This Cilantro Lime Chicken is served next to a deliciously sweet mango salsa with homemade crema. It’s low-carb, high-protein, and full of summer flavors thanks to the vibrant fruit and fresh herbs. 

This was one of my first-ever viral recipes on Fit Foodie Finds. So many of you have seen this video on Facebook and made this meal over the years. It makes my heart so happy

There is nothing my husband, Mark, loves more than when I make this chicken meal prep for us for lunches for the week. The cilantro lime chicken, the mango salsa! The homemade crema! And the best part? It can be eaten hot or cold! Make a double batch for meal prepping through the entire week. 

To make this cilantro lime chicken as a meal prep recipe, simply marinate the chicken, whip up the mango salsa, and an easy batch of rice (I like to make a big batch in the Instant Pot!), and don’t forget the crema! I like to keep mine separate, and pour over the top of the chicken right before serving. All that is left to do now is assemble your meal prep bowls, and viola — you’re delicious and nourishing weekly meal prep is set to go!

Spotlight-Worthy Ingredients

• Chicken thighs: We prefer boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe, but chicken breasts will also work.
• Diced fresh mango: It’s mango season, people! Fresh mango adds such amazing sweet flavor to this dish.
• Lime juice: A squeeze of fresh lime juice really freshens up the chicken and brightens the flavor of the mango salsa.
• Greek yogurt: the homemade crema has a Greek yogurt base, which adds tartness to the sauce. Blended cottage cheese would also work.

Find the list of full ingredients in the recipe card below.

How to Make Cilantro Lime Chicken with Mango Salsa

1. Prepare the chicken marinade: Add the marinade ingredients to a bowl and whisk the ingredients together until combined. Add the chicken and flip the chicken over a few times to make sure it is completely coated in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight for optimal flavor. 
2. Prepare the mango salsa: Add all of the ingredients for the mango salsa to a bowl and mix to combine. Easy peasy. My mango guacamole would also be delicious!
3. Blend the crema: Add all of the ingredients for the crema to a small blender and blend until smooth. 
4. Cook the chicken: Heat 1-2 tablespoons of avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken thighs to the oil. Sear the chicken on each side or until the internal temperature reaches 165ºF. You can also make these chicken thighs on the grill.
5. Assemble and enjoy! Serve the chicken topped with mango salsa and crema. ENJOY!

Serving Suggestions

I love serving this dish atop white rice, and then obviously paired with the mango salsa and homemade crema. It’s perfect for serving a large group on those summer nights at the cabin.

This recipe will stay good in your refrigerator for up to 4 days.

We recommend getting glass meal prep containers to easily store and transport your meals. If you plan on keeping this meal prep for longer than 4 days, we suggest freezing it.

This Cilantro Lime Chicken is served next to a deliciously sweet mango salsa with homemade crema. It’s low-carb, high-protein, and full of summer flavors thanks to the vibrant fruit and fresh herbs. 

This was one of my first-ever viral recipes on Fit Foodie Finds. So many of you have seen this video on Facebook and made this meal over the years. It makes my heart so happy

There is nothing my husband, Mark, loves more than when I make this chicken meal prep for us for lunches for the week. The cilantro lime chicken, the mango salsa! The homemade crema! And the best part? It can be eaten hot or cold! Make a double batch for meal prepping through the entire week. 

To make this cilantro lime chicken as a meal prep recipe, simply marinate the chicken, whip up the mango salsa, and an easy batch of rice (I like to make a big batch in the Instant Pot!), and don’t forget the crema! I like to keep mine separate, and pour over the top of the chicken right before serving. All that is left to do now is assemble your meal prep bowls, and viola — you’re delicious and nourishing weekly meal prep is set to go!

Spotlight-Worthy Ingredients

• Chicken thighs: We prefer boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe, but chicken breasts will also work.
• Diced fresh mango: It’s mango season, people! Fresh mango adds such amazing sweet flavor to this dish.
• Lime juice: A squeeze of fresh lime juice really freshens up the chicken and brightens the flavor of the mango salsa.
• Greek yogurt: the homemade crema has a Greek yogurt base, which adds tartness to the sauce. Blended cottage cheese would also work.

Find the list of full ingredients in the recipe card below.

How to Make Cilantro Lime Chicken with Mango Salsa

1. Prepare the chicken marinade: Add the marinade ingredients to a bowl and whisk the ingredients together until combined. Add the chicken and flip the chicken over a few times to make sure it is completely coated in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight for optimal flavor. 
2. Prepare the mango salsa: Add all of the ingredients for the mango salsa to a bowl and mix to combine. Easy peasy. My mango guacamole would also be delicious!
3. Blend the crema: Add all of the ingredients for the crema to a small blender and blend until smooth. 
4. Cook the chicken: Heat 1-2 tablespoons of avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken thighs to the oil. Sear the chicken on each side or until the internal temperature reaches 165ºF. You can also make these chicken thighs on the grill.
5. Assemble and enjoy! Serve the chicken topped with mango salsa and crema. ENJOY!

Serving Suggestions

I love serving this dish atop white rice, and then obviously paired with the mango salsa and homemade crema. It’s perfect for serving a large group on those summer nights at the cabin.

This recipe will stay good in your refrigerator for up to 4 days.

We recommend getting glass meal prep containers to easily store and transport your meals. If you plan on keeping this meal prep for longer than 4 days, we suggest freezing it.

When mangos are in season, I make this homemade mango salsa pretty much every week! My mom made it for a backyard barbecue once and I was instantly hooked.

If you like mangos, this is the salsa recipe for you. Perfect for summer entertaining…or just a lunchtime snack. Mango salsa is on the sweeter side, but not too sweet. Which makes it the perfect combo for salty chips.

Add jalapeño, black beans, and a couple other ingredients and you have a well balanced sweet and spicy (and highly addictive) salsa for parties and backyard dinners at home.

I usually like to serve it up chunky, but you could also run it through the food processor or blender to make it smoother and more on the liquid side.

I also frequently add it to a homemade black bean quesadilla, if I have any salsa leftover. Yummy and simple to throw together in a couple of minutes. My favorite kind of recipes.

When are mangos in season?

You can find mangos at the grocery store year round, but the season for mangos is May through September. That’s when mangos will be the sweetest and most tasty. So basically all summer long!

How to pick a ripe mango

If you’re not sure what to look for at the grocery store or farmers market when it comes to mangos, give it a gently squeeze. A ripe mango will give slightly and often smells fragrant / sweet near the stem.

How to choose the best mangos for salsa

You want ripe mangos for the salsa if possible, but this recipe works with less ripe mangos as well. If I end up using a mango that is not as ripe, I’ll often add more to the salsa for more flavor – like pineapple or tomato. I’ve included a list of additions below as well.

Ingredients for Mango Salsa

• 1 ripe mango
• 1/3 cup of minced onion
• 1 tablespoon of minced jalapeño
• the juice of 1 lime
• 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped cilantro leaves*
• 1/2 cup of black beans (optional)
• 2 tablespoons of minced red or orange pepper (optional)

For parties, I double all the ingredients and make a larger batch. But when I’m just making it for our family of three for a meal, I stick with the above measurements.

*If you have a cilantro aversion / thinks cilantro tastes like soap, you can substitute the cilantro for parsley.

Other ingredients you could add in

• 1/2 of an avocado, chopped
• 1 medium tomato, chopped or diced
• 2 thick slices of pineapple, chopped
• 1 nectarine or peach, chopped or diced
• 1/2 cup of cooked corn

Mango Salsa Recipe

1. Wash and prep.

Start by washing and prepping produce as follows:

• dice the mango – You can make this as large or as small as you like. 
• mince the onion
• mince the jalapeño 
• mince the pepper
• chop the cilantro
• wash the black beans

2. Mix it all together.

Throw it all together. Squeeze in the lime. Mix and that’s all you need to do to make a seriously delicious mango salsa of your own.

What to eat with mango salsa

Mango salsa always pairs well with seafood and other proteins – like fish tacos, chicken, salmon, halibut, etc. If you have a little extra time after making this salsa, homemade lime chips are a great flavor combo.

Serving mango salsa top of summer tacos recipe, burritos, or a Mexican breakfast bowl are really tasty options too. Oh, I put a few spoonfuls on my eggs the other day with some avocado too and it was delicious.

Blackened shrimp bowls are loaded with flavor, easy to make and ready in just 15 minutes. Blackened shrimp paired with rice, black beans and a flavorful mango salsa is smoky, spicy, sweet and so filling. The perfect weeknight meal.

If you love the flavor of these blackened shrimp and rice bowls, you have to try this sheet pan shrimp tacos, salsa verde shrimp and rice bowls, or air fryer shrimp tacos for more smoky shrimp.

If you’re looking for quick, easy, and nourishing recipes that don’t compromise on flavor, you’re in the right place. With my background in catering, I know how important it is for meals to taste amazing, even when time is tight. This site is focused on helping you create quick and easy gluten-free meals, with time saving tips so you never waste a second in the kitchen.

Blackened Shrimp and Rice Bowl Highlights

• Easy to make – there are very few steps to make this dish from start to finish
• Customizable (use your favorite veggies, use quinoa or cauliflower rice instead of rice)
• Ready in 15 minutes (thanks to the instant pot)
• Packed with flavor – the mixture of the blackening seasoning and mango salsa is sweet, savory, smoky and spicy.

Star ingredients

• Shrimp (peeled and deveined) – I like to use a larger shrimp
• Blackening seasoning – this gives the shrimp all the flavor, if you don’t have blackening seasoning, see below for a recipe.
• White Jasmine Rice (or basmati rice) – this rice cooks up quickly in the instant pot and pairs perfectly with the shrimp.
• Mango salsa – Use a store bought mango salsa to make this recipe easy. I love Newman’s Own, but you could use whatever you love.

How to make blackened shrimp bowls

Make the rice: Rinse the rice well, add it to the instant pot with 2.25 cups of water. Cook on high pressure 3 minutes. Once it’s done cooking, you can manually release the pressure.

Season and cook the shrimp: Add blackening seasoning to the shrimp. Spray pan with avocado oil or olive oil spray then add shrimp, cook 2-3 minutes, flip and cook 1-2 minutes more.

Make the beans: Drain and rinse the black beans well. Add the black beans, salt, garlic powder and mango salsa to a pot. Heat over medium heat 3-4 minutes until heated through, stir regularly.

Assemble the dish: add rice to a bowl, top with blackened shrimp, black beans, tomatoes and cubed avocado.

Time saving tip

Use frozen pre-cooked rice and make this dish in 10 minutes. You can buy frozen rice or make a large batch and freeze the rice in 1/2 – 1 cup portions for easy defrosting.

Other additions

• Roasted red peppers – these would not require any additional cooking
• Pickled red onions
• Sauteed veggies: zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, onions, mushrooms

Other ways to serve

• Over salad greens with cilantro lime dressing
• As a burrito – stuff all the ingredients in a large tortilla and roll like a burrito

Common questions

What if you don’t have blackening seasoning

You can make your own blackening seasoning or use cajun seasoning + ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper.

To make your own blackening seasoning, combine:

• 1 tablespoon paprika
• ½ tablespoon garlic powder
• ½ tablespoon salt
• ½ tablespoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon dry ground mustard
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

What if the shrimp is not defrosted

Shrimp defrosts rather quickly, it takes about 1 hour. If you want to cook the shrimp from frozen, I recommend that you cook the frozen shrimp in the air fryer.

To defrost shrimp, place a sealed bag of shrimp in cold water on the counter, changing out the water every 20-30 minutes. The shrimp should be fully defrosted in 1 hour.

Storing leftovers

This blackened shrimp rice bowl is great as leftovers the next day. I would recommend waiting to add the avocado and tomato until right before serving.

Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

If you love shrimp recipes, you should try