Inspired by the heartiness of chicken chipotle, today’s chicken bowl dish gives you a more accessible and healthier version to enjoy on any occasion.
We air-fry chicken thighs until the skin is crispy and the interior remains juicy and tender. To assemble this chicken goodness, we layer fresh lettuce, cherry tomatoes, black beans, corn, and blistered chicken on top of a bowl of steamy white rice. A drizzle of homemade ketchup yogurt sauce to tighten all the ingredients, and your chicken goodness is ready for serving.
Is Chicken Bowl Healthy?
Our chicken bowl dish guarantees a nutritious meal for your healthy meal list.
Let’s further investigate its nutrition profile, shall we?
We choose chicken thighs for this recipe as this low-calorie cut is an impressive source of high-quality protein. Specifically, 3.5 oz of chicken thighs has around 17.3 g of protein, which offers many health benefits. Plus, we go with the air-frying technique instead of deep-frying to reduce the amount of added fat. Hence, one serving has only 507 calories and 5.6 g of saturated fat—within the limit of our nutrition guidelines.
Our chefs also combine a variety of vegetables (lettuce, tomatoes, corn, black beans, etc.) to boost your daily vitamin intake.
Ingredients for Chicken Bowl
We keep the list of ingredients simple and customizable:
- Chicken: Belonging to the same dark meat category as drumsticks, chicken thighs are juicier and more flavorful than other cuts. Plus, the versatility of chicken thighs finds its way into many recipes—grilled, stewed, or air-fried dishes.
- Lettuce: We adore the crispiness and bittersweet taste of romaine lettuce. However, if you are a big fan of greens, try a fusion of iceberg, romaine, and red lettuce in your chicken bowl—triple the flavor and texture.
- Cherry tomatoes: The mesmerizing red hue of ripe tomatoes gives a pop of color to your chicken feast. Flavor-wise, cherry tomatoes have a more concentrated sweetness and tangier aftertaste than regular-sized ones.
- Canned black bean: Apart from adding more filling, its nuttiness helps tone down the acidity of citrus juice.
- Corn: We use fresh corn kernels for this recipe. However, if you have canned or frozen corn on hand, give them a little prep, and they are good to go.
- Red onion: Red onion is one of the most frequently-used add-ins for a fresh salad. Its flavor profile shares some similarities to that of white onion—subtle sweetness with a mild kick.
- Lime juice: Combining lime juice in your marinade helps tenderize the chicken, allowing other seasonings to absorb better into the flesh.
- Spices: To build up the flavor of the chicken thighs: mix together cumin, paprika, black pepper, oregano, salt, and garlic powder.
- Herbs: Oregano introduces an earthy and camphor note to your spice blend.
- Sauce: Our chefs whisk together Greek yogurt, ketchup, and mayonnaise for a quick-and-easy condiment.
- Rice: Other great substitutes for white rice are brown rice, black rice, cauliflower rice, and quinoa.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
1. How to Store
We recommend preparing enough for one sitting as air-fried chicken and cooked rice may be a little tricky to store. Don’t leave your leftovers at room temperature for more than 2 hours as this will cause bacteria growth.
Instead, divide your leftovers into smaller portions, place them in different microwave-safe air-tight containers, and keep them in the fridge. They should last from 2 to 3 days.
2. How to Reheat
When serving, separate the vegetables and only reheat the rice and chicken in the microwave at ‘high’ for 2 minutes.
What to Serve With Chicken Bowl?
Here are some pairing suggestions from our chefs:
Check Out These Recipes for More Ideas:
- Lemongrass Chicken Recipe
- Jerk Chicken Recipe
- Air Fryer Peruvian Chicken Recipe
- Air Fryer Chicken Katsu Recipe
- Air Fryer Blackened Chicken Recipe
How to Make Chicken Bowl
This 30-minute chicken bowl dish compiles chicken thighs, crunchy lettuce, juicy cherry tomatoes, and other ingredients for a vibrant, sumptuous meal. Requiring minimal prepping and cooking skills, even beginner-level home cooks can master this recipe.
- cook TIME 15 mins
- prep TIME 15 mins
- total TIME 30 mins
- COURSE Main Course
- CUISINE Global
- SERVINGS servings
- CALORIES 507 kcal
INGREDIENTS
- 14 ozskin-on boneless chicken thighs
- 6 ozcherry tomatoes (halved)
- 2 ozromaine lettuce (separate into individual leaves, roughly chopped)
- 2 ozcorn
- 2 ozcanned black bean
- 1 ozred onion (sliced)
- 0.3 cupcoriander
- 1 tsporegano
- 0.3 tspcumin
- 0.5 tsppaprika
- 0.5 tspgarlic powder
- 2 tbspJapanese mayonnaise
- 2 tbspHeinz ketchup
- 1 tbspplain Greek yogurt
- 0.5 tbsplime juice
- 0.5 tspsalt
- 0.3 tspblack pepper
- 3 cupscooked medium-grain rice (from 1 1/2 cups uncooked)
INSTRUCTIONS
Prep:
Cut the cherry tomatoes in half lengthwise.
Slice away and discard the root part of the romaine lettuce. Roughly chop the lettuce leaves into strips, about 1/2 inch wide.
Half the red onion lengthwise and slice off the root and head. Grip the half by the side and make 1/8-inch slices across the half.
Cook the rice using a rice cooker or an Instant Pot.
Cook:
Make the sauce: In a small mixing bowl, whisk together 2 tbsp Heinz ketchup, 1 tbsp plain Greek yogurt, and 2 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise.
Season the chicken thighs: On a large platter, add 14 oz chicken thighs, 1/4 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tbsp lime juice, and 1/2 tsp garlic powder. Gently massage the seasonings onto both sides of each chicken thigh.
Cook the chicken thighs: Line the air-fryer basket with parchment paper for easy cleanup (optional). Air-fry the well-seasoned chicken thighs at 400℉ for 12 minutes. Remove them from the basket and set them aside to cool.
Slice the chicken thighs: Use a sharpened knife to cut each chicken thigh crosswise into smaller pieces.
Assemble the chicken bowl: Arrange the ingredients accordingly into 4 bowls: 3 cups cooked medium-grain rice, 6 oz halved cherry tomatoes, 2 oz romaine lettuce, 2 oz corn, 2 oz canned black bean, 1 oz red onion, sliced cooked chicken thighs, and 1/4 cup coriander. Drizzle the sauce all over and enjoy!
NUTRITION
Luna Regina
Founder
Natalie Butler, RD, LD
Nutrition Reviewer