Made with a creamy yogurt sauce and spicy beef, this spicy poblano beef bowl recipe makes the perfect quick dinner or meal prep lunch. Serve it with our foolproof cilantro lime protein rice for a fueling 20-minute meal.
beef bowl highlights
- Ready in 20 minutes
- The spice level can be adjusted to suit your taste
- 30g of protein from 3 different sources (beef, yogurt, and bone broth)
I think I have an unhealthy obsession with bowls. Not like the bowl itself, although I do love good pottery - but serving a complete dinner as a bowl! Purple smoothie bowl, salmon Buddha bowl, chicken poke bowl, I love them all.
I also am a California girl at heart, which means one of my comfort foods in Mexican cuisine. And because of that, I’ve been making variations of taco bowls with different meats, veggies, and whatever we have in the fridge for years. But with all the variations this spicy poblano bowl is the one that keeps ending up back in the rotation.
I’ve made it probably 25+ times at this point - thats once every other week for the past year! And not just because its a delicious dinner, but because I can double the batch and have a lunch for the next day that still tastes good! So, let’s get this beauty into your recipe rotation!
ingredient notes & substitutions
All substitutions are a 1:1 substitute unless otherwise noted. See recipe card for quantities and list of ingredients.
- The beef: For the spicy beef you’ll need 1 pound of extra lean (less than 8% fat) ground beef or bison, yellow onion, garlic, 2 poblanos, some basic spices, your favorite red salsa, and chipotle peppers in adobo. You can use bell peppers in place of poblanos.
- The sauce: Plain Greek yogurt, a little mayonnaise, avocado, lime juice, cilantro, salt, and water are blended together. You can use all Greek yogurt in place of adding a little mayo. You can also use a ¼ cup additional yogurt or mayo in place of the avocado.
- The rice: You can serve this with white rice, Mexican rice, cauliflower rice, or my favorite - this cilantro lime protein rice!
- Other substitutions: If you're looking for a replacement for chipotle peppers, you can check out this post on substitutes for jalapeno peppers which includes a full list of pepper options. And for more on cumin, check out our post on cumin vs paprika.
variations & swaps
- Make it dairy free: To do this, simply use a plain plant based Greek style yogurt or all mayo in place of Greek yogurt. If using all mayonnaise, add a bit more lime juice to make up for the lack of tang the yogurt otherwise gives.
- Try a different meat: You can use bison (a favorite of mine!!), ground turkey, or ground chicken.
- Make it vegetarian: You can also make this with black beans or pinto beans instead of meat. This not only saves time, but is cheaper, and still super tasty!
- Stretch this meal further: Add beans, lentils, or quinoa to the beef to make the meal and your budget stretch further.
- Make it kid-friendly: To do this, leave the chipotle out of the beef and blend in half of a de-seeded jalapeno to half of the yogurt sauce. This allows the kids to have a not spicy dish and you to enjoy all the heat!
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
watch how to make this
a few tips
- The water in the sauce is to make it a pourable consistency so feel free to add more or less depending on how thick you want your sauce.
- For this recipe, we don’t want to drain the fat because it holds the flavor from the spices. This is why it’s important to use a lean beef mixture.
- If you like your meat extra saucy, add a ¼ cup of water in addition to the salsa. I like to add the water to the salsa jar so that way I’m also getting every last drop of the salsa!
- For easier storing of the leftovers, I let everyone add their own sauce and don’t put it all over the beef.
- If the dish is too spicy, add fat. Either add more yogurt sauce when eating it OR add some olive oil or stir in Greek yogurt at the end (off of the heat) to mellow the spice and dilute it.
read this!!
Cooking is an experience unique to the user. That means you need to taste and adjust the seasoning of the dish at all stages. For this one, taste the beef before you add the salsa, then taste after the salsa and poblanos have cooked down, and taste the sauce before you serve it. Part of cooking is that everyone has slightly different taste buds.
how to store & meal prep it
fridge
This will store in the fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container. Just be sure to let it cool completely and store any leftover sauce and beef in separate containers.
frozen
You can store the beef for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container. Again, let it cool completely first.
meal prep
To meal prep it, make a double batch for dinner and keep the second half in the fridge to enjoy throughout the week.
reheating
Reheat this either on the stovetop or in the microwave. If frozen, let it thaw in the fridge overnight before eating.
more Mexican-inspired recipes to love
Recipe
Spicy Beef Poblano Bowls (perfect for meal prep!)
Ingredients
Beef:
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ yellow onion diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- ¾ teaspoon cumin ground
- ½ teaspoon oregano dried
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo
- 1 cup salsa of choice, 1 16oz jar
- 2 poblano peppers diced
Sauce:
- ¼ cup greek yogurt plain
- 1 tablespoon mayo
- ½ avocado
- 2 tablespoon lime juice or juice from ½ a lime
- ½ cup cilantro
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup water
- 2 cups cilantro lime protein rice
Instructions
- Heat a skillet over medium heat and brown the 1 pound ground beef. Once almost done add the ½ yellow onion, 1 tablespoon garlic, 2 poblano peppers, ¾ teaspoon cumin, and ½ teaspoon oregano.You can also start the cilantro lime rice or whatever rice you're making.
- While the beef cooks, make the sauce by blending together the ¼ cup greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon mayo, ½ avocado, 2 tablespoon lime juice, ½ cup cilantro, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ cup water as needed to thin out the sauce.
- When the beef is done add the 1 chipotle pepper in adobo, and 1 cup salsa. Stir to combine then reduce to low heat and simmer until the sauce has reduced.
- Plate up the rice with the beef and drizzle with sauce. Then enjoy!
Video
Notes
a few tips
- The water in the sauce is to make it a pourable consistency so feel free to add more or less depending on how thick you want your sauce.
- For this recipe, we don’t want to drain the fat because it holds the flavor from the spices. This is why it’s important to use a lean beef mixture.
- If you like your meat extra saucy, add a ¼ cup of water in addition to the salsa. I like to add the water to the salsa jar so that way I’m also getting every last drop of the salsa!
- For easier storing of the leftovers, I let everyone add their own sauce and don’t put it all over the beef.
- If the dish is too spicy, add fat. Either add more yogurt sauce when eating it OR add some olive oil or stir in Greek yogurt at the end (off of the heat) to mellow the spice and dilute it.
read this!!
Cooking is an experience unique to the user. That means you need to taste and adjust the seasoning of the dish at all stages. For this one, taste the beef before you add the salsa, then taste after the salsa and poblanos have cooked down, and taste the sauce before you serve it. Part of cooking is that everyone has slightly different taste buds. * for substitution options and more, scroll up to the post to view all your options.*Nutrition
The post Spicy Poblano Beef Bowls (perfect for meal prep!) appeared first on Joy to the Food.