Tex Mex Chicken & Zucchini Rice Bowls

Tex Mex chicken and zucchini rice bowls are a hearty, colourful and healthy meal, that is quick to assemble. They are a perfect example of a healthy meal, without sacrificing taste!

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Last weekend was a long weekend here with Victoria Day being this Monday. Since it was a long weekend my SO decided to use up some vacation time to add a few days to our weekend. So we packed up the car and spent 3 nights at his family's cottage. It was a super fun weekend, but we all came back exhausted from staying up late and waking early. It's taken me all week to recover and add in my daily workouts, this mama is exhausted by 5pm.

I've always been a fan of simple dinners and if it is cooked in one pan, even better. These rice bowls came about when we needed to use up leftovers from earlier this week. On Tuesday I had made Tex Mex chicken, zucchini, corn and black beans; a recipe I had found on the Weight Watchers app. It seemed simple enough to make and my kids always love tacos, so I gave it a try. The original recipe is meant to be eaten without any carbs, but my kids and SO aren't big on no carb meals, so they enjoyed theirs with flour tortillas. This made a huge skillet full, which meant I had leftovers for later this week. That's when I decided to use leftovers to create Rice Bowls.

What are Rice Bowls?

Rice bowls are also known as burrito bowls and have become all the rage thanks to several restaurants in Canada and the U.S. They consist of a base of rice, and topped with cooked meat, veggies, cheeses and spices. They are a healthy combination of carbs, protein and healthy fats.

What goes into a Rice Bowl?

A good rice bowl can contain anything you like. It's your time to get creative and a great way to get so much flavour packed into one bowl. For this recipe I used

• Boneless skinless chicken breast
• Zucchini
• Red onion and garlic
• Tomato
• Spices- this is where you can boost the flavour. Use chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes (or cayenne), oregan. Any spice really
• Brown rice- you can also use cooked white rice or cooked quinoa
• Black beans- you can also use kidney beans, or chickpeas
• Corn- Fresh, frozen or canned
• Canned tomatoes- diced tomato and tomato sauce

How do I Make the Perfect Brown Rice?

Cooking brown rice is pretty tricky. Sometimes it comes out a gloopy mess, sometimes it is still crunchy. I've learned that the trick to cooking the perfect brown rice is to treat it like pasta.

• Place the rice in a mesh sieve and rinse under cold water for at least 1 minute.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the rinsed rice, reduce heat to medium high and let boil for 20-30 minutes. 
• Once rice is cooked to your desired taste, drain it in a mesh sieve and return to the hot pot. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes.

PIN IT!!!

Equipment needed to make this recipe

• large skillet
• sharp knife
• cutting board
• can opener
• wooden spoon
• measuring spoons
• medium sized pot with lid
• mesh sieve
• small bowl

Tex Mex Chicken & Zucchini Rice Bowls

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into thin strips

2 Tbs olive oil, divided

1 1/2 C zucchini, sliced into half moons

2 C red onion, diced

2 Tbs garlic, minced

1 Tbs oregano

1 Tbs chili powder

1 Tbs cumin

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 1/2 tsp sea salt

1- 15 oz can black beans

1 1/2 C frozen corn 

1- 15 oz can diced tomatoes

1 1/2 C tomato sauce

2 C uncooked brown rice

1 avocado, sliced

1 lime cut into wedges

In a small bowl, combine the oregano, chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes and sea salt. Season the thinly sliced chicken breast with half the Tex Mex seasoning.

Bring a medium pot to a boil. Place the raw brown rice in a mesh sieve and rinse under cold water for 1 minute. Once water is boiling, add in a tsp of salt and the rinsed rice. Reduce heat to medium high, and boil rice for 20-30 minutes, depending on your desired taste. Drain the rice in the same mesh sieve, return to the hot pot, cover and let sit 5 minutes.

While the rice is cooking, heat 1 Tbs olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Cook sliced chicken breast in batches, until golden brown and cooked through. Once cooked transfer to a bowl and cover with foil.

In the same skillet, add the second Tbs of olive oil. Add in the red onion and zucchini and cooked until tender, about 5 minutes. Add in the garlic, remaining spices and corn and cook until the corn is heated through; 4 minutes. Stir in the cooked chicken, beans, diced tomatoes and tomato sauce and simmer for 5 minutes; so the flavours can blend. 

To serve, place cooked rice in a bowl and top with the chicken and zucchini mixture. Garnish with sliced avocado and a squeeze of lime.

These rice bowls come to 2 Weight Watchers Points, on the purple plan, when served with 1 C of brown rice and 1 C of the chicken and zucchini.