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Hen and rice bowls are my go-to meal prep recipe after I’m craving selection however not further work. Similar hen, identical rice, favourite veggie toppings, and three completely totally different sauces for a singular twist in minutes.
Bounce to: ℹ️ Overview | 🛒 Elements | 📷 How To Make | 📹 Watch The Video | 👩🍳 Recipe Ideas | 🥗 Serving Options | 📝 Full Recipe Card | 🍽 Extra Rice Bowls To Attempt
These hen and rice bowls are like that trusty white tee in your closet—easy, adaptable, and by no means boring. It’s all constructed round juicy spiced hen thighs and fluffy rice, then you definately decide your taste temper: Tex-Mex with creamy cilantro lime, Thai-inspired sweet-savory with a peanut soy drizzle, or a creamy, spicy Peri Peri for some mellow warmth.
The toppings are a fridge-cleanout dream—crunchy veggies, creamy avocado, candy corn. It’s colourful, healthy-ish, and makes superb leftovers.
I’ve made these hen and rice bowls thrice prior to now month— every model hits otherwise. Nutritionally, they’re balanced and excessive in protein, with macros obtainable for every sauce possibility. Nice for lunches or fast dinners!
👩🍳 You may also like these hen & rice bowls: Mediterranean hen quinoa bowl, low-carb Greek hen bowls, or my different hen recipes: garlic parmesan hen skewers, bang bang hen skewers, grilled hen tenders, or BBQ floor hen tacos.
Three Hen & Rice Bowl Flavors
- Cilantro Lime Hen Bowl – Tex-Mex impressed, creamy, and tangy.
- Peanut Honey Soy Hen Bowl – Candy, salty, and somewhat spicy, with Asian-esque, Thai-esque flavors.
- Creamy Peri Peri Hen Bowl – Portuguese-inspired, barely spicy, and wealthy, however the warmth is mellowed out with somewhat cream.
What You’ll Want
Here’s what you’ll want for this hen and rice bowl recipe. Discover the complete measurements within the recipe card under.
- For the Hen: Boneless skinless hen thighs – flavorful and juicy – and for seasoning: garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper; plus olive oil for cooking and elective cayenne or chili powder for a lil’ kick.
- For the Rice: White, jasmine, or brown rice – use what you want. Salt, water – fundamentals, however it’s also possible to sub with cauliflower rice for low-carb.
- Toppings (decide what’s in your fridge): Candy corn, radishes, cucumber, carrots, onion, cherry tomatoes, avocado, peas, grilled peppers (or fire-roasted out of a jar), shredded cabbage, olives, and so on. Tip: Use 4+ for texture and shade. Contemporary herbs like cilantro, parsley, or chives can be added.
- Cilantro Lime Sauce: Tangy, herby, somewhat creamy with cilantro, lime, garlic, jalapenos, yogurt, and mayo.
- Peanut Butter Honey Soy Sauce: Salty-sweet with a whisper of spice utilizing peanut butter, honey, soy sauce, garlic/ginger, and sesame oil.
- Creamy Peri Peri: Spicy however not overpowering, utilizing gentle Peri Peri sauce with tomato paste, garlic, paprika, and mellowed with cream.
How To Make Hen & Rice Bowls
Discover the complete recipe and dietary data under. Listed here are some helpful step-by-step pictures for hen & rice bowls.
- Cook dinner Hen: Season and pan-fry (or air-fry when you’re feeling virtuous). The hen might be executed forward of time as a part of meal prep. See recipe card under for full elements and timings.
Pan-fried vs air-fried hen: you’ll be able to select your most popular methodology however I discovered that pan-fired was somewhat tastier and juicier, with extra browned end. Having stated that, air-fried was actually good too.
- Cook dinner Rice: Rinse effectively, simmer till fluffy, or use Instantaneous Pot/ rice cooker.
- Make Sauces: Mix or whisk elements—every one takes just some minutes. Select one sauce or make all three if making a batch for meal prep.
- Prep toppings: Chop up recent veggies or thaw frozen ones. This may be executed forward of time or on the day.
- Assemble: Bowl of rice + sliced hen + toppings + sauce drizzle = executed!
Watch The Video
Recipe Ideas
- Pan-frying hen offers higher taste and barely extra tender meat, however air-frying is quicker and lighter.
- Use store-bought rice or frozen veggie packs when you’re quick on time.
- The sauces are versatile—use yogurt as an alternative of mayo or almond butter as an alternative of peanut.
- Add toasted nuts or seeds for crunch, or a sprinkle of feta for one thing creamy and salty.
- Storage Ideas: Retailer hen, rice, and sauces individually within the fridge for as much as 4 days (rice for two days). The hen additionally freezes effectively (sauces too!).
- Make Forward Ideas: Cook dinner hen and rice forward—retailer in hermetic containers. Make sauces prematurely—they hold for a number of days within the fridge. Chop hardy toppings like carrots and onion forward, however slice avocado and cucumber recent.
Serving Options
These bowls are excellent for lunch meal prep or a straightforward weeknight dinner. Serve heat or at room temp. Add a handful of greens when you’re feeling further healthful. Listed here are my favourite variations:
Cilantro Lime Hen & Rice Bowl
In addition to crunchy veg, add some avocado, corn, and recent cilantro as toppings; some crunched corn chips will provide you with further crunch, whereas salty cheese like feta or Cotija will add further calcium and taste.
Peanut Butter Sauce Bowl
Much like cilantro lime bowls, however it’s also possible to add edamame beans, bean sprouts, shredded lettuce, inexperienced onions, and cilantro or mint for garnish. Crushed peanuts or fried shallots will add further crunch. Drizzle with chili oil for further warmth.
Creamy Peri Peri Hen & Rice
Inexperienced peas, grilled peppers, olives, charred zucchini or eggplant, roasted cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, celery, carrot. A bit parsley, chives, or basil are nice as herbs.
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Toppings (decide 4 or extra):
Cook dinner the Hen:
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Lower the hen thighs in half and trim any further fats. Season them with garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, salt, pepper, and cayenne (if you’d like a bit of warmth). Rub all of it in so the seasoning sticks.
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Warmth the olive oil in a big skillet over medium-high. As soon as sizzling, cook dinner the hen items for about 6–7 minutes per facet till golden and cooked by means of (inner temp ought to hit 165°F / 75°C). Let the hen relaxation a couple of minutes, then slice.
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Different: Air fry at 400°F / 200°C for quarter-hour, flipping midway.
Cook dinner the Rice:
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Rinse your rice beneath chilly water till the water runs clear. This step’s annoying, sure, nevertheless it actually helps the feel.
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Deliver the water and salt to a boil in a medium pot. Add the rice, stir as soon as, cut back to low warmth, and canopy. Cook dinner for about 15–20 minutes (white rice) or as much as 40 for brown rice. As soon as it’s executed, let it relaxation (coated) off the warmth for 10 minutes. Fluff it up with a fork.
Make Your Sauce of Selection:
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For the cilantro lime sauce, mix all elements till easy.
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For the peanut butter sauce, begin by whisking heat water with peanut butter, then add the remainder and whisk till it comes collectively (a stick blender helps if it’s chunky).
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For the creamy Peri Peri sauce, simply combine every part in a bowl and heat it up barely in a small pot or microwave earlier than serving.
Assemble the Bowls:
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Add about 1 cup of rice to every bowl. Prime with 5 oz / 140 grams of sliced hen. Load it up along with your selection of toppings, about ¼ to ½ cup every (I often go for 4 or extra toppings for texture and taste selection). Drizzle with 2-3 tablespoons of your chosen sauce.That’s it! You’re formally a chicken-and-rice-bowl boss. 🙌
- Macros for Peanut Butter hen and rice bowl per serving: Energy: ~610 kcal, Carbohydrates: ~45 g, Protein: ~35 g, Fats: ~32 g, Fibre: ~4.5 g
- Macros for Creamy peri peri hen and rice bowl per serving: Energy: ~570 kcal, Carbohydrates: ~42 g, Protein: ~33 g, Fats: ~28 g, Fibre: ~4 g
- Pan-frying hen offers higher taste and barely extra tender meat, however air-frying is quicker and lighter.
- Use store-bought rice or frozen veggie packs when you’re quick on time.
- The sauces are versatile—use yogurt as an alternative of mayo or almond butter as an alternative of peanut.
- Add toasted nuts or seeds for crunch, or a sprinkle of feta for one thing creamy and salty.
- Storage Ideas: Retailer hen, rice, and sauces individually within the fridge for as much as 4 days (rice for two days). The hen additionally freezes effectively (sauces too!).
- Make Forward Ideas: Cook dinner hen and rice forward—retailer in hermetic containers. Make sauces prematurely—they hold for a number of days within the fridge. Chop hardy toppings like carrots and onion forward, however slice avocado and cucumber recent.
Energy: 600kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 30g | Fats: 33g | Saturated Fats: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fats: 9g | Monounsaturated Fats: 16g | Trans Fats: 0.05g | Ldl cholesterol: 205mg | Sodium: 1755mg | Potassium: 1014mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 3420IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 93mg | Iron: 3mg
FAQs
Completely! Simply don’t overcook—it dries out sooner than thighs. Hen tenderloins are additionally nice.
Solely if you’d like it to be. Omit cayenne or chili flakes for a milder model. Creamy Peri Peri is the spiciest of the three, nevertheless it’s nonetheless fairly gentle.
Actually? It is determined by your temper. Cilantro lime is recent, peanut is nice and salty, Peri Peri is cozy and nice served warmed up.
Peanut and Peri Peri can freeze okay; the cilantro one is best recent.