I was feeling very uncreative when trying to figure out what to have for dinner for the week. I just wasn’t feeling anything… I wasn’t craving any of my recipes. I wasn’t craving any of my favorite bloggers recipes. I wasn’t feeling anything new. I was just blah.
I sat in my kitchen flipping through cookbooks. I scrolled through my favorites on Yummly. Nada nada nada. Nothing was coming to me. So, I do what I so often do and text my bff and asked her for some high level ideas. “What would you want me to make? What would you like? What are you itching for?” And one of the things she said was a chicken bowl. She didn’t mention what cuisine or what else to add to the bowl, but it was enough to get me noodling on it.
There’s a recipe I love with Mexican-styled marinated flank steak over potatoes. And so, I got to thinking about using Mexican flavors for this dish. I mean, heck, Chipotle has the burrito bowl down, right? But, I didn’t want the rice. I just wanted healthy, healthy, healthy.
Now, my friend hates cauliflower. It breaks my heart because I love using cauliflower in place of heavier carb foods like rice! If you’re the same as my friend, no problem! Just swap the cauliflower out for broccoli, and it’ll still be delicious! The cauliflower (or broccoli!), is the only thing I do not season in this dish. I honestly find roasting cauliflower on it’s own ~ no seasoning, no olive oil ~ is absolutely delicious. It doesn’t need anything more to make it yum!
However, for the sweet potatoes, I made a delicious sauce to toss them in with white miso, coconut oil, and seasonings. And they are gooood! And hey, if you’re like my son, who hates sweet potatoes (what’s with all the hate people???), you could swap it out with regular potatoes. However, I do recommend the sweet potatoes because they are packed with so many vitamins that they are a worthwhile starchy/carb food to eat.
I also seasoned the bell peppers, using chili powder and lime juice to give them a light and zesty flavor. The vegetables cooked on two separate baking sheets in the oven for about half an hour. Easy right? Most of your hands on time is prepping!
The chicken I cooked in a slow cooker. You can cook it on the stove top, which will probably take 45 to 60 minutes, give or take. But, I like slow cooker meals. You can throw everything in, in the morning and just let it do its thing. When it’s done cooking, it’ll switch to the warm setting and you’ll be ready to rock and roll come the evening! I shredded the chicken using two forks, pulling along the grain of the chicken. And then, I plopped the chicken back into the slow cooker to soak up all the yummy enchilada sauce.
Now, the enchilada sauce I chose to make. Homemade red enchilada sauce is so easy, so cheap, that it just makes sense to make your own. If you’re lazy, don’t feel like it, or whatever other reason, don’t sweat it! Use canned ~ you’ll need about a cup to a cup and a half of canned red enchilada sauce. But, I give the ingredients and instructions on how to make red enchilada sauce below. I like to add some chipotle in adobo to give it a bit extra kick 😉.
Lastly, while the vegetables cook, I made an avocado/cotija dressing with cilantro, lime, and sour cream all blended together in a food processor. And man oh man, this dressing is soooo good! If you can’t find cotija, I find that feta tastes just as good in this blend (even though it’s certainly not a Mexican cheese!).
And easy peasy, you’re done! I dished the potatoes and cauliflower on the bottom of the bowls, then scooped the peppers followed by the chicken on top. Then, a nice dollop of the avocado dressing and you’re ready to eat! I absolutely loved how this came out. And it is so healthful!
Enjoy!
Healthy Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Bowls with Avocado Cotija Dressing
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes + 4-8 hours slow cooking
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Mexican
- Cuisine: Dinner
Ingredients
Chicken
~1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
½ TB olive oil
1 TB tomato paste
1 TB flour
1 cup chicken stock
1 TB chili powder
1 – 2 chipotle in adobo sauce, finally minced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp oregano
½ tsp salt
Sweet Potatoes
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes about ¾” x ¾”
2 TBs miso
1 TB coconut oil, melted
½ TB ground chipotle pepper
¼ tsp salt
⅛ tsp cayenne
⅛ tsp black pepper
Peppers
3 bell peppers of various colors, sliced
1 TB olive oil
½ TB chili powder
¼ tsp salt
½ a lime, juiced
Cauliflower
head of one cauliflower, cut into florets
Avocado Cotija Dressing
1 cup cotija (you can substitute with feta if you cannot find cotija)
1 avocado
⅓ cup sour cream
1 bunch cilantro
zest of 1 lime
½ a lime, juiced
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Make the Enchilada Sauce & Chicken
In a medium sauce pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the tomato paste and mix together with the olive oil. Sprinkle the flour into the pot and stir until fully saturated. Slowly add the chicken broth into the pot until fully incorporated with the flour mix. Add the chili powder, chipotle in adobo sauce, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, and salt. Bring to a light boil and then reduce the heat until the sauce thickens slightly ~ 2 to 3 minutes.
Place the chicken into the bowl of a slower cooker and pour the enchilada sauce over the chicken. Cook on low for about 6 hours or on high for about 4 hours. When cooked through, remove and shred with two forks on a cutting board, tearing along the grain of the chicken. Return to the slow cooker and stir until the chicken fully absorbs the enchilada sauce. Keep the chicken on the “warm” setting while cooking the vegetables.
Cook the Vegetables
Preheat the oven to 500°F. Prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper, if desired, for easier clean up.
In a small bowl, whisk together the miso, coconut oil, ground chipotle pepper, salt, cayenne pepper, and black pepper. On one half of one baking sheet, toss the miso sauce with the sweet potatoes and spread out the sweet potatoes across about two-thirds of the baking sheet.
On the other third of the same baking sheet, spread the bell peppers and toss with the olive oil, lime juice, chili powder, and salt.
On the second baking sheet, spread out the cauliflower florets. Do not add any olive oil to the cauliflower.
Place the baking sheet of sweet potatoes and peppers on a rack in the middle of the oven and the baking sheet with the cauliflower on a rack just below the middle rack.
Cook for about 25 to 30 minutes, tossing several times, until the sweet potatoes are soft and the cauliflower lightly charred.
Make the Dressing
Meanwhile, make the dressing. In a small food processor, add the cotija, avocado, sour cream cilantro, lime zest, and lime juice. Process until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper, processing again to thoroughly combine the salt and pepper into the dressing.
Dish
Dish the cauliflower and sweet potatoes into the bottom of your bowls. Top with the bell peppers then the chicken. Scoop a dollop of the dressing on top and serve immediately.
Enjoy!
Notes
You can also cook the chicken on the stove top on low, covered, for about 1 hour, if preferred.
Keywords: Chicken enchilada, chicken enchilada bowl, chicken bowl, Mexican chicken bowl, spicy chicken bowl, chicken and sweet potato bowl, chicken and cauliflower bowl
