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So….these Cuban Chicken and Black Bean Quinoa Bowls with Fried Bananas…..YES!
I am on a huge “bowl” food kick right now. I think it’s all this healthy, fresh eating that I’m currently into at the moment. It seems that when it comes to healthy, fresh food it just works nicely in a bowl!
I don’t know, either that or I really just like making giant bowls of delicious food.
But umm, happy Wednesday!! I am so excited for today because I am back in the kitchen cooking. Yes! I spent Monday and Tuesday catching up on computer work (ugh) because I had people finishing up in my kitchen and photo room. They were finishing the final coat of paint and other miscellaneous things, which meant no cooking for me. I cannot even remember the last day I didn’t cook for practically the entire day. With Christmas and New Years, I’ve honestly been cooking for three weeks straight – and pretty much all of December too. My new kitchen surely got a good workout though, especially over Christmas.
Oh my gosh, I was tired, but believe it or not, I still hated sitting and staring at my computer screen all day long.
That is just so not my thing, but everyones gotta do it at some point…I guess. Bottom line is I am crazy exited to get back to cooking and photographing today. I guess I kind of love it…obviously.
Oh, and I also spent a decent portion of my Monday night pulling my brother’s friends giant trailer full of snowmobiles out of my driveway. Yup, I didn’t even know I had it in me, but apparently I am pretty good at getting people unstuck. Even if their trailer is the biggest I have ever seen and they don’t have snow tires (ahh..yes). Who doesn’t have snow tires up here (his friend IS from Michigan though)? And yes, I do have five brothers…wonder where the heck they were?
Ah ah hmmm…..the bar. Yes, I’m serious, or at least the older ones were. Brothers.
And back to these Cuban chicken and black bean quinoa bowls, because my rambling is making me tired.
Doesn’t this just look so pretty and delicious? I think so, especially the delicious part. So many good flavors, so many textures. Besides being a flavor freak, I am also a texture freak, so this is totally my kind of bowl.
Plus, hello! Cuban food. YUM!
Now I realize there are a fair amount of steps to this recipe. DO NOT let this scare you off. I will not lie, these bowls take a little time, but nothing is that hard and you make them to your liking. I of course would not recommend skimping on even one part of this meal, because I think everything in it is a must. The fried bananas? FOR SURE? The Mangos? WITHOUT A DOUBT. The quinoa? Well, rice would totally work awesome here too, but quinoa gives us protein and whole grains. The chicken? THE BEST.
And that pretty much sums up how I feel about this meal.
Meaning I clearly love it to death, which is why my caps lock has been on way too much throughout this post. Sorry, but how else am I supposed to show you my excitement. I mean you can’t actually see me, so caps lock it is. Don’t get annoyed, just know I really, really love this bowl.
And I am kind of mildly (or maybe wildly?) exited for you guys to make them too. I hope you love them as much as we all did!
Oh, but before I go – fried bananas done in a savory dish? Best. Thing. Ever.
Seriously, do not be freaked by them. They are delish!
Cuban Chicken and Black Bean Quinoa Bowls with Fried Chili Spiced Bananas + Spicy Mangos.
Servings: 4 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 862 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Chicken
Black Beans + Quinoa
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 red pepper chopped
- 1 1/2 cups dry quinoa
- 2 cups cooked black beans rinsed + drained if using canned
- 2 cloves garlic minced or grated
- salt and pepper to taste
Bananas + Mangos
- 2 bananas sliced + chili powder if desired
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 mango diced
- 1 red chile seeded + chopped
- 1/2 of 1 lime juiced
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- To a blender, add the cumin, 3 cloves garlic, red chile, pinch of pepper, 3/4 cup orange juice, lime juice + lime zest, honey, soy sauce and cilantro. Blend until everything is finely chopped and smooth. Next, add the chicken to a bowl or a ziplock bag and pour half the marinade over the chicken. Toss to coat and allow the chicken to sit for 20 minutes, or even overnight, in the marinade.
- Meanwhile, work on the quinoa. Heat a large high sided skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot add the oil and onion. Cook for 5-10 minutes or until the onion is soft. Add the red pepper and quinoa, cook another five minutes until the red pepper is soft and the quinoa is lightly toasted. Now pour in 3 cups of water or chicken broth, bring the mixture to a boil, cover and then simmer over low heat for 25-30 minutes or until the quinoa is cooked and fluffy. Once the quinoa is done cooking, scoot it over to the side and add another drizzle of oil to the skillet if needed, add the black beans, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook until warmed through. Alternately, you may just stir the black beans into the quinoa.
- While the quinoa cooks, fry the bananas. Remove the peels from the bananas and slice into 1/2 inch thick slices. Set a skillet over medium to medium-high heat and add the oil. Lay down your banana slices and sprinkle with chili powder if using, fry for 4-5 minutes on each side. Be sure to watch the heat and turn it down if the bananas are browning too quickly. You want enough heat to caramelize and brown the slices, but you don't want them to burn. Remove from the skillet and place on a plate. Sprinkle with sea salt.
- Add the mango, red chile, lime juice and cilantro to a bowl. Toss well.
- To cook the chicken, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add a drizzle of olive oil. Add half the chicken and cook, 3-5 minutes or until browned all over and cooked throughout. Remove and repeat with the remaining chicken. Once all the chicken is cooked, cover with foil. Add the remaining marinade + 1/4 cup orange juice to the skillet and bring to a boil. Add the 2 tablespoons of butter and cook about 5 minutes or until reduced slightly. Stir in some chopped cilantro if desired.
- To serve, divide the quinoa among bowls. Top with chicken, black beans, mangos and bananas. Drizzle with the the mojo sauce and chopped cilantro if desired.
Thinking 2015 may be all about food in bowls? Bring it on!
This post was originally published on January 7, 2015
This sounds incredible and I’ve been wanting to make it for a good month lol! Do you think Jasmine rice would go well with this instead of quinoa? My bf and I aren’t crazy about quinoa…if not jasmine, would any other starch work?
Hey Jessica! I think rice will be delicious, you can never go wrong with rice! 🙂
WOW!! ??? Just made this tonite and Everuone LOVED it – I didn’t seed the chilies as we can take the heat – I will be making this again! Thanks for a wonderful recipe!
YES! So so so happy to hear that you loved this Sharyl!! Thank you!
I have to let you know that in your recipe the one ingredient that you said was banana, it is suppose to be plantain. It is family to the banana but completely different. You Cannot eat it as you do a banana. Must be cooked. The recipe looks great thinking about trying it out.
Hi Berecia Todman! I actually used bananas and not plantains. Thank you!
please let me know if you have questions. Hope you love this!
I made this in Saturday and it was delish! The flavours are unique and blend nicely together. I’ve never had fried bananas before so I started with plantains, but at the last minute decided to include the bananas which were actually quite good. This is a keeper and I will definitely make again. I’m going to try the Greek chicken recipe. Very excited.
Woohoo!! So happy you liked it!! Hope you love the Greek chicken! Thanks Bernice!!
Lush, lush, lush, thank you
THANK YOU! 🙂
Looks good, definitely going to try this. By fried bananas do you mean fried plantains? They look similar but they are different fruit. Typically plantains are fried, especially in Caribbean food. I just want to make sure to buy the right thing!
NOpe, I used bananas for this recipe. Let me know if you have questions. Thanks!
I made the chicken only and will have it with black beans I made a couple days ago and possibly fry the bananas as well. The chicken looks nothing like the picture – are the ingredients correctly listed? My chicken completely light colored, not dark at all. There is so much lime juice & orange juice in the marinade, I don’t understand how you got the dark brown color of the chicken? Also the marinade has no real texture to due to the large amount of OJ and lime juice. What am I missing??
HI! Sorry for the trouble. I like to remove some of the marinade before cooking. This should give you the color you see in the photos. Let me know if you have any other questions. Thank you and enjoy!
I WILL make this…but I was wondering if epazoate would be a good substitute for the cilantro or in addition to….I love me some epazoate with my black beans and have stored it in the freezy? BTW…I made the single lady’s lava cake (with coffee yogurt on top) and it was heavenly! Love love love your recipes!
I am definitely going to try this but had a question – have you made fried plantains with this dish by chance? I love plantains but never cook with them and this recipe is inspiring me!!
….just curious.
I have and I love it! Fried plantains are the best! Here is my recipe for them: https://fett-weg.today/pomegranate-guacamole-with-fried-plantain-chips/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
When you refer to bananas are you speaking about regular bananas or plantains?
Regular bananas. Let me know if you have other questions, thanks!
This looks amazing, but I’m allergic to mangoes & cilantro. Do you think substituting pineapple & a combination of fresh parsley and oregano would work?
I think pineapple will be amazing and the combo of herbs! Hope you love this!
Looks great, but one question. At the end it mentions drizzling with mojo sauce, did I miss that in the recipe?
Hey Ellen! The mojo sauce is within the recipe, it is optional. It it leftover from the marinade. You boil it towards the end. Sorry if that is confusing. Let me know if you have any other questions. Tieghan!
Wow!! What an amazing dish!!…could not have thought of a better way to start culinary 2016!…
one question…wasn’t clear whether to cook the chicken with or without the marinade…in the end I figured not, because otherwise how to get such nice blackened chicken? 🙂
Cheers..
I like to sear the chicken first and then add the marinade for extra flavor, but it is not necessary. So happy you loved the recipe, thanks! Happy 2016!
I know this is an old post and don’t know if you still read these comments. You wrote that you were “exited – to leave” twice. I think you meant “excited – enthusiastic and eager”. Found you on Pinterest. Love all your food.
Oops! I will get that fixed! Thanks so much!!! 🙂
Misspelled word below.
Bottom line is I am crazy exited (should be “excited”) to get back to cooking and photographing today.
Misspelled word below.
And I am kind of mildly exited (should be”excited”) for you guys to make them too.
hehe! Thank you so much!!
This recipe is delicious. Easy and tasty! Cooked it for my chef boyfriend who loved everything about it. Didn’t even mind it was healthy ! Thanks!
Thank you!