Panera’s new Teriyaki Chicken & Broccoli Bowl is new to the menu and I love it! Frankly – I loved it so much I came home and made it the very next day! Panera’s sauce is a little sweeter than some teriyaki sauces I’ve tasted before – but it is super delicious and ready in about 15 minutes!
Panera’s Teriyaki Chicken & Broccoli Bowl comes with chicken thighs and steamed broccoli in a sweet teriyaki glaze served over cilantro lime brown rice and quinoa and topped with sesame seeds and fresh cilantro.
I modified the recipe because I’m on Weight Watchers – but the changes don’t affect the flavor at all. The recipe I’m sharing will be true to the Panera version and I’ll note the differences.
What’s in Panera’s Teriyaki Chicken & Broccoli Bowl?
Panera is always coming up with new ideas – not too long ago – it was their Flatbread Pizzas and now this Chicken & Broccoli Bowl. They love a good bowl – like their Warm Grain Bowl and their Broth Bowl.
This Chicken & Broccoli bowl has chicken thighs and steamed broccoli in a sweet teriyaki glaze. Serve over Cilantro Lime brown rice and quinoa – then topped with sesame seeds and fresh cilantro.
How did you make Teriyaki Chicken more Weight Watchers friendly?
I really only made a couple of swaps – first I typically use a little sugar – but I swapped out Stevia. The two main swaps to make it more WW friendly were using a combination of chicken thigh and breast and cauliflower rice instead of brown rice/quinoa.
The chicken breast is only 3 pts vs. 9 pts for thigh meat. Now trust me – I LOVE LOVE LOVE chicken thighs – they’re my favorite – so I didn’t eliminate them! Then the cauliflower rice is ZERO points vs 6-7 pts for a cup of brown rice/quinoa. I still put the cilantro and lime in to give it all of the flavor!
Also – check the nutrition notes – the saturated fat, carbs, sugar and sodium went WAY down with my swaps!
How do you make Panera’s Teriyaki Chicken & Broccoli Bowl?
This is not a difficult recipe – and the best part is – once you’re prepped and ready – it goes together in less than 15 minutes!
- Dice chicken and marinate with cornstarch and mirin in a ziploc bag in the refrigerator for 30 min
- While chicken marinating, you can mix together your sauce ingredients and be sure the cornstarch dissolves completely! (See my favorite pre-made Teriyaki reco below)
- Partially steam broccoli florets for 2 min in microwave steamer (or bowl covered with plastic wrap and 2 tbsp water)
- Once your broccoli is ready, go ahead and heat rice/quinoa blends
- In a non-stick skillet on high, add sesame oil and olive oil to the pan
- Add chicken to skillet with minced garlic and sear on high for 3-4 minutes – stirring so it doesn’t stick!
- Add in broccoli and toss gently.
- Then add your sauce to the pan with chicken & broccoli and simmer for 5 minutes until sauce thickens.
- While that is simmering, mix your cooked rice/quinoa (or cauliflower rice if you’re on WW like me!) with lime juice and cilantro – toss to combine
- Serve chicken and broccoli over rice top with sesame seeds and cilantro for garnish
Are there any shortcuts to this recipe?
Yes!!! If you’re looking to get this on the table a little quicker – you can use a store-bought teriyaki glaze – I recommend Keli’s Pineapple Hawaiian Luau Teriyaki Sauce. Keli’s sent me some a while back and when I tasted it alongside the Panera sauce – it was spot on!
The other time-saver is to use Minute Rice! Panera serves this with a “blend” of brown rice & quinoa and guess what – Minute Rice sells the same thing! They also sell a red & white quinoa blend. These Minute Rice are already cooked and you just are reheating them – so they save a TON of time.
Favorite Copycat Panera Recipes
I have made so many Panera recipes – here are my favorites!!!!
Copycat Panera Teriyaki Chicken & Broccoli Bowl
Equipment
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 lb chicken thighs 1" dice (or use 1/2 thighs, 1/2 breast for less calories)
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- 3 tbsp mirin or 3 tbsp rice wine vinegar + 1 tsp sugar/stevia
Teriyaki Sauce
- 1/4 cup pineapple juice
- 1/8 cup apple juice
- 1/4 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar (or Stevia)
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
- 1 tbsp corn starch
Stir Fry
- 1 head broccoli diced into florets
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
Cilantro Lime Rice
- 2 tbsp cilantro chopped
- 1 lime
- 3 cups cooked brown rice/quinoa bend or cauliflower rice
Instructions
- Add the diced chicken, 2 tbsp cornstarch, rice wine vinegar, 1 tsp stevia together in a ziploc bag and marinate in refrigerator for 30 min
- In a separate bowl, combine pineapple juice, apple juice, soy sauce, hoisin, water, stevia, ginger, chili flakes and corn starch and whisk together. Be sure cornstarch dissolves completely
- Partially steam broccoli florets for 2 min in microwave steamer (or bowl covered with plastic wrap) and 2 tbsp water
- While broccoli steams, heat rice/quinoa blend (or cauliflower rice)
- Heat a non-stick skillet on high – the hotter the better – When pan is hot, add sesame oil and olive oil to the pan – it should ripple and pop a little
- Add chicken and minced garlic – oil will pop – you might want to have a cover
- Sear on high for 3-4 minutes – stirring so it doesn't stick
- Once chicken is cooked through, add in steamed broccoli and toss gently
- Whisk sauce in bowl to be sure corn starch hasn't settled. Then add to the pan with chicken & broccoli.
- Simmer for 5 minutes until sauce thickens. This makes more sauce than the Panera version – they serve with a "glaze" vs. extra sauce – but trust me – it's so good – you'll be happy you have it!
- While sauce thickens, in a separate bowl, mix rice with juice from lime and cilantro – toss to combine
- Serve chicken and broccoli over rice top with sesame seeds and cilantro for garnish
Notes
- Calories – same
- Fat – same
- Saturated Fat – down from 4.5 to .4
- Sodium – down from 1850 to 464
- Carb – down from 78 to 22
- Sugar – down from 25 to 8.7
- Protein – up from 43 to 88 (I used MORE chicken)
Leave a Reply