TASTE: Delicious one-pot quinoa bowl flavored with your favorite enchilada sauce.TEXTURE: Fluffy quinoa with crunchy vegetablesEASE: Super Easy!APPEARANCE: Rainbow colored full of veggies and fluffy quinoaServe with : Can be served as it is or with some fixings like cheese, avocado, lemon, Chips and sour creamPros : All in one meal made in pot. Black Bean Mexican quinoa bowl made with Enchilada sauce and loads of crunchy veggies. Made in one shot in my trusty instant pot! Another family favorite weeknight meal is the Instant Pot Mexican Rice & Beans Burrito bowl. It’s fantastic and comes together very easily! You can also try making my VEGAN Quinoa, sweet potato and beans chili, all in the instant pot. It’s perfect for cozy nights! It’s SUPER fast and super delicious! This recipe is very forgiving. You can add whatever veggies you want and if you are feeling decadent, top it with some cheddar cheese and you make a quinoa casserole in no time!
Ingredients for Instant Pot Mexican Quinoa
Here is what you need to make this delicious Mexican quinoa
Quinoa- Black or White Enchilada Sauce- Store bought or made at home. Here is the recipe I follow- Red enchilada sauce. Veggies- Bell Peppers, Sweet Corn(or shucked corn) work well. Black Beans- Depending on where I am with my weekly prep, I either use beans that i cooked on my own or just use canned. Feel free to use any kind of beans you have at hand.
How to make Instant Pot Quinoa Bowl
This is a super Dump and GO sort of a instant pot recipe.
Step 1: Prep
Wash your veggies and dice them small.Wash the quinoa too.I learnt this the tough way.Trust me.My dish was all muddy and had that horrible muddy crunch to it because there was residue in the quinoa.So wash it! Always!
Step 2: Pressure Cook
Literally just throw all the ingredients in.Mix it up and pressure cook for 4 minutes on HIGH pressure.
Step 3: Pressure Release
Wait for 5 minutes after the 4 minutes of pressure cooking is done.Quick Release and open. If you want to add cheese, add it now and close the instant pot for another 5 minutes in the KEEP WARM setting. If not, fluff up the quinoa with a fork and serve!
Recipe Notes
Here are some important points to note
I like my quinoa soft and fluffy. I find that for this recipe, 4 minutes of pressure cooking is needed to make them plump and soft. If you have the time to soak the quinoa, reduce the pressure cooking time to 3 minutes. When I need to add more veggies to my food, I double the amount of bell peppers in the recipe.
Serving Burrito Bowls
Here is what I do, especially when I am serving my whole family. I add small bowls filled with a lot of toppings and people make their own bowls
Sour Cream or Greek Yogurt Shredded Lettuce Diced Avocado Onions & Jalapenos Cheese Lemon Wedges Smoked Paprika
This way, people can pick and choose how they want to make their bowl. Quick Tip : for the days when you need an extra pick me up, serve this with a dollop of guac and sour cream plus some chips. It’s so good!!
Storing & Leftovers
Any leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6-7 days in an air-tight container. It will mostly depend on the chicken used. You can even freeze this! I sometimes pop the leftovers in a freezer bag. I freeze it flat and then stack it up to save space in the freezer. It should last for 2-3 months in the freezer. Also! Use any leftovers to stuff this into burritos. This is a great burrito filling! I usually make this for dinner and then pack it up as lunch the next day as burritos. If you like these kinds of flavors, give these Mexican chicken enchiladas a try.
Quick Quinoa Recipes
Here are some of my easy go to quinoa recipes Instant Pot Quinoa - I eat this on an everyday basis in salads, with yoghurt and even with indian curries, lentils and dal.Instant Pot Chicken Quinoa - Another one pot wonder that we love!Sweet Potato and Quinoa Burgers - Oh these are just so delicious! A vegan burger that you wont be able to resist!Quinoa Chocolate Cake - Gluten Free cake made with cooked quinoa!Instant Pot Vegan Quinoa Chili - Black beans, sweet potatoes and quinoa chili made in the instant pot. We love this on cold days! If you make this instant pot Mexican Quinoa, do leave a rating and comments! I would love to hear from you!
