Brown rice burrito bowl recipe with coriander vinagrette & grilled chicken

The best part about this brown rice burrito bowl is the delicious coriander (cilantro) dressing that coats the brown rice and turns it into a vibrant green colour. This forms the base onto which you add any toppings of your choice, and you can really go wild here.

I have used Tastic’s New Wholegrain Long Grain Brown rice, which keeps the bran layer on the rice giving it a lovely nutty character. I always opt for wholegrain anything whenever I can because it has a lower GI and is packed with fibre. This rice is perfect to use in salads or in stews where it can soak of all the sauce.

Bowl food like this is my favourite mid-week way to do supper. I can combine whatever toppings I have around and I love the different textures and temperatures going on. The raw elements happily providing delicious crunchy texture to the warm and cooked elements. I use a fork only, and eat supper on my couch while watching my favourite TV series.

This is an easy meal to keep vegan, just omit the chicken and cheese.

How to cook brown rice:

Soak Tastic New Wholegrain Long Grain Brown rice for 15 minutes in cold water. Drain excess water & rinse with cold water and return rice to pot.

Bring the rice to the boil and then reduce the heat & simmer for 10-14 minutes
uncovered. Drain excess water and rinse with cold water.

Steam on low heat for 5 – 10 minutes. For a softer rice add more water & cook for a further 5minutes.

Recipe – serves 4 (adapted from Whatsgabycooking)

2 cups Tastic brown rice
4 skinless chicken breasts, flattened
olive oil to grill

Coriander dressing

1 shallot or half a brown onion roughly chopped
2 cups tightly packed fresh coriander / cilantro leaves (keep the smaller stalks)
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoons chilli flakes
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt

Tomato salsa (pico de gallo)

500gms baby tomatoes, quartered
½ large red or white onion finely chopped
½ cup coriander cilantro leaves chopped
Juice from 1 lime
1 jalapeño chilli chopped

Other toppings:

2 ripe avocados (sliced and divided into 4)
150gms Cheddar cheese grated
Shredded romaine/cos lettuce
Lime wedge
Corn chips

(Additional topping ideas: red or black beans, sour cream, chopped red pepper)

First up make the dressing (this can be done in advance). Put all the ingredients for the dressing in a small food processor and blend until well combined and fairly smooth.

Flatten the chicken breasts and drizzle a little olive oil over and season with salt & pepper

Cook the rice in salty water according to pack instructions.

Prepare all the other toppings and seasonings.

Grill the chicken on a griddle pan just before the rice is ready. Allow to rest and either slice or serve whole. Spritz with lime and season with salt and pepper

Drain the rice and toss through the dressing to coat it well well. It will suck up all that delicious flavour, then divide this amongst 4 bowls.

Top the rice with a grilled chicken breast, ¼ avo sliced, grated cheese, shredded lettuce and pica de gallo. Serve with corn chips and any other toppings.

*tip: use store-bought rotisserie chicken instead