Easy Italian Chicken Meal Prep Bowls
Brown rice, zucchini, broccoli, tomatoes, and red onion, as well as deliciously seasoned chicken all cooked on a sheet pan for low mess, big flavor, meal prep!
When it comes to meal prep, this one is a total winner, use whatever veggies you have or want, a simple seasoning, and a few minutes prep. Pair with Easy Rice Pilaf or Herbed Rice Pilaf for a complete meal.
Italian Chicken Meal Prep Bowls
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Introduction
About a month ago I shared a recipe for Greek Chicken Meal Prep Bowls, and apparently it struck a chord with a few of you, so I decided to share some of my other favorite easy to make recipes that work well for meal prep. This Italian Chicken Meal Prep Bowl is the result.
This dish is packed with delicious veggies, and seasoned with all the classic Italian spices: basil, rosemary, thyme, marjoram. It has some paprika for color and flavor, and some garlic because, well, garlic!
But the amazing thing about this Italian Chicken Meal Prep Bowls recipe is, that it is not only delicious, it is SO EASY TO MAKE!
You literally throw everything together on a sheet pan, and bake it.
Then stir it up and portion it out.
The recipe creates 4 servings. I suggest making this and the greek chicken meal prep bowls, or the Salsa Verde Taco Meal Prep Bowls, with a friend, and swapping half so you get a little variety.
Meal Prep Suggestions And Things To Note:
This Italian Chicken Meal Prep Bowl does not have to be used for meal prep. It is delicious as an easy mid week family meal. Instead of packaging it up, just serve to your family or friends over brown rice.
It is also easy to customize. Here are some suggestions for switching things up:
- Add whatever veggies you like best. Use what you have. I like this flavor combination, but feel free to substitute your favorites.
- There are a lot of seasonings on this, just cut the recipe measurements in half if you are worried it will be too much, adjust to taste!
- Add flavor by Broiling: I like to broil for a couple minutes at the end to get a little color on the chicken (not pictured). Skip if you don’t like your veggies to have a tiny bit of char.
- Salt and pepper are great for adjusting to your personal flavor preference.
How Long Will This Italian Chicken Last in the Fridge?
One of the biggest questions I get asked about meal prep is how long it stays good for. According to the USDA, cooked chicken, when properly stored, stays good for 3-4 days. So how do you properly store chicken?
- Properly Handle: If you are cooking Italian Chicken Meal Prep recipe for meal prep, not to eat immediately, it is best to let it cool on the counter for a few minutes before refrigerating it. But don’t let it sit too long, or bacteria growth could be a real problem.
- Refrigerate: Keeps 3-4 days in the fridge.
- Store in Airtight Containers: I used Glad Containers, they are reusable, affordable, and I love them. But if you want to use glass containers or something else, feel free.
How to Know If the Chicken is Spoiled:
Color: Good chicken is usually white and brown, where chicken that has spoiled will be gray or greenish tinted.
Smell: Bad chicken gives off an odor, usually a little sour and off-putting. So give it a whiff.
Texture: When chicken goes bad it can get slimy. So when in doubt, touch it!
Shortcuts
When I am doing meal prep, I try to make things as low mess and quick as possible.
So for the rice for these Italian Chicken Meal Prep Bowls, I used Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice. It is quick and easy, and takes only 90 seconds in the microwave.
I love any easy shortcut I can use to make meal prep easier. And these Italian Chicken Meal Prep Bowls have been a life saver on busy nights when my daughter has gymnastics, or on crazy days when I don’t have time to slow down for lunch.
My husband particularly likes when I make them because it means he has food to take on his trips! Hope you love them as much as we do.
Note: Estimated calories are included in the notes, but please double check on your favorite calorie calculator, such as MyFitnessPal.com
Meal Prep is such a great way to ensure I stay on top of my dietary goals, but also just makes life easier on those hectic days. You don’t have to be working to lose weight or make muscle gains to meal prep.
Meal prepping for your family can help you to eat together more often, have more nutritious meals, and more. So I want to share some of my favorite meal prep recipes with you.
Other meal prep options:
- Greek Chicken Bowls
- Salsa Verde Taco Bowls
- Ginger Orange Chicken Meal Prep
- Chicken Enchilada Meal Prep Bowls
- Easy Pork Carnitas Meal Prep Bowls
- Low Carb Satay Beef Meal Prep (Keto)
- Sheet pan Teriyaki Salmon (Meal Prep)
Italian Chicken Meal Prep Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 2 tsp basil
- 2 tsp marjoram
- 2 tsp rosemary
- 2 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces
- 1 1/2 cup broccoli florets
- 1 small red onion chopped
- 1 cup plum tomatoes
- 1 medium zucchini chopped
- 2 tsp garlic minced
- 2 Tbs olive oil
- 2-4 cups cooked rice of choice optional
- Meal Prep Containers
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 450F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix salt, pepper, basil, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, and paprika
- Place the chicken and veggies in the baking dish. Sprinkle all the spices and garlic evenly over the chicken and veggies. Drizzle with the olive oil.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes until chicken is cooked, and veggies are slightly charred.
- Broil 1-2 minutes to brown chicken
- Place ½ or 1 cup of cooked rice of choice into 4 individual meal prep containers.
- Divide chicken and veggies evenly on top of the rice.
- Cover and store in the fridge for 3- 5 days or serve for dinner!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Our recipe card software calculates these nutrition facts based on averages for the above ingredients, different brands, and quality of produce/meats may have different nutritional information, always calculate your own based on the specific products you use in order to achieve accurate macros for this recipe.
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Julie says
That seems like a lot of sodium for this meal. Is the because you used Uncle Ben’s rice, or is it not accurate? We are trying to lower our sodium intake in our house, so I’m curious 🙂
Rachael says
My nutrition calculator is not always accurate, I would recommend using your own favorite. If you don’t have one I suggest myfitnesspal.com
thanks
Dawn says
Omgoodness!! This recipe is now one of my favorites! Thank you for sharing.
Rachael says
So glad you like it!
Nancy says
Can this be frozen? Enjoy your recipes. Thanks
Rachael says
I don’t suggest it since the zucchini and tomatoes don’t freeze very well.
KJ says
I just love this recipe! I usually do zucchini, broccoli and cauliflower and leave out the rice to make it more keto friendly. I love making double batches and then freezing individual portions for an easy meal later.
Rachael says
Oh I love this idea. thanks for sharing!
Joey says
Recipe called for plum tomatoes when you show grape tomatoes in the video…
Rachael says
Either works!
Kindra says
Easy and delicious, just what I like! My boyfriend even said, “The seasoning on this is really good, so you make it yourself?” Lol … when we first began dating 10 years ago he’d proudly make salmon with a seasoning blend, so he’s easily impressed when someone pulls out jars of individual herbs lol! I’m a mess maker, so I prefer to dump everything into my box mixing bowl before I put it on the baking sheet so I get it all evenly coated with olive oil and seasoning rather than trying to stir it on my baking sheet and inevitability ending up with some on the floor.
Lou Ann says
Crazy question. When you have this dish next day, you you heat it up or eat it cold?
Rachael says
Either. But I do like it heated better.