Mexican Chicken + Rice Bowls

While I’ve always preferred to have quick and easy lunches for the week, that has become exponentially more important since Liam’s arrival. I will often spend some time on Monday, after my weekly grocery run, prepping food for whatever we’re having for lunch that week. We tend to do a regular rotation of salads, wraps, and bowls. Last week, we were craving bowls, so I prepped everything on Monday for Mexican chicken and rice bowls. It’s nice to be able to just put all the pre-made, pre-chopped ingredients into a bowl and quickly heat it up, especially on my work days when every minute counts! We’ve made variations of these bowls for dinners, too. They’re so good!

For this Mexican chicken and rice bowl, here’s what I used and how I prepared it:

Put 4 chicken breasts (about 2 pounds) + one can of rotel + one packet of taco seasoning + 1-1.5 cups of chicken stock (I covered the chicken breasts) in the instant pot. Set the instant pot to HIGH for 13 minutes, let it release steam naturally for 5 minutes, and then manually release the rest of the steam. Shred chicken breasts and return them to liquid in the instant pot. (I kept almost all the liquid so that the chicken would stay nice and juicy!)

Cook rice according to package instructions. Once finished, squeeze in 1-2 limes and add a handful of chopped cilantro. Stir well.

To assemble bowls:

Put rice in the bottom of the bowl. Add chicken. Top with whatever toppings you like! We did black beans, corn, sliced green onion, shredded cheddar cheese, guacamole, and sour cream.

What I like about this type of meal the most is that it can be customized to whatever your preferences or cravings are!