Yesterday I created the best lunch. This Chicken Quinoa Bowl with Avocado Dressing is a lunch that you look forward to eating. I had Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bowls for lunch all week, and I needed to mix things up while sticking with my diet. I follow a certain formula when making quinoa bowls. I want them to be about 50% veggies, I want something in there with a bit of crunch, and there needs to be a great dressing.
This quinoa bowl has fresh tomatoes, kidney beans, fluffy quinoa, cooked broccoli, shredded chicken, toasted pine nuts, a touch of cheddar cheese, and a homemade avocado dressing. It's hearty and healthy.
The avocado dressing is so good that it renewed my faith in my diet. I've cut out carbs, sugar, and dairy (except for 1 ounce of cheese a day) as part of a mission to lose the weight I gained last year. This thick creamy avocado dressing brings this salad to life. It can also be used as a dip for chips and veggies. (Or you can eat it by the spoonful like I did).
I have mentioned this before, but I have been prepping big batches of food a couple of times a week so that sticking with my diet is the easiest option. I eat lots of quinoa bowls with shredded chicken and vegetables, so I prep the chicken and the quinoa in large batches - then assembling each meal only take a couple minutes. I prepare the chicken by poaching it in boiling chicken broth for 5-6 minutes. I let the chicken cool and I shred it with my hands. To make the quinoa I cook 1 cup quinoa in 2 cups of chicken broth for 20 minutes, letting it slowly simmer.
The recipe below is for 1 quinoa bowl, but it is easy to make multiple at a time.
Ingredients
- Avocado Dressing
- 1 Avocado
- 1 Lime
- ½ Lemon
- 1 teaspoon Olive Oil
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 4-5 tablespoons Water
- Quinoa Bowl
- ½ cup Shredded Chicken Breast
- ½ cup Cooked Quinoa
- 2 tablespoons Toasted Pine Nuts
- Kidney Beans
- Tomato
- Broccoli
- 2 tablespoons Shredded Cheddar
Instructions
- Prepare the dressing by placing the pitted avocado, lime juice, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt in a blender. Blend the ingredients together on the puree setting, and add water until the avocado dressing starts to liquify. The dressing will still be thick - the consistency will be similar to mayonnaise.
- To prepare the quinoa bowl, rinse the broccoli and place it in a bowl still wet. Microwave for 1 minute to soften the broccoli. Then add the quinoa and chicken to the bowl, and microwave for another minute.
- Add beans, tomatoes, toasted pine nuts, 3 tablespoons avocado dressing, and cheddar to the quinoa bowl and eat.
