If you aren’t snagging a rotisserie chicken occasionally for easy meals, you are missing out, but it can sometimes be tough to figure out what to serve with them. These Chicken Grain Bowls are packed with deliciousness and while they aren’t as fast as some of the recipes on Crunch Time Kitchen, they are very easy, healthy, and easy to pack up for lunches.

Most of the prep time just comes to making the farro which is my favorite grain to use for these, but feel free to substitute with a faster cooking grain!

Let’s dig in and make these delicious grain bowls!

What is a grain bowl?

A grain bowl isn’t an official thing. It can kind of be anything and everything all at once. My idea of a good grain bowl is a mix of hearty grains, greens, and loads of toppings including protein and vegetables.

A sauce is a must as well. While you can use your favorite store-bought sauce, the spicy ranch I mixed up for these is pretty great.

You don’t have to use a rotisserie chicken for this recipe. You could roast your own chicken, for sure, or even use leftover chicken you have in the fridge.

But, when it comes to economical protein, a rotisserie chicken is tough to beat. Most of the time they are loss-leaders in grocery stores so they are frequently cheaper than buying an uncooked chicken.

For this recipe, it’s totally fine to buy the rotisserie chicken in advance, stick it in the fridge and then carve it up for the grain bowls. You can reheat it quickly in the oven or microwave or serve it cold.

How to cook Farro for grain bowls?

Cooking sturdy grains like farro isn’t hard, but it does take some time. Farro usually needs to simmer for at least 45 minutes to get tender. I like to simmer mine in plenty of water and then once it’s tender, I drain off any extra water so it doesn’t get mushy.

You can absolutely make the farro in advance as well. Make it the night before, slowly simmering, while you watch TV or something, and then dinner is an after-thought the next day!

If you want to change it up, you could use barley for these or quinoa would be a great choice as well.

How to make crunchy chickpeas

A trick I like to use to add some texture and extra flavor to bowls like this is to use a can of chickpeas, but crisp them up in a skillet for a few minutes with olive oil and a spice of your choice. Personally, I like garam masala, but lots of spices would work well.

They just need about five minutes to get nice and crispy and then they work well as a topping for any bowl (but definitely these chicken grain bowls).

Toppings and Ingredients for Chicken Grain Bowls

You can kind of use these grain bowls as a fridge clean-out idea, but here are some of my favorite topping ideas:

• Avocado
• Pickled red onions
• Mini peppers
• Cucumbers
• Grape tomatoes
• Radishes
• Shredded carrot
• Roasted Golden Beets
• Nuts like peanuts or cashews
• Fresh herbs like cilantro or chives

Sauce Options for Grain bowls

While you can get away with just olive oil and lemon for these bowls, a creamy and spicy sauce works really well. I mixed together a mix of ranch dressing and sriracha and it brought these bowls to life!

By all means though experiment with the sauce options here! You could go Asian like teriyaki sauce or any store-bought salad dressing would be good!

Here are a few other great recipes to try!