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Instant Pot Weeknight Chicken Burrito Bowls

Plus one swap that makes the whole thing even better…

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Are you as obsessed with Chipotle burrito bowls as we are? We skip the tortilla – it fills us up too much and too quickly – and we go with grilled chicken, brown rice, mild salsa, black beans and spicy corn. Yummmm. That being said, going out several times a week can add up really fast, plus, even when we skip the tortilla we’re still racking up calories that we know we could kick if we made it ourselves and knew what was going into it. That being said, we made one swap to the burrito bowl concept and were super pumped about the finished product!

With chicken, black beans, corn, onion, fire-roasted tomatoes and green chiles – not to mention garlic, cumin and chili powder – we’ve got all the amazing flavor of our go-to burrito bowl order, but we made it our self (in under 30 minutes). Not only that, but we skipped the rice entirely and went with quinoa instead. Quinoa has only slightly fewer calories than rice, sure, but it’s because of the fact that it has dramatically fewer carbohydrates and double the protein of rice that we chose it here. Plus, you get great flavor and the same yummy texture, so it’s a win-win!

You already know we love how this dish tastes and we love that it’s better for us than our standard take-out order, but we’re also hooked on how easy this is to make, all thanks to our instant pot. Where as a more complex recipe would have us sautéeing veggies in one pot and cooking the quinoa in another, this recipe truly makes for a one-pot meal, where you brown up your onion using the sauté function on the instant pot, then just add in the garlic, chili powder and cumin before pouring in the chicken broth and mixing in your chicken (which cooks along with everything else), black beans, corn, tomatoes, chiles and quinoa.

Seal your lid, let everything come to pressure, then cook it for 10 minutes and you’re good to go! It might look at first like there’s too much liquid in the pot, but don’t worry about that; it gets fully absorbed into the quinoa and adds that much more flavor. We’re devout fans of the Chipotle classic, so it should mean a lot that we’ve deemed this version (more than) up to snuff. Whether you serve it with or without tortillas or cheese, make sure you get a get sprinkle of cilantro and lime juice, then dig in and enjoy!

Yield(s): Serves 6-8

20 minutes

5.0
Rated 5.0 out of 5
Rated by 2 reviewers
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Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth, divided
  • 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cubed
  • 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels
  • 1 (14.5 oz.) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
  • 1 (4 oz.) can green chiles
  • 1 cup quinoa
  • 1 cup Mexican blend cheese, grated
  • fresh cilantro, roughly chopped, optional
  • kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • corn or flour tortillas, optional
Preparation
  1. Season cubed chicken generously with salt and pepper and set aside until ready to use.
  2. Set instant pot to sauté and heat olive oil until shimmering. Add onion and cook for 6-8 minutes, or until softened and translucent.
  3. Add garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant.
  4. Season with salt and pepper, then add chili powder and cumin and cook for another 30 seconds. Stir in 1/4 cup chicken broth to deglaze pot and scrape up and browned bits.
  5. Add chicken, black beans, corn, diced tomatoes and green chiles to the instant pot and stir together until fully combined.
  6. Top with quinoa then, without stirring, pour in remaining chicken broth.
  7. Close and seal lid then set pressure to high and cook for 10-12 minutes, then quick release pressure.
  8. Stir everything together and serve in bowls or in tortillas with cheese and cilantro. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from The Kitchn


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