Chicken Quinoa Bowl (Mediterranean-Style)

Table of Contents

This Mediterranean Chicken Quinoa Bowl is a nutrient-dense, balanced and delicious meal featuring marinated, honey glazed chicken, fluffy quinoa, tangy and herby feta salad, Greek yogurt and pistachios. I will walk you through preparing each element for this dish with step-by-step pics, video, and recipe tips. You will master this delicious quinoa salad bowl in no time, and trust me, and it will be on rotation in your house as it is in mine.

As I mentioned before, this chicken quinoa bowl is a perfectly balanced meal with complex carbs, protein, fibre, healthy fats and plenty of veggies. All ingredients are easily accessible and leftovers can be repurposed in other dishes.

It’s a real crowd-pleaser, too, and the best thing is that everyone can make it by following the easy steps in this recipe. A little bit of chopping and dicing is involved, but otherwise, it’s very straightforward.

Before we get into the how-to’s of the recipe, let’s break down each element of this delicious chicken quinoa bowl. When it comes to serving, you can assemble the bowls before serving or you can serve each element on the table for everyone to create their own bowl

Mediterranean Chicken

The chicken is marinated in herbs and spices, pan-fried and glazed with a little honey for a touch of sweetness. You can use chicken thighs or breast for this recipe. Chicken will give you a big portion of protein, making such a satiating meal.

Quinoa

You can cook quinoa on the stove, Instant Pot, rice cooker or even your slow cooker. If in a rush, you can use those 2-minute quinoa packets; make sure to reheat as per instructions before using as it’s a little dry otherwise.

You can use white, red or mixed colour quinoa. This pseudograin will add plenty of complex carbs, fibre, nutrients and extra protein to the dish. If you were making a vegetarian version of this bowl, you could skip the chicken and do solo quinoa or add some chickpeas. For four servings, you will need about 4 cups of cooked quinoa, which is about 1.5 cups uncooked.

Herby Greek Salad

Pile on the veggies! In this case, it’s a Greek-style salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, red peppers, olives, and red onions. These are mixed in with parsley, mint and feta. So good! In fact, it’s such a delicious number on its own that I always make extra to serve on the side. Everyone asks for more!

Greek Yoghurt

A dollop of unsweetened yoghurt, sour cream or tzatziki acts as a sauce or second dressing and adds a delightful tang. Plus, hello fermented dairy and probiotics! Don’t skip on this stuff unless you’re dairy-free.

Nuts

I sprinkle my Mediterranean quinoa bowl with pistachios cause I am fancy but you can opt for humble walnuts or pumpkin seeds. These will add some crunch and healthy fats. These are optional, by the way.

How To Make Chicken Quinoa Bowl

Find the full list of ingredients, nutritional info and tips in the recipe card below. Here are some step-by-step pictures and a video to guide you along.

Step 1. Cook the quinoa. To make 4 cups of cooked quinoa, you need 1.5 cups quinoa and 2 + 1/4 cups water and 2/3 teaspoon salt. Rinse the quinoa and strain. Combine the quinoa and water in a medium pot. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat. Simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and let it sit, covered, for 10 minutes more. Then, remove the lid and fluff with a fork!
You can also cook quinoa in the Instant Pot, in a rice cooker or in a slow cooker.
Step 2. Cut the chicken breasts into bite-size pieces and place them in a bowl. Drizzle lemon juice and olive oil and sprinkle the spices, oregano, salt and pepper on top. Toss through using your hands.
Step 3. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan/skillet over medium-high. Once hot, add the chicken pieces and cook for 4 minutes on each side, Then drizzle with about a tablespoon of honey and stir through for another 30 seconds to a minute. Remove from heat and rest.

Step 4. While the chicken is cooking, mix the salad. Place all ingredients in a bowl, add lemon juice, salt, pepper, fresh herbs, feta, and toss through.
Step 5. Assemble quinoa bowls. Per bowl, add 1 cup of cooked quinoa, cooked chicken pieces, mixed salad, top with extra feta cheese and a few extra olives, and garnish with extra herbs, a dollop of Greek yogurt and nuts.

Watch The Video

Recipe Tips

Save time by buying pre-cooked quinoa that you can quickly and easily add to the bowl. You can also meal prep 2-4 cups of quinoa at the beginning of the week to have on hand for recipes.
I used chicken breast for this recipe, which is easy to overcook so try to avoid that. You can also marinate and cook skinless chicken thighs, which are even tastier in my opinion. They need slightly longer cooking time but are harder to overcook.
Experiment by adding other vegetables such as radish, carrot, fennel, grilled asparagus, spinach, and more.
You can make the salad bits ahead of time but don’t dress until serving or the veggie swill get watery and soggy.

More Mediterranean Salads

If you like the look and sound of this Mediterranean chicken quinoa bowl, I think you’d really enjoy my Mediterranean Quinoa Salad with roast veggies and basil dressing, my grilled chicken quinoa salad with honey harissa and yoghurt, my Greek chicken bowls, or my avocado halloumi salad. They bring a similar vibe to this recipe!