Ground chicken rice bowls are so easy to make and packed with flavor. This Asian chicken rice bowl is ready in just 20 minutes and is a fun twist on teriyaki chicken. This simple weeknight meal is so comforting and meal prep friendly.

Why you will love this recipe

• Easy to make – ground chicken makes this recipe so quick and easy to make. The homemade teriyaki sauce is so simple, just combine the ingredients in a bowl and heat until thickened. This Asian ground chicken recipe will quickly become a family favorite!
• Simple ingredients – this recipe for ground chicken rice bowls uses simple, easy to find ingredients that you can find at any grocery store. If you are having trouble finding an ingredient, be sure to check out the substitutions area below for more ideas.
• Great for meal prep – you can easily double this recipe and enjoy it all week for meal prep. It reheats well in the microwave or on the stove.

Ingredients

• Rice and water – I like to use jasmine rice for this recipe. You can use white or brown jasmine rice. The amount of water you will need depends on what kind of rice you are using. You could also use brown or white basmati rice. Jasmine and basmati rice reheat very well and are easy to cook on the stove or in the instant pot.
• Ground chicken – ground chicken can be found in most grocery stores now. It’s quick cooking and so easy to work with. You could also use ground turkey in place of the ground chicken.
• Coconut aminos – coconut aminos are a gluten free and soy free substitute for soy sauce. They are slightly sweeter than soy sauce and a bit less salty but a great substitute. You could also use gluten free tamari or soy sauce if you can tolerate it.
• Rice wine vinegar – rice wine vinegar helps to balance out the flavors between sweet and salty. This is a traditional Asian ingredient but you can find it at any grocery store with the other vinegars. You can also use apple cider vinegar or lime juice in place of the rice wine vinegar.
• Maple syrup – maple syrup is used to naturally sweeten the teriyaki sauce. You could also use honey for this but I prefer the flavor with maple syrup.
• Fresh ginger (or freeze dried ginger) – peel and grate fresh ginger for this recipe. The ginger adds so much flavor and a level of heat that is not spicy. I prefer to use freeze dried ginger because it’s really easy to keep on hand and I don’t have to peel it or grate it. Since it’s freeze dried it restores the original texture when added to liquid.
• Spices: Dried chives, garlic powder, salt – I like adding dried chives, as they add a mild onion flavor without having to cook an onion in the dish which saves a step. Garlic powder adds a slight garlic flavor and a level of umami, which helps to balance out the flavors.
• Arrowroot powder (or tapioca or cornstarch) + water – this is used to thicken the teriyaki sauce, without it the sauce won’t easily coat the chicken. Be sure that the arrowroot is fully dissolved in water (called a slurry) before adding to the sauce or it will clump.
• Frozen peas and carrots – use any veggies you love for this. I always have frozen peas and carrots on hand to add so I can easily add vegetables to any dish. You can also make steamed broccoli, sautee mushrooms or zucchini or use whatever veggies you love.

How to make ground chicken rice bowls

Start by rinsing the rice until the water runs clear. Add the rinsed rice to the instant pot with water and cook on high pressure for 3 minutes (7 minutes for brown jasmine rice). You can manually release the pressure immediately after cooking or let it naturally release for a few minutes first.

Preheat a large skillet over medium to medium high heat.

Make the teriyaki sauce. In a small bowl or dish combine the coconut aminos, rice wine vinegar, maple syrup and spices. Stir well.

In a separate small bowl, combine the arrowroot powder and about 1 tablespoon of water. Stir well with a fork until all the arrowroot is dissolved. Add the arrowroot slurry to the teriyaki marinade ingredients.

Once the skillet is hot, add the ground chicken and cook 5-6 minutes until no longer pink and fully cooked through. Be sure to break up the ground chicken into small pieces.

When the chicken is no longer pink, turn the heat down to medium and add the teriyaki sauce ingredients to the pan and stir well. The sauce will start to thicken and coat the chicken as it cooks (about 2 minutes).

Once the sauce starts to coat the chicken, add the frozen veggies and stir well. Cook 2-3 minutes until fully defrosted.

Once the chicken is done cooking and the rice is done, assemble the bowls. Add rice then the Asian ground chicken mixture to the bowls. Add your favorite toppings and enjoy.

Top tips

• Dissolve the arrowroot powder in some water before adding it to the rest of the ingredients. This helps to ensure that the arrowroot doesn’t clump together when cooking.
• If you are making this with anything other than the frozen veggies, you will want to cook them in a separate pan or container so that everything finishes at the same time.
• This recipe makes a pretty saucy chicken and vegetable mixture, but if you really love teriyaki sauce, you can double the ingredients for the sauce mixture.

Other additions

• Onions and garlic – if you have time, you can sauté one onion and 2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped before adding the ground chicken to the pan.
• Fresh herbs: Green onion, cilantro
• Spice: Sriracha, red pepper flakes, garlic chili oil or chili garlic sauce
• Other veggies: Zucchini, bell peppers, green beans, mushrooms (saute these in a separate pan before adding to the chicken mixture).
• Crunch: Peanuts, cashews, sesame seeds, fresh radish
• Avocado
• Sauce: Add spicy sriracha mayo or bang bang sauce
• Use shredded rotisserie chicken or shredded instant pot chicken instead. Simply add the sauce ingredients to the skillet with the shredded chicken and stir well until chicken is reheated and the sauce is thickened.
• Pineapple chunks (drained) or diced mango

Other ways to serve this Asian ground chicken

• In lettuce cups
• Over noodles, zoodles or low carb pasta
• Use quinoa instead of rice (cook 1 cup quinoa with 1.25 cups of water in the instant pot for 1 minute, then let pressure naturally release for 10 minutes).
• Make it low carb by using cauliflower rice instead of rice

Common questions

How to cook rice on the stove

• Rinse the rice until it runs clear.
• Add rice and fresh water to a pot and turn on high heat. Once the rice is boiling, turn the heat down to low and cover. Cook for 15 minutes.

Can you make this with regular chicken instead of ground chicken

Yes! You can make this Asian chicken rice bowl with cubed chicken instead of ground chicken.

• Make the rice in the instant pot or on the stove (see instructions above).
• Make the sauce as instructed. Set aside.
• Cut the chicken into 1/2 -1 inch cubes.
• Preheat a large skillet over medium to medium high heat. When hot, add the chicken and cook for 5 minutes without touching the chicken (this helps give it a nice brown crust). After 5 minutes, move the chicken around in the pan and add the sauce.
• Stir regularly until the chicken is fully cooked and the sauce is thickened.
• Add the frozen vegetables and cook for 2-3 minutes until heated through.
• Serve with rice in a bowl.

Can you use brown jasmine rice instead of white?

Yes! When cooking brown jasmine or brown basmati rice, you will need to increase the cooking time in the instant pot from 3 minutes high pressure to 7 minutes high pressure. You will also need to add more liquid. 1.5 cups of water to every 1 cup of rice.

What is ground chicken?

Ground chicken is made by grinding down (or mincing) white and dark chicken meat. The amount of white meat vs. dark meat will determine how lean the meat is.

I can usually find organic ground chicken at Trader Joe’s or some kind of ground chicken at my local grocery store.

Note; ground chicken tends to spoil faster than chicken breast or thighs because of the ratio of the meat exposed to the air. I recommend that you use your senses when buying the chicken (it should look pink and not have any odor) and serve it within a day or two of purchase.

Can you double this recipe?

Yes, you can easily double the recipe. The rice will likely take a little longer to come up to pressure (the more liquid in the instant pot, the longer it takes), but you don’t have to change anything about the cooking time.

When making the teriyaki ground chicken, it may take a minute or two more to thicken the sauce since there will be more liquid in the pan.

Storing leftovers

• Fridge: Store leftover ground chicken rice bowls in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container. You can either store the ingredients (rice and chicken) separately or make meal prep containers with the rice and chicken mixture already measured out.
• Reheat: Reheat leftovers in the microwave 2-3 minutes or on the stove, covered, over medium low heat until heated through (5-8 minutes).
• Freezer: You can also freeze any leftover Asian ground chicken rice bowls to enjoy later. Freeze for up to 1 month in a freezer safe bag. My favorite way to freeze this is to make a layer of rice, then add the chicken mixture on top in a 2 cup Soupercube. Once frozen, pop them out of the mold and store in a freezer safe bag. This ensures you can defrost just one serving at a time.

Substitutions

• Rice – you can use whatever rice you have on hand. Different types of rice may require different cooking time and different amounts of water to cook. You can also use quinoa, cauliflower rice or even serve the ground chicken over noodles or in lettuce wraps.
• Ground chicken – you can use regular chicken cut into cubes (see the details above on how to cook the chicken), ground turkey or even make this with chickpeas instead of chicken (with this teriyaki chickpea recipe).
• Coconut aminos – if you don’t have coconut aminos, you can use gluten free tamari or soy sauce.
• Rice wine vinegar – you can substitute this with apple cider vinegar or lime juice
• Maple syrup – any liquid sweetener you have on hand will work, but honey would be my next choice.
• Spices – if you don’t have dried chives, you can add some fresh chopped green onion (2-3 tablespoons) in place of the chives or simply omit them.
• Fresh grated ginger – I recommend freeze dried ginger in place of fresh or you can use ground ginger (only about 1 teaspoon).
• Arrowroot powder – you can use tapioca or cornstarch in place of the arrowroot to help thicken the sauce.
• Frozen peas and carrots – add any veggies you love to this recipe. If you are adding fresh veggies, saute them in a separate pan before adding to the chicken mixture.

If you love this recipe, you should try

Air Fryer Teriyaki Chicken

10 Minute Asian Chicken

Air Fryer Teriyaki Salmon

Instant Pot Asian Chicken and Noodles