Chicken Quinoa Bowl with Crispy Chickpeas & Garlic Aioli

Layered with fluffy quinoa, spicy honey chipotle chicken, crispy chickpeas, crunchy pumpkin seeds, and silky, delicious homemade garlic aioli, this chicken quinoa bowl is truly one of the best meals I’ve made in a long time!

Recipe Ingredients

As most *good* bowls do, this recipe requires quite a few components, but many of them can be made ahead of time so that when it’s time to enjoy your bowls, it’s just a matter of assembly! Here is everything you’ll need to bring these bright, beautiful bowls to life:

For the crispy chickpeas

• Canned chickpeas
• Olive oil
• Sea salt

For the roasted garlic aioli

• Garlic
• Egg
• Fresh lemon juice
• Sea salt
• Avocado oil

For the Chicken

• Ghee or olive oil
• Chicken tenders
• Chipotle chili powder – swap this for paprika for a milder chicken
• Honey
• Lime juice
• Sea salt

For the quinoa

• Quinoa
• Water
• Sea salt
• Olive oil

For the Fresh Veggie Salad

• Yellow tomatoes
• Cucumber
• Red onion
• Fresh parsley
• Fresh dill
• Garlic
• Lemon juice and zest
• Olive oil
• Sea salt
• Red pepper flakes

for the bowls

• Pumpkin seeds
• Fresh dill

How to Make Chicken Quinoa Bowls

If you’re making each component for these bowls on the night you plan on enjoying them, you’ll have a bit of a lineup of to-dos. Everything is super easy, though, and the instructions were written to make your time in the kitchen ultra-efficient.

If you typically set aside a little bit of time on the weekend to get some food prep done, see my “meal prep tip” below for make-ahead timing instructions.

1. Let chickpeas dry out – using a strainer, drain and rinse the can of garbanzo beans completely, then spread the garbanzo beans out evenly on a clean kitchen towel (or paper towel) and allow them to dry for at least 1 hour or overnight.
2. Roast garlic – preheat the oven to 375°F and peel the outer layers of the garlic skin off, leaving the cloves still attached. Cut the top of the bulb off, making sure to also cut the tops of the cloves hiding on the side, then wrap the prepped garlic bulb in aluminum foil with the cut side up. Roast the wrapped garlic (balanced in a muffin pan if needed) for 30-45 minutes, and then remove the garlic from the oven and let cool before handling.
3. Marinate chicken – add the chicken tenders, chipotle chili powder, lime juice, honey, and salt to a large container or baggy. Place in the refrigerator and marinate for at least 30 minutes (or up to 12 hours if you’re looking for ways to get ahead).
4. Make quinoa – soak the quinoa for 2 minutes, then rinse it thoroughly and add it to a pot with the water, salt, and oil, then bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork.
5. Make veggie salad – add the halved yellow tomatoes, sliced cucumber, slivered onion, fresh dill, grated garlic, lemon juice and zest, olive oil, sea salt, and red pepper flakes to a large bowl and stir to combine. Store in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble the bowls.
6. Preheat the air fryer to 400°F.
7. Cook chicken – add the ghee to a cast iron pan on the stovetop over high heat. Once hot, add the marinated chicken and cook for 5 minutes per side. Once done, let the chicken cool on a cutting board for at least 10 minutes.
8. Air fry chickpeas – while the chicken is cooking, toss the chickpeas in the olive oil, and cook in the air fryer for 12 minutes, tossing halfway through.
9. Make aioli – while both the chicken and chickpeas are cooking, make the aioli. Place the egg, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, salt, and then avocado oil into a large mason jar (the order of ingredients is important here!). This recipe works best when all of the ingredients are at room temperature. Place an immersion blender at the very bottom of the mason jar and blend for 30 seconds, then slowly move the immersion blender wand up and down until all ingredients are incorporated. Blend in the rest of the lemon juice, water (1 tablespoon at a time, until you reach your desired consistency), and garlic until smooth.
10. Chop chicken – once the chicken is done resting, chop it into bite-sized pieces.
11. Assemble and enjoy – assemble the bowls, layering the quinoa, chicken, veggie salad, chickpeas, pumpkin seeds, garlic aioli, and fresh dill. Enjoy!

How to Store and Reheat

Whether you’re storing each component of these bowls after meal prepping them several days in advance or you’re storing leftovers after you’ve enjoyed them, you’ll want to store each component separately. Below, you’ll find instructions for each:

• Crispy chickpeas: store on the counter in a mason jar with a folded-up paper towel just under the affixed lid for 3-4 days
• Roasted garlic aioli: store in a mason jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks
• Honey chipotle chicken: store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days
• Quinoa: store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days
• Fresh veggie salad: store in an airtight jar or container in the fridge for 1-2 days

Frequently Asked Questions