Are you looking for a high protein breakfast that will keep you full for hours? Our quinoa breakfast bowl is high in protein and big on taste. It tastes amazing and will keep you full until lunch. This is one recipe you need to try if you are into meal prep and want to met your protein goals for the day.
Looking for more hearty, protein-packed breakfast options? Don't miss our freezer breakfast sandwiches with ham or our skillet breakfast hash.
Quick Look: Quinoa Breakfast Bowl (High Protein)
- ⏲️ Prep Time: 10 minutes
- ⏲️ Cook Time: 45 minutes
- ⏲️ Total Time: 55 minutes
- 🍽️ Yield: 4 servings
- 🥕 Dietary Info: Gluten Free
- ⚡ Calories: ___ calories per serving (based on nutrition facts in recipe card)
- 🍎 Ingredients: Quinoa, ground chicken, spinach, grape tomatoes, eggs, extra sharp cheddar, green onion, black sesame seeds, sriracha sauce.
- 🥣 Method: Stovetop
- ⌛ Time-Saving Hack: Use cook your eggs in an egg cooker, then use a cooling rack to chop the soft boiled eggs.
- 🔪 Equipment: saucepan, skillet, cooling rack, bowls.
- ⭐ Expert Tip: Use this recipe for meal prepping.
- 🌶️ Flavor & Texture: Fluffy quinoa is used as the base for the soft boiled eggs, ground chicken, sauteed vegetables, and the crunchy garnishes of green onion and black sesame seeds.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- High Protein: A 257g serving size packs in 38g of protein which is a great way to start your day.
- Meal Prep Friendly: Spend an hour on Sunday, and enjoy the fruits of your labor all week.
- Gluten Free: Quinoa is naturally gluten-free so it's great for people who want to avoid wheat.
- Easy to Prepare: This recipe comes together quickly and is easy to make variations by changing the toppings.
Featured Comment
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Quinoa is such a delicious grain and form of protein! It blends really well with all the other flavors of the bowl. Personally, my favorite aspect of this is the tomatoes and cheese."
- Alex
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Ingredients
Curious what ingredients you'll need for this high protein quinoa breakfast bowl? Grab these key ingredients along with a few others, and you'll be ready to start.
- Grains: White organic quinoa is gluten-free and has 7 g of protein per serving.
- Meat: Ground chicken has the highest protein.
- Eggs: Use 2 eggs per serving for double the protein.
- Vegetables: For extra color, texture and taste, we used fresh spinach, grape tomatoes, and green onion.
- Dairy: For extra protein and color, we used extra sharp cheddar cheese.
See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations & Substitutions
- Other Grain Options: You can also use couscous (not gluten-free), as it would be the closest in appearance and cooks quickly.
- Different Meat Option: You can use ground turkey, as it will have similar protein to ground chicken (88g vs. 96g).
- Can't Eat Eggs: If you are allergic or vegan, use firm tofu for a whipped tofu scramble.
- Other Vegetable Options: Other similar options are kale, sweet red bell pepper and chives.
- Different Sauce Ideas: If you like the garlicky-sweet kick that sriracha brings, try sambal oelek or chili garlic sauce.
How to Make Quinoa Breakfast Bowl (High Protein)
Measure out all the ingredients beforehand.
- Rinse the quinoa for 30 seconds under cold running water then put in a heavy bottomed, 2-quart sauce pan and pour in the filtered water. Stir then put the lid on the pot. Bring to a boil, stir in the salt. Lower the heat to medium low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.
- Once the quinoa has cooked, remove it from the heat and let it rest for 10 minutes covered, then fluff with a fork and then keep it covered so it stays warm.
- Bring a pot of water to boil, lower the heat to medium, and carefully lower in fridge cold eggs to cook for 8 minutes. Cool in an ice bath for 5 minutes.
- Peel the eggs and wipe off any tiny shells. A quick way to chop the eggs is to press them through the grid of a wire cooling rack.
- In a large skillet, heat up 2 tablespoons of oil over high heat, then add the ground chicken and lower the heat to medium low. Stir and break up the chunks of chicken with a wooden spoon for better texture.
- Cook until all the pink is gone. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
- In the same skillet over high heat, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and heat until shimmering. Add 5 ounces of spinach.
- Cook until wilted, roughly 2 minutes, stirring constantly. When the spinach is wilted, season with salt and pepper. Remove and place in a bowl.
- In the same skillet over high heat, add 2 tablespoons of oil until shimmering. Add the grape tomatoes, then lower the heat to medium and cook until soft and blistered. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper.
- Build your quinoa breakfast bowl. Start with the quinoa first, then top with the chicken, eggs, spinach, and tomatoes. Sprinkle with black sesame seeds, cheese, and green onion. Drizzle on the sriracha. Season to taste with salt and pepper and enjoy.
Quinoa Breakfast Bowl FAQs
Yes, quinoa is a great choice to eat while on a high protein diet. ¼ cup of dry quinoa provides about 7 grams of protein. It has more fiber than white or brown rice, and is easy to digest so your body can absorb it nutrients efficiently.
Some great animal proteins are chicken, turkey, salmon, ground beef and steak. If you are looking for plant based proteins, black beans, lentils, tofu, and pepitas work well. If you're looking for dairy, goat cheese, cheddar, cottage cheese, and Greek yogurt will add creaminess and tang.
Yes, you can cook everything ahead of time, but keep the ingredients sealed in separate containers in the fridge for best freshness. The prepped ingredients should stay fresh for 3-5 days in the fridge. Assemble bowls when desired and reheat using the microwave.
Serving Suggestions
If you are looking for other add-ins for your savory quinoa breakfast bowl, try pickled red onions, giardiniera pickled vegetables or our fajita veggies (Chipotle copycat). If you are looking for a different sauce to replace the sriracha, try drizzling on our creamy avocado cilantro dressing or our avocado lime ranch (Chick-fil-A copycat).
Expert Tips
- If you're boiling the eggs on the stovetop, use eggs straight from the fridge. If you let them sit out for several minutes or let them get to room temperature, the eggs will cook more.
- Cool the boiled eggs in an ice bath for 5 minutes before peeling them. It will stop them from cooking, and will make them easier to peel.
- For easier peeling, use an egg cooker or steam the eggs.
- Use a cooling rack to chop the soft boiled eggs.
- Cook the quinoa up to 3-5 days ahead of time, store it in the fridge, and reheat in the microwave.
Other Breakfast Recipes You'll Love
Recipe
Quinoa Breakfast Bowl (High Protein)
Ingredients
- 1 cup white quinoa, uncooked
- 1¾ cup water, filtered
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- 8 large eggs
- 2 tablespoon olive oil, or other neutral oil
- 1 pound raw ground chicken
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 8 eggs, large
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, classic
- 5 ounces fresh spinach
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, classic
- 20 grape tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon black sesame seeds
- 1 cup extra sharp cheese, grated
- ⅓ cup green onions, sliced
- 2 tablespoons sriracha
Instructions
Cooking the Quinoa & Eggs
- Rinse the quinoa for 30 seconds under cold running water then put in a heavy bottomed, 2-quart sauce pan and pour in the filtered water. Stir then put the lid on the pot. Bring to a boil, stir in the salt. Lower the heat to medium low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.
- Once the quinoa has cooked, remove it from the heat and let it rest for 10 minutes covered, then fluff with a fork. Keep it covered to help it stay warm.
- Bring a pot of water to boil, then lower the heat to medium and carefully lower in the fridge-cold eggs. Cook for 8 minutes, then let the eggs cool in an ice bath for 5 minutes.
- Crack the shells all over, then peel them off. Wipe off any tiny shells, then chop them. (A quick way to chop the eggs is to press them through the grid of wire cooling rack.)
Cooking the Chicken & Veggies
- In a large skillet, heat up 2 tablespoons of oil over high heat. Add the ground chicken and lower the heat to medium low. Stir and break up the chunks of chicken for better texture with a wooden spoon. Cook until all the pink is gone. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
- In the same skillet over high heat, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and heat until shimmering. Add 5 ounces of spinach and cook until wilted, roughly 2 minutes, stirring constantly. When it's done, season with salt and pepper. Remove and place in a bowl.
- In the same skillet over high heat, add 2 tablespoons of oil until shimmering. Add the grape tomatoes, lower the heat to medium, then cook until soft and blistered. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper.
Assembling the Bowls
- Build the quinoa breakfast bowl by adding the quinoa first, then top with the chicken, eggs, spinach, and tomatoes. Sprinkle with black sesame seeds, cheese and green onion. Drizzle with sriracha. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- If you want to drizzle on a dressing, try our Chick-fil-A avocado lime ranch or our creamy avocado cilantro dressing. If you would prefer to skip the dressing, everything bagel seasoning is another option. Enjoy!
Notes
- If you're boiling the eggs on the stovetop, use eggs straight from the fridge. If you let them sit out for several minutes or let them get to room temperature, the eggs will cook more.
- Cool the boiled eggs in an ice bath for 5 minutes before peeling them. It will stop them from cooking, and will make them easier to peel.
- For easier peeling, use an egg cooker or steam the eggs.
- Use a cooling rack to chop the soft boiled eggs.
- Cook the quinoa up to 3-5 days ahead of time, store it in the fridge, and reheat in the microwave.
Nutrition
Serving sizes and nutritional information are only an estimate and may vary from your results.
Alex
Quinoa is such a delicious grain and form of protein! It blends really well with all the other flavors of the bowl. Personally, my favorite aspect of this is the tomatoes and cheese!
Emma Fajcz
So glad you enjoyed it, Alex! Thanks for your review!