Carnitas Bowl

This savory carnitas bowl is made with fresh ingredients for better-than-Chipotle flavor! Make it in just 40 minutes for an easy dinner.

It’s no secret we love Mexican food. And this burrito bowl might just be our new favorite weeknight dinner – especially when we’ve just made a big batch of slow cooker carnitas!

Piled high with cilantro lime rice, black beans, corn, salsa verde, pico, cheese, and plenty of guac, this Chipotle style bowl is packed with flavor and easy to throw together in 40 minutes or less. Even better? You can prep most of the ingredients ahead of time for a simple reheat-and-serve dinner.

What This Recipe Entails

To make a carnitas bowl, you just have to prep all the individual components – rice, protein, salsa, and other toppings – before plating them. It really doesn’t require too much cooking, especially if you make slow cooker carnitas ahead of time.

• Prep time: 15 minutes
• Cook time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

• Carnitas – You can easily make delicious carnitas at home with pork shoulder and a slow cooker. Make a big batch with our carnitas recipe and use it for burrito bowls, tacos, and more!
• Cilantro lime rice – Our Chipotle style cilantro lime rice recipe makes a flavorful base for this burrito bowl.
• Salsa – We put 3 kinds of salsa on this bowl: black bean corn salsa, salsa verde, and pico de gallo! We recommend making all of these components at home, instead of using store-bought, for the best flavor. We have recipes for all 3 linked below and in the recipe card.
• Cheese – Top your bowl with finely shredded Mexican cheese for a little extra flavor.
• Avocado (optional) – We like to mash some avocado with fresh lime juice and a pinch of salt to go on top of our burrito bowls every now and then. It adds a little extra creaminess and makes it more filling.

How To Make A Carnitas Bowl

You’ll need to prep each component individually, then assemble and serve. We recommend starting the rice first so that you can prep everything else while it steams.

1. Cilantro lime rice: Steam white rice over low heat on the stove for about 20 minutes, or until all the water has been absorbed. Wait to stir in the lime juice and cilantro until you’re about to serve the burrito bowls.
2. Verde sauce: In the meantime, blend the verde sauce ingredients and then cook on the stove for about 10 minutes, or until the sauce is tangy and dark green in color. Get our full Mexican verde sauce recipe for details.
3. Black bean corn salsa: Combine black beans and corn in a large bowl, then toss with fresh lime juice and sea salt. See our black bean corn salsa recipe for details.
4. Pico de gallo: Dice the veggies and combine in a small bowl with garlic, lime juice, and sea salt. See our pico de gallo recipe for details.
5. Other toppings: Prep any additional toppings, like mashed avocado with lime juice and salt or shredded cheese, and set aside.
6. Carnitas: Finally, warm the carnitas in a large skillet over medium-low heat.
7. Assemble and serve: Layer cilantro lime rice, bean corn salsa, carnitas, verde sauce, pico de gallo, shredded cheese, and mashed avocado in a large bowl. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Serving Suggestions

We always love to serve burrito bowls with tortilla chips! Dip any extra toppings you might have (the bean corn salsa is delicious with chips!), or break out a jar of salsa and dig in. You can also scoop your burrito bowl with chips instead of a fork, which we always love to do.

FAQs