Your new favorite bowl recipe is here! Avocado Shrimp Quinoa Bowl with Cilantro Vinaigrette for the win! These bowls are such a great way to have a quick, balanced and delicious meal. And I have many options for you to explore these amazing combinations.
Table of Contents
Why I Love This Recipe
Remember the good old days when we used to have people over for dinner and cook a big spread. The question my guests would ask most frequently is do I cook like this every night!? And the answer is a big fat no. I cook a few times a week and then mix and match those recipes to make delicious lunches and dinners for us. For example, if I cook a big pot of quinoa - I'll turn it into various things through the week to keep things exciting. These Avocado Shrimp Quinoa Bowl with Cilantro Vinaigrette are a result of just that! That's exactly what I've been doing this year too because things are hectic with a new baby and I'm trying to keep it simple!
Adding a few giant spoonfuls of my self-proclaimed famous cilantro vinaigrette, stirring in some toppings and adding grilled shrimp couldn't be easier or more addictive. It's one of those recipes that you can have for lunch or dinner and add various proteins if you prefer. Chicken, shrimp (like I did here), salmon, steak, the possibilities are endless and it travels well so you can throw it in your bag before you head out the door to work!
Want some other easy meal / bowl ideas - here ya go! Southwestern Brown Rice Bowl, Quinoa Burrito Bowls. My ginger scallion chicken bowls uses soy sauce and garlic, and is a good way to mix it up every now and then, it is equally straightforward and delicious!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Quinoa
For the Cilantro Vinaigrette:
- Shallot
- Fresh Cilantro Leaves
- Garlic
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Olive Oil
- Red Wine Vinegar
- Salt
For the Grilled Shrimp:
- Shrimp peeled and de-veined
- Olive Oil
- Garlic Powder
- Cayenne Pepper
- Chipotle Pepper
- Salt and Pepper
For the Toppings:
- Black Beans
- Avocados
- Raw or grilled corn
- Romaine Lettuce
For the Pico de Gallo:
- Ripe Tomatoes
- Kosher Salt
- White Onion
- Jalapeño
- Fresh Cilantro
- Lime Juice
*For a full list of ingredients and instructions please see recipe card below.
How to Make Avocado Shrimp Quinoa Bowls
Step 1: Combine all the ingredients for the cilantro vinaigrette in a high powered blender and blend for 60-90 seconds until very smooth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
Step 2: Cook the quinoa according to the package directions. Fold half the vinaigrette into the quinoa, taste, add more if needed.
Step 3: Toss the shrimp with the oil, cayenne, garlic powder and chipotle pepper as well as salt and pepper.
Step 4: Grill on an indoor or outdoor grill pan for about 3 minutes on each side until pink and fully cooked.
Step 5: Combine the ingredients for the pico de gallo in a medium bowl and toss to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning and spice level as needed.
Step 6: Divide the quinoa into 4 bowls and top with desired amounts of black beans, avocado, corn and shredded romaine. Sprinkle with pico de gallo and serve.
How to Store Avocado Shrimp Quinoa Bowls
The bowl is best created fresh and enjoyed. The best way to enjoy this for a few days is to store leftover quinoa, shrimp and the vinaigrette in the fridge separately and keep whipping up the bowls with freshly chopped toppings, the lettuce, pico de gallo, avocado, etc and even change them up if you want.
How to Freeze Avocado Shrimp Quinoa Bowls
This bowl is not a good candidate for freezing as is. However, you can keep a lot of ingredients in the pantry/freezer and its pretty quick and easy to prepare. Have frozen shrimp on hand, and the vinaigrette can also be frozen. With the quinoa in the pantry, all you need is some fresh toppings and you're all set.
Tips & Tricks
The dressing will keep for a week in the fridge, so I love to always have some sort of vinaigrette on hand. You can also use leftover quinoa here so it's really a quick meal for busy nights.
FAQs
By all means! You can use chicken, or even a vegetarian substitution. You can also swap a grain you like, or add/remove toppings based on your preference/what you have on hand.
I have a large variety of bowls with different flavor profiles. Check out these:
Ginger Scallion Chicken Bowl
Chicken Larb Bowls
Sushi Bowls (and a vegetarian version)
DIY Poke Bowls
Chicken Shawarma Bowls
Veggie Spring Roll Bowls
Similar Recipes
If you tried this recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting today
Avocado Shrimp Quinoa Bowl with Cilantro Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa
For the Cilantro Vinaigrette
- 1 shallot roughly chopped
- 2 cups tightly packed fresh cilantro leaves tough stems removed
- 1 clove garlic
- ½ teaspoons red pepper flakes
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
For the Grilled Shrimp:
- ½ pound medium sized shrimp peeled and de-veined
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon chipotle pepper
- salt and pepper to taste
For the Toppings:
- Black Beans
- Sliced Avocados
- Raw or grilled corn sliced off the cob
- Shredded Romaine Lettuce
For the Pico de Gallo
- 1 ½ pounds ripe tomatoes cut into ¼- to ½-inch dice
- Kosher salt
- ½ large white onion finely diced (about ¾ cup)
- 1 jalapeño finely diced (seeds and membranes removed for a milder salsa)
- ½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa according to the package directions. Combine all the ingredients for the cilantro vinaigrette in a high powered blender and blend for 60-90 seconds until very smooth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Fold half the vinaigrette into the quinoa, taste, add more if needed.
- Toss the shrimp with the oil, cayenne, garlic powder and chipotle pepper as well as salt and pepper. Grill on an indoor or outdoor grill pan for about 3 minutes on each side until pink and fully cooked.
- Combine the ingredients for the pico de gallo in a medium bowl and toss to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning and spice level as needed.
- Divide the quinoa into 4 bowls and top with desired amounts of black beans, avocado, corn and shredded romaine. Sprinkle with pico de gallo and serve.
Do you think I could replace the quinoa with cauliflower rice?
absolutely!
Simple, flavorful, delicious. My kind of perfect meal.!
I have a cilantro aversion/allergy (tastes like soap) what can I use instead?
basil would be delish as well!
This took way longer than 30 minutes to prep the first time however I foresee that it will be less and less time as I develop a routine. Let me tell you. This was so delicious it will definitely be on a weekly menu! Thank you for a great recipe. The cilantro dressing is stunning!
This might be a totally stupid question but my family hate cilantro, do you have any subs that might work with this vignette?
basil would be great!
Made it with basil and it’s delicious!
So so good! The perfect weeknight dinner - it’s quick, healthy, and delicious!
This is the most amazing dish and my new absolute favorite!
Made this last night, and WOW! I can't wait to eat left overs for lunch. I am obsessed with cilantro vinaigrette. I made extra to freeze.
Omg - this is my family’s FAVORITE dinner of all time!!! Soooo delicious! I substituted pineapple for the tomato in the pico and it was insanely delicious....just happened to have a pineapple and forgot tomatoes at the store. The sweet of the pico so balances the spice of the shrimp. And the cilantro vinaigrette is just insanely good. AMAZING recipe! Thank you!!!
So delicious!! Will be making again. Used 3x the shrimp so doubled the spices on the shrimp. Will lay off on the spice next time I use more shrimp.
Followed the recipe exactly & it was perfect!
So so good!! Unfortunately the grocery was clean out of cilantro so I added some salsa into the quinoa so give it some extra personality, and bit or coriander into the pico.
This was delicious! The dressing is one of my new favorites.
This recipe is super delicious. While there are a number of components, they truly make the dish very tasty. I'm going to try it with chicken next time.
Amazing! It tastes just as good as it looks. Great Spring/Summer meal... Definitely keeping this one in our rotation.