Caribbean Chicken Quinoa

This Caribbean Chicken Quinoa is a perfect summertime lunch or dinner. It is loaded with fruits and vegetables, topped with lime juice and a spicy kick of cayenne pepper.

The newest addition to our family, Teresa Marie, is officially 6 weeks old today and I am starting to feel like myself again! I LOVE eating healthy and cooking healthy meals. However, pregnancy totally throws me off from my normal routine. All I can eat for 12 weeks straight are crackers and bowls of cereal. Yikes!!!

I was able to turn things around a bit after week 20 of pregnancy, but never fully returned to my “normal” eating. Well, no excuses anymore! I spent one day this week prepping some healthy meals that I can easily throw together for my family or just grab out of my fridge and eat between naps, feedings, dirty diapers, and lots of outdoor play (i.e. dirty and wet children).

What does “normal” eating look like?

Everyone’s “normal” looks a little different. I have friends and family that are lactose intolerant, eat gluten free, or are vegetarians. I like to call our normal “clean eating with a dash of whatever I can get on the table to feed people as quickly as possible.” It’s all about balance, right?! Ha!

But, honestly, we eat clean/healthy (whatever you want to call it) more often than not. I believe in eating small frequent meals. Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, and one last snack. Breakfasts examples are Greek yogurt topped with homemade granola, steel cut oats, kefir smoothies, chia pudding, or sweet potatoes and eggs. Snacks typically consist of protein balls, homemade hummus and vegetables, smoothies, hard boiled eggs, or apples with almond butter. Lastly, lunch and dinners are very similar. A protein (salmon, chicken, pot roast, pork tenderloin) with roasted veggies are my simple go-to. I like to bake a ton of chicken breasts at the beginning of the week with just salt and pepper and have it in hand to throw in salads, burrito bowls, and quinoa.

I especially like to make Caribbean Chicken Quinoa in the summer, at the beginning of the week, and eat it throughout the week for lunch. It’s sweet and salty with a slight kick from the cayenne pepper.

Ingredients

• 2 cups cooked quinoa
• 2 chicken breast baked or grilled, chopped
• 2 kiwi, peeled and cubed (about half a cup)
• 1 cup pineapple, chopped
• 1/2 cup red onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• juice from 2 limes
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake chicken for 25 minutes. Let cool and chop.
2. While chicken is baking cook quinoa according to the package instructions. Let cool.
3. To a large bowl combine all ingredients and stir.
4. Refrigerate until ready to eat.

Caribbean Chicken Quinoa Salad

This Caribbean Chicken Quinoa salad is a perfect summertime lunch or dinner. It is loaded with fruits and vegetables, topped with lime juice and a spicy kick of cayenne pepper.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine American

Servings 4 Servings

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups Quinoa Cooked
• 2 Chicken Breast baked or grilled and chopped
• 2 Kiwi peeled and cubed
• 1 cup Pineapple chopped
• 1/2 cup Red onion chopped
• 1/2 cup red bell pepper chopped
• 1/2 cup cilantro chopped
• 2 limes juiced
• 1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake chicken for 25 minutes. Let cool and chop. 
• While chicken is baking cook quinoa according to the package instructions. Let cool. 
• To a large bowl combine all ingredients and stir.
• Refrigerate until ready to eat. 

Keyword Dinner, Lunch, Summer