One of my favorite takeout recipes - healthy Meal Prep Burrito Bowls! Loaded with lean protein, healthy fats, and whole grains – these are sure to satisfy your fast-food cravings. Read on to see how to make these + get ideas for simple ingredient swaps!
Hi I’m Lauren – Holistic Health Coach behind Free Your Fork and I’m here to help you with healthy living without obsessing.
I help people make simple swaps for real food recipes, safer beauty, and a healthier home.
One of the BEST places to start is by looking at the foods you eat + the products you use every single day. Some of these choices might feel small, but shifting these daily habits can add up to some seriously significant change.
Today we’re cooking up one of my favorite takeout recipes - these healthy Meal Prep Burrito Bowls! Loaded with lean protein, healthy fats, and whole grains – these are sure to satisfy your fast-food cravings.
I’m a big believer that all food - healthy homemade meals included - should taste downright delicious. Because healthy eating doesn’t mean you have to deprive yourself of your favorite foods.
One of the things I coach my clients on is how to make healthier versions of their favorite takeout foods - using just a few simple ingredient swaps.
The solution to a burrito hangover (stomach ache, low energy, indigestion, breakouts, etc) isn’t NO burritos - it’s to get curious about what might be in that burrito that isn’t making you feel your best. And then making a version that has those same satisfying flavors with ingredients that do work well for your body.
If you're wondering how to customize these bowls to fit your taste + dietary needs - I've got you covered in the swaps section below.
All of my recipes are super flexible and swap-friendly - so don’t be afraid to get creative and make this recipe work for you!
Swaps for Healthy Living Without Obsessing
- OIL SWAPS - This recipe uses anti-inflammatory avocado oil since it has a super neutral flavor and is a great swap for canola oil - but if you don’t have that on hand you can also use coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, grass-fed butter, or ghee.
- MEAT OPTIONS - If you don’t have ground turkey you can use ground chicken or ground beef instead.
- VEGETARIAN OPTIONS - If you need a meatless version - my vegetarian friends have said good things about using crumbled tofu, but you could also just add the black beans to a hot pan and spice those like you would meat.
- BEANS - Feel free to swap pinto beans for black beans - both work great here.
- RICE + GRAIN-FREE SWAPS- I love these bowls with brown rice - for the extra fiber and extra nutrients - but you could use white rice instead if that’s your favorite. Quinoa or cauliflower rice would also be great subs.
Remember - the toppings listed in the recipe card are meant to stir up fun ideas for your bowls, but you don’t have to include them all. If you ever feel overwhelmed or can’t find what your looking for - keeping it simple can be delicious too! Pick a few toppings that you absolutely love and don’t worry about the rest.
On busy nights I’ll usually just add a bit of yogurt (something creamy) + some greens (something fresh) + a dash of hot sauce (something spicy).
Pin this recipe to save these ideas for later!
RECOMMENDED TOOLS FOR MAKING THIS RECIPE:
- Glasslock Food Storage Containers (the ones I used in this post were a bargain buy from years back, but these ones are a similar BPA free option)
MORE RECIPES YOU MIGHT LOVE:
Meal Prep Burrito Bowls
Ingredients
RICE
- 3 ½ c water
- 2 c short grain brown rice uncooked
MEAT
- 1 ½ lbs ground turkey
- ½ tbs avocado oil*
- ½ lemon
- salt to taste
SPICE MIX
- 1 tbs chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried onion
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon paprika
BOWL MIX-INS
- 1 15- oz can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 c frozen grilled corn
- 1 lime
- 1 c cilantro
- 1 c salsa fresca
OPTIONAL TOPPINGS
- guacamole
- avocado
- Greek yogurt or sour cream
- cotija cheese
- fresh greens
Instructions
METHOD
- MAKE THE RICE: In a medium-sized pot, bring water and rice to a boil. Turn down to low, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork.
- COOK THE MEAT: While the rice cooks, preheat a large pan over medium to medium-high heat. Then add avocado oil and meat to the pan, stir often and use a spatula to break it up into smaller bite-sized pieces. Season with spice mixture and the juice of ½ a lemon. Add salt to taste. Will cook quickly, in about 5-7 minutes.
- PREP THE CORN: Microwave the frozen corn for 2 minutes, or until just thawed through.
- ASSEMBLE THE BOWLS: Divide rice, beans, meat, and corn between four containers. Add a lime wedge and cilantro to each one. If eating right away, add choice of fresh toppings. If saving some portions for later, pack the chosen fresh toppings separately so that you can heat up all the hot ingredients at one time and add the cold ingredients later.
Cole says
I may have missed it but do you have the nutrition breakdown?
Lauren Kenson says
Hi Cole, I don't have nutritional information available currently on my site - I'm looking into that feature and may be able to add it across the site at a later time!
Adam says
You mention that you re-heat this dish. I'm always worried about re-heating rice. Can this be eaten cold? Should I re-heat?
Thank you, I'm giving this a go tomorrow!
Lauren Kenson says
Hi Adam!
I re-heat mine all the time - occasionally in the microwave (in small increments, stirring every minute or so!) but typically I like to re-heat my leftovers in a hot pan on the stove-top whenever possible! The heat really livens up all the flavors again and makes it feel super fresh.
That being said you could ABSOLUTELY eat this cold if you like - especially on top of a big pile of greens. You could turn it into a burrito salad situation if you prefer, in which case maybe double down on the citrus wedges or add a fun dressing so it feels fresh & exciting.
-Lauren-
PS - would love to know how the recipe works out for you!! If you end up enjoying it, it would mean so much if you could pop back by the blog + give it a star rating (helps out other readers to know who has made it at home and if they should give it a go too!)
Jade says
I know this is old, but putting a small glass of warm water when reheating rice in the microwave will allow steam from the water to reheat the rice while also keeping it moist
Lauren Kenson says
Love this idea Jade! Thanks for sharing this tip!
xo, Lauren
Keely says
I made these today as my first ever meal prep. So easy and cheap! Can't wait to eat them! 😀
Lauren Kenson says
I'm so stoked to hear that you made them! Can't wait to hear how you're liking the meal prep process!!
I'm excited to add more meal prep recipes to the site soon (if you think of something you'd love to see on here, definitely let me know!)
xx, Lauren
Dayna says
These look delicious! Once I have two seconds at home, I'm all over these.
Lauren Kenson says
They're so delish to come home to after a long day at work - hope you are as stoked on this recipe as we are! (PS - definitely hit up Costco for the individual organic guacamole packs, they pack up awesome for bringing to work and they keep well in the freezer so you can thaw out what you need each week without wasting any)
xo,
Lauren