Rice Bowls with Protein

Ever since I tried my first one at a local chicken joint called PDQ, Rice Bowls with Protein are now a family favorite. Versatile and healthy, they make seriously DELICIOUS all-in-one meals. I especially love to serve them when I can’t think of what to make for dinner. Haha. They’re quick and easy to throw together and can easily be varied depending on what veggies and protein you have on hand. Served buffet-style, they’re great for parties, too! How fun is it to be able to create your own bowl?!?

You can use any rice, but I always make my go-to Cilantro Lime Rice recipe as a base. My girls are just crazy about it and they’ll pretty much eat ANYTHING with it.  The recipe makes about 4 small servings but since they love it so much, I usually double or even  triple the recipe, to ensure we have leftovers.

PDQ’s “Saucy Bowl” comes with chicken, black beans, corn, broccoli, avocado and rice. That’s pretty much how I make mine, but you can add just about anything else to it.  My first time making this, I used shrimp as my protein. Another time I included halved grape tomatoes and shredded cheese but I bet roasted summer squash, sauteed mushrooms and onions would all be great additions, too!

I’ve made these Rice Bowls with Protein using chicken, shrimp and now steak. Here’s a great Cilantro Chicken recipe that uses boneless thighs. They come out so tender and moist – I hope you like cilantro! Shrimp is an easy protein, too. I simply saute them in some butter and season with salt, pepper and a dash of garlic powder. Steak is just as easy, seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder and then grilled. It’s especially easy when you use leftovers from the night before!

I was later introduced to Chipotle, whose rice bowls are equally delicious, and fell in love with their vinaigrette. I found this great copycat recipe: Culinary Hill’s Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette to top things off. Thus, my rice bowls with protein are now complete.

What do you think of my Re-Cap mason jar lid? I love it SO much that I own about nine of them! They come in handy for so many things such as dressings, sauces, protein powder – you name it! I ESPECIALLY love them as night-time-water-glass-toppers for my girls who always take water to bed with them. They reduce spillage, but most importantly, their water doesn’t sit in plastic all night long!

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Christine, aka happyvballgirl

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