taco sauce, or cheese sauce.  You could also make your own tortilla chips if you want to elevate this dish.

How do you make your own tortilla chips?

Get 4-6 flour tortillas.   Using a pizza cutter cut them into 8 pieces each. Place them on a baking dish and spray with cooking spray.  Sprinkle with salt.  Bake at 350 degrees for 7-8 minutes.  Flip the chips over, spray with cooking spray and sprinkle with salt and cook for 5-8 minutes or until golden brown.

A bowl of chicken and rice with tortilla chips around the bowl.

Next I put tortilla chips around the sides of the bowls and rice.  You can also just throw the chips on top of the dish but it looks really nice putting it around the edges. 

Then I put the chicken and onions in the center of the bowl on top of the rice.  Finally I put all the toppings on the chicken.  I personally use the pico de gallo, sour cream, and cheddar cheese.

More Easy Chicken Recipes:

The finished dish was delicious!  While it may not look like a whole lot it was surprisingly filling.   The chicken and onions had a lot of flavor and I loved using the tortilla chips to pick up the rice and chicken in the bowls.

If you’ve tried my Chicken Taco Rice Bowls or any other recipe on Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. I love hearing from you! You can FOLLOW ME on:

A bowl with chicken, cheese, jalapenos, and rice with tortilla chips around the edges.

Chicken Taco Rice Bowls

Yield: Serves 4
Prep Time: 1 minute
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 16 minutes

Quick and easy Chicken Taco Rice Bowls are a tasty weeknight meal made with chicken breasts, fresh pico de gallo, cheese, and tortilla chips.

Ingredients

  • 1 medium red onion, peeled and diced
  • 3 roma tomatoes, cored and diced
  • 3 Tablespoons cilantro, chopped
  • 1 lime
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 1/4 lb. chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 packet taco seasoning
  • 1 c. frozen corn
  • 3 c. cooked rice
  • 1/2 c. cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 1/3 c. light sour cream
  • 1 1/2 c. tortilla chips

Instructions

  1. To make the pico de gallo combine the tomatoes, 3 tablespoons of red onion, cilantro, juice from the lime, salt, and pepper in a small container. Mix well and set aside.
  2. To make the chicken heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken and cook, flipping over as needed, for 4-5 minutes.
  3. Add the remaining red onion, taco seasoning, and 1/4 cup of water to the skillet and mix well to combine. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
  4. Stir in the corn and 1/4 cup more water. Heat for 2-3 minutes.
  5. To make the bowls divide the rice between four bowls. Place the tortilla chips around the sides of the bowls.
  6. Divide the chicken mixture between the four bowls and place on top of the rice.
  7. Serve with pico de gallo, cheese, and sour cream.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Skinnytaste

A top view of a bowl with chicken, cheese, jalapenos, and rice with tortilla chips around the edges.

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