Chicken Quinoa Bowl

Lemon Chicken Quinoa Bowl recipe is one of my favorite easy meal prep dinners to make. Tender bites of chicken are cooked in a delicious lemon garlic butter sauce then tossed with cooked quinoa, arugula, pan roasted tomatoes and onion. Easy chicken dinner recipes like this quinoa chicken bowl don’t get much easier than this!

This quinoa chicken bowl makes a quick and easy weeknight dinner that’s ready in about 30 minutes. And the delicious lemon garlic butter sauce that the ingredients are tossed in adds so much flavor to this dish.

Chicken Piccata is one of my all-time favorite Italian meals. What I love about this Chicken Quinoa Bowl is it has the same delicious lemony flavor as piccata without having to dredge the chicken in egg and flour.  And instead of serving the lemon chicken with pasta, we serve it with quinoa and some veggies for a light meal.

Chicken Quinoa Bowl Recipe

We use just a few simple ingredients and take a few minutes of easy meal prep time to make this delicious recipe.

• Skinless and boneless chicken breasts
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Butter (or vegan butter)
• Garlic cloves
• Small red onion, peeled and sliced thin
• Fresh squeezed lemon juice
• Cooked quinoa 
• Baby arugula (wild arugula works too if you can’t find baby arugula)
• Cherry tomatoes 
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

How to Make Lemon Chicken Quinoa Bowl

This quinoa chicken bowl comes together in about 30 minutes start to finish.

1. Cook quinoa: Add rinsed quinoa to saucepan. Pour 2 cups water or broth over 1 cup quinoa and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Click here to go to a separate link for how to make quinoa.
2. Prep ingredients: Slice chicken, onions and tomatoes, mince garlic and rinse and spin arugula.
3. Cook chicken: Melt 2 tablespoons butter with 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil.  When butter and oil start to sizzle, add sliced pieces of chicken and minced garlic to pan and cook for 3 minutes. Flip and cook the other side for another 2-3 minutes.. Transfer chicken from pan to plate.  Work in 2 batches if skillet isn’t large enough.
4. Pan roast tomatoes: Heat 1-2 tablespoons olive oil in pan. Toss in sliced tomatoes and red onion and cook for 1-2 minutes until tomatoes and onion start to turn soft. Remove from pan, place in bowl and set aside.
5. Make lemon sauce:  Heat lemon juice in pan then add 1-2 tablespoons butter to melt. 
6. Toss ingredients together: Add cooked chicken and tomatoes and onions back into pan with lemon sauce. Spoon in quinoa to pan and toss to mix. Remove pan from heat and toss in arugula.  Season with salt and ground black pepper to taste.

Substituting for Chicken Thighs

I prefer using chicken breasts for this recipe, but thighs and tenderloins will work just as well. If using thighs, just be sure to cut the meat into thin slices.

Can I make this Quinoa Chicken Bowl in Advance

Definitely! Meal prep is a great way to save on time and this is one of my favorite easy meal prep dinners to make. Just slice the chicken in advance and cover and refrigerate until you’re ready to cook it. And cooking the quinoa ahead of time and storing in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it helps to make this meal come together in a pinch.

Adding Vegetables to Quinoa And Chicken Bowl

You can definitely add more vegetables to this quinoa and chicken bowl in addition to the arugula or to replace the arugula altogether. Spinach, broccoli, zucchini and green beans all will go great with the lemon garlic butter sauce in this dish.

Looking for More Easy Chicken Dinner Recipes to Make?

• Filipino Chicken Adobo – tender and juicy, this chicken has an amazing flavor!
• One Pan Italian Chicken – so delicious and so easy to make! It’s one of my favorite Italian dinner recipes to make.
• Easy Italian Chicken Skillet – this recipe comes together in a pinch
• Taco Salad Bowl – tastes like street tacos in a bowl – another one of my favorite easy meal prep dinners to make
• White Bean Chicken Chili – chili doesn’t get much easier to make than this 
• Baked Chicken Fajita Quesadillas – so easy to make with rotisserie chicken
• Mexican Style Shredded Chicken – this flavorful shredded chicken is great for tacos, burritos, taquitos, tostadas, etc.

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Yield: 4 servings

Chicken Quinoa Bowl

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Lemon Chicken Quinoa Bowl recipe is one of my favorite easy meal prep dinners to make. Tender bites of chicken are cooked in a delicious lemon garlic butter sauce then tossed with cooked quinoa, arugula, pan roasted tomatoes and onion. Easy chicken dinner recipes like this quinoa chicken bowl don't get much easier than this!

Ingredients

• 1 pound skinless and boneless chicken breasts, sliced thin
• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 3 tablespoons butter (or vegan butter), divided
• 5-6 large garlic cloves, peeled, smashed and minced
• 1/2 small red onion, peeled and sliced thin
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 cups cooked quinoa (1 cup dry plus 2 cups broth or water)
• 1-1/2 - 2 cups organic baby arugula
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes (about 12), stems removed and sliced in half
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Add rinsed quinoa to saucepan. Pour water or broth over quinoa, place lid on pan and simmer on low for 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside for 10 minutes before fluffing with a fork.
2. Melt 2 tablespoons butter with 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil.  When butter and oil start to sizzle, add slices of chicken and garlic to pan and cook for 3 minutes. Flip and cook the other side for another 2-3 minutes.. Transfer chicken from pan to plate.  Work in 2 batches if skillet isn't large enough.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in pan. Toss in sliced tomatoes and red onion and cook for 1-2 minutes until tomatoes and onion start to turn soft. Transfer tomatoes and onions from pan to bowl and set aside.
4. Pour lemon juice in pan. When lemon juice heats through add 1 tablespoon butter to pan and stir until it melts.
5. Add cooked chicken and tomatoes and onions back into pan with lemon sauce. Spoon in quinoa to pan and toss to mix.
6. Remove pan from heat and toss in arugula.  Season with salt and ground black pepper to taste

Notes

Variations

You can definitely add more vegetables to this quinoa chicken bowl in addition to the arugula or to replace the arugula altogether. Spinach, broccoli, zucchini and green beans all will go great with the lemon garlic butter sauce in this dish.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 525Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 18gCholesterol: 119mgSodium: 247mgCarbohydrates: 27gFiber: 4gSugar: 4gProtein: 41g

theharvestkitchen.com attempts to provide accurate information, however, this nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. The nutritional information provided comes from online sources and calculations.