Korean BBQ Chicken Bowls with brown rice, cucumber salad, broccoli, shredded cabbage, and an amazing sweet and sour sauce. This easy dinner recipe is packed with fresh flavors for a complete meal.
Featuring sweet, sour, and savory crispy Korean BBQ chicken, these hearty bowls are loaded with everything you need for a satisfying meal!
A base of brown rice provides complex carbohydrates, tangy cucumber salad adds a briny element, steamed crisp broccoli brings nutrients and fiber, and of course the sauce is everything here!
The chicken turns out perfectly tender with a slightly crispy outside and is infused with an array of amazing flavors.
Customize it with your favorite toppings and enjoy it any night of the week! I love that this Korean Chicken Bowl brings a tremendous amount of flavor and a variety of textures for a scintillating high protein meal.
Let’s discuss the simple ingredients! Most grocery stores carry the full list of ingredients.
Ingredients For Korean BBQ Chicken Rice Bowls:
Chicken: Pick boneless skinless chicken breast or boneless skinless chicken thighs depending on your preference.
Soy Sauce: Providing savory, umami flavor, soy sauce brings much of the flavor.
Honey: A sweet component balances out the tangy, savory flavors of the marinade.
Gochujang Sauce: Gochujang adds smoky flavor. It is made primarily out of fermented soy beans and red chilis and adds a smoky, tangy flavor.
Rice Vinegar: A little acidity for that sour component.
Avocado Oil and Sesame Oil: Toasted sesame oil contributes nutty flavor. Avocado oil helps protect the ingredients from burning during the cooking process due to its high smoke point. Both add richness!
Fresh Garlic and Fresh Ginger: Two major flavorful fresh ingredients that take any marinade or sauce to the next level. They add a subtle heat too.
For the Bowls: Pick your favorite bowl additions. I do brown rice, cucumber salad, shredded cabbage, steamed broccoli, green onion, and sesame seeds.
Recipe Customizations:
- Use liquid aminos or coconut aminos instead of soy sauce.
- Swap out the honey for brown sugar or pure maple syrup.
- For a low-carb version, use cauliflower rice instead of regular rice.
- Incorporate your favorite fresh vegetables. Bok choy, bell peppers, ripe avocados, zucchini, cherry tomatoes, and cauliflower are great additions. Any kind of fresh, sauteed, or roasted vegetables work great!
- Pickled vegetables, kimchi, and sauerkraut are amazing additions too.
How to Make Korean BBQ Chicken:
Marinate the Chicken:
Add the ingredients for the chicken marinade to a small bowl or a measuring cup and mix to combine.
Transfer the raw chicken and 1 cup of the marinade to a large zip lock bag. Seal and move everything around until the chicken is coated in marinade.
Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, ideally several hours and up to 36 hours. Keep the rest of the marinade in a sealed jar in the refrigerator to use as sauce for drizzling over the bowls at the end.
Grilling Instructions:
For a gas grill, preheat the grill to high heat, about 450 degrees Fahrenheit. For a charcoal grill, heat the coals in a charcoal chimney and spread them over one half of the bottom of the grill once white.
Place the marinated chicken over direct heat on the grill grates and grill for 2 minutes. Flip to the other side and grill for another 2 minutes, until grill marks appear on both sides.
Continue cooking and flipping every couple of minutes over indirect heat until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Transfer chicken to a plate or a cutting board and let it rest for at least 10 minutes.
Baking Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for breasts, or 400 degrees F for thighs.
Transfer the chicken along with the marinade to a large casserole dish and arrange chicken in a single layer.
For breasts, bake for 15 minutes. Spoon the pan juices over the chicken, then broil under high broil for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown, and it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
For boneless chicken thighs, bake at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes. Baste the chicken pieces with the pan juices. Broil for 5 to 8 minutes, or until thighs reach an internal temperature of 170 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit.
Make the Bowls:
Follow the instructions in the link in the recipe card to prepare the Asian Cucumber Salad. This can be made up to 4 days ahead of time.
Cook the rice according to the package instructions.
Steam broccoli florets for 5-6 minutes, until they reach your desired level of doneness. As an alternative, you can sauté or roast the broccoli.
Load up large bowls with your desired amount of rice, cucumber salad, and cooked broccoli. Slice the chicken into slices and add it to the bowl.
Use the remaining reserved sauce to drizzle over bowls for extra flavor. Serve with lime wedges for a drizzle of fresh lime juice.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can divide out the bowl ingredients into meal prep containers if you’re into meal prepping your lunches or dinners.
And that’s it! A filling, complete meal that will transform your weeknight dinners into an experience!
If you enjoy bowl food recipes like this, also try these reader favorites.
More Healthy Bowl Recipes:
- Crispy Bang Bang Salmon Bites Bowls
- Soy-Ginger Ground Turkey Bowls
- Sweet Potato Ground Beef Taco Bowl
- Mediterranean Chicken Hummus Bowls
- Sesame Garlic Steak Bites Bowls
- Ground Turkey Egg Roll Bowls
Drop a comment below letting me know your favorite bowl toppings.
Korean BBQ Chicken and Rice Bowls
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- ⅔ cup soy sauce
- 1/3 Tbsp honey
- ¼ Tbsp gochujang or sriracha
- ¼ cup rice vinegar
- 3 Tbsp avocado oil
- 2 Tbsp sesame oil
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1.5 Tbsp ginger peeled and grated
For the Bowls
- 4 to 6 Cooked brown rice or white rice
- 1 large crown broccoli chopped into florets
- 2 to 4 cups shredded cabbage
- Asian Cucumber Salad
- 1 bunch green onion chopped
- 1 Tbsp sesame seeds optional
Instructions
Marinate the Chicken:
- Add the ingredients for the chicken marinade to a small bowl or a measuring cup and mix to combine.
- Transfer the raw chicken and 1 cup of the marinade to a large zip lock bag. Seal and move everything around until the chicken is coated in marinade. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, ideally several hours and up to 36 hours. Keep the rest of the marinade in a sealed jar in the refrigerator to use as sauce for drizzling over the bowls at the end.
Grilling Instructions:
- For a gas grill, preheat the grill to high heat, about 450 degrees Fahrenheit. For a charcoal grill, heat the coals in a charcoal chimney and spread them over one half of the bottom of the grill once white.
- Place the marinated chicken over direct heat on the grill grates and grill for 2 minutes. Flip to the other side and grill for another 2 minutes, until grill marks appear on both sides. Continue cooking and flipping every couple of minutes over indirect heat until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Transfer chicken to a plate or a cutting board and let it rest for at least 10 minutes.
Baking instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for breasts, or 400 degrees F for thighs.
- Transfer the chicken along with the marinade to a large casserole dish and arrange chicken in a single layer.
- For breasts, bake for 15 minutes. Spoon the pan juices over the chicken, then broil under high broil for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown, and it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. For boneless chicken thighs, bake at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes. Baste the chicken pieces with the pan juices. Broil for 5 to 8 minutes, or until thighs reach an internal temperature of 170 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit.
Make the Bowls:
- Follow the instructions in the link in the recipe card to prepare the Asian Cucumber Salad. This can be made up to 4 days ahead of time.
- Cook the rice according to the package instructions.
- Steam broccoli florets for 5-6 minutes, until they reach your desired level of doneness. As an alternative, you can sauté or roast the broccoli.
- Load up large bowls with your desired amount of rice, cucumber salad, and cooked broccoli. Slice the chicken into slices and add it to the bowl. Use the remaining reserved sauce to drizzle over bowls for extra flavor. Serve with lime wedges for a drizzle of fresh lime juice.
