How to Video
On-the-Go Chicken Burritos
This simple chicken burrito recipe makes for a filling, healthy, and satisfying lunch or dinner anywhere and anytime. Be sure to double the batch and freeze some for later using our instructions.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil (sub: olive oil)
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (diced into bite-sized pieces)
- 2 tablesppons taco seasoning (sub: 1-ounce packet taco seasoning)
- 2/3 cups water (sub: chicken broth, if using homemade taco seasoning)
- 3/4 cup black beans (drained; about half of a 15-ounce can of black beans)
- 3/4 cup frozen corn
- 3/4 cup cooked brown rice (sub: Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice)
- 1/2 cup mild salsa (use medium if you like more heat)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 8 whole wheat tortillas (8-inch; I like Stacy's Organic Tortillas, if you can find them.)
- Optional Toppings for Serving: Guacamole, Cilantro Lime Aioli, sour cream, plain Greek yogurt, pico de gallo, salsa
Instructions
- Saute Chicken: Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is shimmery, add the chicken and sauté until cooked through (no longer pink), about 4 minutes.
- Cook Filling: Add water/broth, taco seasoning, black beans, corn, brown rice, and salsa. Bring the mixture to a boil and then turn the heat down to simmer. Let mixture simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has thickened.
- Assemble Burritos: To each tortilla, add a generous 1/3 cup chicken and bean mixture and 3 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese. Pull in each end of tortilla and roll up tightly into a burrito.
- Heat Up Burritos: You have 3 options for warming the burritos. - Stovetop: Pan fry (no oil needed) in a skillet over medium-high heat on both sides until toasted and warmed through, about 2 minutes per side. - Oven: Wrap tortilla in foil and heat through in a 350°F oven for about 15 minutes (or from frozen, 20-30 minutes). - Microwave: Wrap tortilla in a moist paper towel and warm in the microwave in 30 second increments until heated through. Open up the burrito halfway through reheating, to allow the inside ingredients to get warmed. - Air Fryer: Arrange the burritos, seam-side down, in air fryer basket, making sure they have space around them. Place basket into air fryer. Set temperature to 400°F and cook until crisp, 5 to 8 minutes.
- Serve with optional toppings listed above.
Freezer Instructions
Freeze for Later: Complete recipe through Step 3. Wrap each individual burrito in foil and place in gallon-sized freezer bag. Seal and freeze.
Prepare from Frozen - You have two options:
- Option 1: Thawed: Thaw completely and follow Steps 4-5.
- Option #1: Frozen: Preheat oven to 350°F. Keep burrito(s) wrapped in the foil. Heat in the oven for 20-30 minutes, until heated through. Another thaw option is to remove foil, wrap burrito in moist paper towel, and microwave in 30 second increments until heated through (about 4 minutes depending on microwave). Open up the burrito halfway through reheating, to allow the inside ingredients to get warmed.
Notes/Tips
What Tortilla is Best: I have found flour tortillas to hold up the very best. I’ve made these with white flour tortillas, whole wheat flour tortillas, and gluten-free tortillas with success. Corn tortillas are too small and will fall apart, from my experience. However, a reader told me recently that when she warms each corn tortilla in a pan before wrapping the burritos, they do tend to stay together.
Vegetarian Version: Skip the chicken and use more beans, like pinto or kidney beans, and/or more rice instead.
Gluten-Free Version: Use gluten-free tortillas but not corn tortillas. The corn ones fall apart too easily.
Dairy-Free Version: Omit the cheese or use dairy-free shredded cheese like Daiya brand.
Ground Beef Version: Try our Beef Burritos recipe instead. They are very similar and freeze well.
Where We Get Our Chicken: We get our chicken from ButcherBox. The chicken is organic and curated from trusted farms. We highly recommend this service to source healthy meat–like uncured bacon, grass-fed beef, and wild salmon–and have used it for years ourselves.
Nutrition
Calories: 362 kcal (18%) | Carbohydrates: 36 g (12%) | Protein: 24 g (48%) | Fat: 14 g (22%) | Cholesterol: 57 mg (19%) | Sodium: 619 mg (27%) | Fiber: 6 g (25%) | Sugar: 3 g (3%)
If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe!