Chicken Shawarma Quinoa Bowls

These chicken shawarma quinoa bowls have seasoned chicken, a fresh Mediterranean salad, and quinoa. Top them with avocado, tzatziki sauce, or hummus!

A lot has happened since we last caught up! I took the LSAT and practically danced out of the test because I was so happy to be done. I drove straight to pick up a pint of my favorite Graeter’s cookie dough ice cream to celebrate after a year of studying. Fingers crossed I won’t be retaking that test and that you’ll never hear me mention it again!

And I spent the past four days at Bald Head Island, a North Carolina beach, with one of my best friends and her family. We spent our days running, reading, and swimming in the ocean. It was pretty much a perfect vacation with sunny weather, lots of laughs, and good food.

I did make the mistake of packing my laptop in its case in my suitcase while traveling, and the screen cracked. It turns out that replacing a laptop screen is $$$. So, PSA: carrry your laptop/camera/phone with you when you travel! Now I know 🙂

After the LSAT, I also started working full-time at my non-profit legal internship and have settled into the 9-5 groove.
Oh, and I tried out a few new recipes. One was chicken lettuce wraps that tasted good but were pretty ugly, so they were kind of a flop. But these chicken shawarma quinoa bowls were awesome. My family members are my most reliable (and honest) recipe critics and they loved these– even my dad.

These bowls have shawarma-seasoned chicken (paprika, cayenne, turmeric, and cumin, plus lemon juice and olive oil), quinoa, and a fresh Mediteranean-style veggie salad. And then you can go nuts with toppings- avocado slices, tzatziki sauce, and hummus are great options (we used all of them!).

If you try these chicken shawarma quinoa bowls, feel free to let me know in a comment or take a picture and tag me @livbane on Instagram. Hope you enjoy!

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5 from 1 vote

Chicken Shawarma Quinoa Bowls

Total Time: 40 minutes minutes

Ingredients

For the Chicken

• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 4 chicken breasts, pounded to a similar thickness (about 1/4 inch thick)

For the Quinoa

• 1 cup quinoa, cooked according to package directions (I add a dash of salt and garlic powder once cooked, plus fresh parsley if I have it)

For the Mediterranean Salad

• 1/2 cucumber diced
• 1/2 bell pepper chopped
• 1/4 red onion chopped
• 1 medium tomato seeded and diced
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Salt & pepper to taste

Toppings

• Choose from tzatziki sauce, hummus, fresh avocado slices, fresh parsley, and feta cheese

Instructions

• In a medium or large bowl, combine cumin, turmeric, paprika, and cayenne with the juice of half of the lemon, plus 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add chicken breasts and place in refrigerator to marinate for 10 minutes or up to 4 hours.
• In a sieve with small holes, rinse quinoa (this helps remove any traces of a bitter coating). In a small saucepan, add quinoa and 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil and then turn to medium-low, simmering for 10-13 minutes or until quinoa kernels have "popped." Set aside. I like to add garlic powder and a pinch of salt to my quinoa, in addition to fresh parsley if I have some on hand.
• While quinoa is cooking, cook chicken. In a large skillet over low heat, add 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil. Add chicken breasts and return lid to pan. Cook for 4-6 minutes per side, until chicken is cooked through.
• In a medium bowl, add cucumber, bell pepper, red onion, and tomato. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, and stir to combine.
• In large bowls, layer quinoa, sliced chicken breast, veggie salad, and toppings. Enjoy!

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