Street Corn Chicken Rice Bowl (Printable)
Juicy spiced chicken meets charred street corn in a vibrant rice bowl with creamy cotija sauce, avocado, and fresh vegetables.
# What You Need:
→ For the Chicken
01 - 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
02 - 1 tbsp olive oil
03 - 1 tsp chili powder
04 - 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
05 - 1/2 tsp garlic powder
06 - 1/2 tsp ground cumin
07 - 1/2 tsp salt
08 - 1/4 tsp black pepper
→ For the Rice
09 - 1 cup long-grain white rice
10 - 2 cups water or chicken broth
11 - 1/2 tsp salt
→ For the Street Corn Topping
12 - 2 cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen
13 - 1 tbsp butter
14 - 1/4 cup mayonnaise
15 - 1/4 cup sour cream
16 - 1/2 cup cotija cheese, crumbled
17 - 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
18 - 1 small jalapeño, finely diced
19 - Juice of 1 lime
20 - 1/2 tsp chili powder
→ For Assembly
21 - 1 avocado, sliced
22 - 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
23 - Extra cilantro and lime wedges for garnish
# Steps:
01 - Bring water or broth and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add rice, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15-18 minutes until tender. Remove from heat and let stand covered for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
02 - Toss chicken breasts with olive oil, chili powder, smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Grill or pan-sear over medium-high heat for 6-7 minutes per side until cooked through. Let rest 5 minutes, then slice.
03 - Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add corn and sauté for 3-4 minutes until lightly charred. Remove from heat and transfer to a bowl. Stir in mayonnaise, sour cream, cotija cheese, cilantro, jalapeño, lime juice, and chili powder.
04 - Divide rice among 4 bowls. Top each with sliced chicken, street corn mixture, avocado slices, and cherry tomatoes. Garnish with extra cilantro and lime wedges. Serve immediately.
# Expert Hints:
01 -
- You get those incredible street corn flavors without the mess of eating corn on the cob
- Everything comes together in under 45 minutes with mostly pantry staples
- The sauce doubles as a killer dip for tortilla chips later
02 -
- The corn mixture tastes better after it sits for 10 minutes, so make it first and let the flavors hang out while you finish everything else
- Slice your chicken against the grain, it makes a huge difference in how tender each bite feels
- Don't skip resting the chicken, I learned this the hard way and ended up with dry meat everywhere
03 -
- Use a cast iron skillet for the corn if you have one, it gives you those restaurant-quality char marks
- Double the corn sauce and keep it in the fridge for tacos the next day