Quinoa burrito bowls, what what!
It’s meatless Monday right here and I join you with a meatless burrito bowl.
Or we can look at it as celebrating taco Tuesday a day early (with, err… burritos) because it’s the internet and we do what we want!
In all seriousness, it’s very rare that I myself have a meatless burrito bowl. I mean, we know that Eddie doesn’t, being that he thinks the world is ending if chicken or beef isn’t involved. My favorite is some sort of pulled pork, so that’s always the go to. It’s just a part of my burrito bowl life.
MY OTHER RECIPES
But here’s the thing! Making homemade burrito bowls is sort of a pain in the ass. Just being real. It SOUNDS like an amazing option, but then you start to realize that since you are making everything at home, you have to make literally… EVERYTHING. The rice. The beans. The salsa (multiple ones, of course), any sort of pico, the guacamole, the fajita peppers, the meat and everything else that you might order at Chipotle or Qdoba or Moe’s or whatever. You know?
If you want that loaded burrito bowl like I do, it is just a lot. A lot of chopping and cooking and pots and pans. Especially on a weeknight! Almost every single time I make burrito bowls at home, I’m cursing myself halfway through and ready to drive to Chipotle.
So here’s what I do! I don’t really simplify that process. Unfortunately. But I do make extra. Like lots of extra. If I’m going to make all of that stuff, I make enough so we have it for the week and use it in other capacities.
We might do one more burrito bowl later in the week. And a lot of times, I’ll do that one as a veggie-only option.
Or! If I’m reheating things for lunch? I’ll make a veggie burrito bowl like this.
That’s where my meatless bowls come in to play.
Here, I took this caramel roasted sweet potato idea and added some chipotle flavor. Oh my gosh – these are SO good. They obviously make an terrific side dish if you are looking for that. But they are awesome on top of the bowl too!
We make them almost every single week.
I also used quinoa here instead of rice. I’ve been on a quinoa kick lately. So has Eddie! He has been taking it in his lunch every single day. I made this lime quinoa from my honey chipotle chicken bowls and added a bit of cilantro. It’s goooood.
What else? My favorite just like Chipotle’s corn salsa. Some quick guac. Pickled red onions because I’m addicted and let’s just make it clear – those are the only onions I’d ever be addicted to.
Two kinds of beans, because honestly I almost always get both. Just two small scoops of both! And then they look at me quizzically at Chipotle and say that I “got a veggie burrito bowl but these pinto beans are made with bacon so you probably don’t want them…?” and I’m like “YES YES YES I want double the amount now! Bacon forever.”
A little bit of lettuce for more crunch. Thinly sliced radish for the same. A drizzle of chipotle crema that I had chilling in the fridge. Extra cherry tomatoes, fresh cilantro, lime juice and then a sprinkle of queso fresco cheese only because I couldn’t bear to dirty ONE MORE THING in my kitchen to make these darn bowls.
You don’t have to make every single component, of course. This is just a visual – some burrito bowl inspiration, if you will. Pretty much everything I always want to eat, except for pulled pork, is in there!
They are SO filling. Ridiculously.
They are pretty too.
And if you’re anything like me, you might just scoop up the entire bowl with a copious amounts of tortilla chips. That’s not weird.
Caramel Chipotle Sweet Potato Burrito Bowls
Ingredients:
quick pickled onions
- 1 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
chipotle caramel sweet potatoes
- 2 sweet potatoes, chopped
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon chipotle pepper seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
cilantro lime quinoa
- 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock, or even water
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 lime, juiced and zest freshly grated
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
quick guacamole
- 2 avocados
- 1/2 jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced
- ¼ sweet onion, diced
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 lime, juiced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
for the burrito bowls:
- corn salsa
- pinto beans
- black beans
- sliced cherry tomatoes
- crumbled queso fresco cheese
- thinly sliced radish
Directions:
quick pickled onions
Place the onions in a jar or cup. In a bowl, whisk together the water, vinegar, sugar and salt until the sugar and salt dissolve. Pour over the sliced onions. Let sit at room temperature for an hour. You can obviously make this ahead of time and once made, store it in the fridge in a sealed container or jar for a week or so!
chipotle caramel sweet potatoes
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Place the sweet potatoes in a baking dish or on a baking sheet in a single layer. I like to chop my sweet potatoes a bit larger here – like 1 1/2 to 2 inch chunks. If you chop yours smaller, make sure to roast for a shorter period of time.
Drizzle the potatoes with the olive oil, then sprinkle with chipotle seasoning, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Sprinkle on the brown sugar. Toss and stir so all of the pieces are coated. Roasted the potatoes for 20 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven and gently flip the potatoes, roasting again for 20 minutes. The potatoes should be tender, caramely and charred in some places.
cilantro lime quinoa
Add the quinoa and stock (or water) to a saucepan over high heat and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Cook for about 15 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed. Stir in the coconut oil (you can swap butter), lime juice, zest, salt and pepper. Stir in the cilantro and serve.
quick guacamole
Mash the avocado in a bowl. One mashed, stir in the pepper, onion, cilantro and lime juice. Add in the salt and pepper and mash. Taste and season additionally if needed.
burrito bowls
Assemble the burrito bowls with the quinoa on the bottom. Top with the sweet potatoes, black beans and pinto beans, corn salsa, tomatoes, guacamole, radish and cheese.
All images and text ©.
Oh oh oh and queso. Don’t forget it.
