This is one of those recipes that came from a craving for perfectly marinated chicken paired with a crunchy, fresh salad. Last summer I made this incredible Sesame Chicken Cabbage Crunch Salad, and this summer I’m bringing you a cozy, coconut lime version with wonderful spices all over flavorful ramen noodles.
These grilled turmeric chicken bowls are unique and bursting with flavors and textures that just WORK. Warm ginger garlic ramen gets topped with grilled chicken that has been marinated in coconut milk, lime juice, and the perfect blend of spices, then finished off with my new Smashed Cucumber Avocado Salad to tie it all together. You get a wonderful combo of warm and cold, crunchy and tender in a nourishing bowl that fills you right up.
The next time you’re craving takeout or just want a fun dish you’ll feel proud of, whip up these beautiful bowls and dig right in.
Everything you’ll need to make these turmeric chicken bowls
There are so many elements that make these chicken bowls absolutely delicious and flavor-packed. Every bite is a delicious adventure, from the chicken to the ramen to the cucumber salad. Here’s what you’ll need:
- For the chicken: you’ll marinate chicken thighs with creamy coconut milk, lime juice and zest, sambal oelek for a kick of heat, honey (or brown sugar) for sweetness, fresh ginger, turmeric, and warming spices.
- For the salad: we’re adding my new Smashed Cucumber Avocado Salad to each bowl for the perfect crunch and freshness.
- For the ramen: everything’s better with noodles, which is why we’re serving the chicken and salad with homemade ginger garlic ramen. It’s made with ramen noodles, a little olive oil, garlic, ginger, scallions, red pepper flakes, salt, and dark brown sugar.
- To garnish: I like to top my bowl with fresh cilantro and extra scallions.
Customize your chicken bowls
Like with any meal in “bowl form,” there are plenty of ways to make this meal your own. Here’s what I can recommend:
- Choose your chicken. Feel free to use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs. I love the sweet, spicy, coconut-y marinade, but I think my Grilled Sesame Chicken would also be delicious here.
- Pick your noodles. You can also use rice noodles or your favorite long noodles in these bowls if you’re out of ramen. Use your favorite long gluten-free noodles to keep the dish gluten-free, too!
- Jazz them up. Top these turmeric chicken bowls with pickled red onions for another incredible depth of flavor and crunch!
Looking to get saucy?
These bowls are delicious as-is, but if you love adding a drizzle of sauce to grain bowls, etc. try adding my:
How to make these grilled turmeric chicken bowls
- Marinate the chicken. Whisk together all of the marinade ingredients in a large bowl, then add the chicken to the bowl, turn it over to coat, cover the bowl, and place it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- Make the salad. First, take the chicken out of the fridge to let it come to room temp, then preheat your grill or oven. Mix the salad together, cover, and place it in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble the bowls.
- Cook the chicken. Grill or bake your chicken, then let it rest before slicing it diagonally.
- Boil the ramen noodles. Cook your ramen according to the directions on the package (without the seasoning packets). Reserve some pasta water, and drain the noodles into a colander.
- Make the ginger garlic ramen. Cook down the garlic, ginger, scallions, and red pepper flakes in a little olive oil. Turn off the head, then add the ramen noodles, salt, pasta water, and brown sugar.
- Assemble the bowls. Add the noodles, chicken, and cucumber to each bowl, top with scallions and cilantro, and dig in!
Grill or bake your chicken
Yes, you can do either! The instructions written are for grilling your chicken, and you can get even more tips and tricks for grilling chicken here.
If you want to bake the chicken, do so at 400 degrees F for about 20-30 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F. Get all of my tips for baking chicken here!
Prep these bowls ahead of time
If you want to save time when making this meal, I recommend marinating the chicken and making the cucumber avocado salad the night before. Store both in separate airtight containers in the fridge until you’re ready to cook the chicken and assemble the bowls.
You’ll then simply grill or bake your chicken, cook the ramen, and assemble the bowls the next day.
Storing tips
I recommend storing the chicken, noodles, and salad separately in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 2-3 days. That way you can assemble your bowl when you’re ready to eat without sacrificing the texture of the noodles or salad. You can also then warm up the chicken and noodles before adding the cold cucumber salad.
More nourishing dinners you’ll love
- Sweet and Spicy Gochujang Chicken Bowls
- One Pan Ginger Chicken Meatballs with Peanut Sauce
- Sheet Pan Herby Lemon Garlic Chicken and Potatoes
- Sweet & Spicy Sesame Chicken Meatball Bowls
- 30 Minute Vegan Stir Fry Sesame Noodles with Chickpeas & Basil
Get all of my dinner recipes here!
I hope you love these grilled turmeric chicken bowls! If you make them be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked them. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Grilled Turmeric Lime Chicken Bowls
Ingredients
- Chicken:
- 1 cup full-fat coconut milk (from the can)
- Zest and juice of 1 lime
- 2 tablespoons sambal oelek
- 2 tablespoons honey or dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground turmeric (or 1 tablespoon fresh grated turmeric)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs or chicken breast
- Smashed Cucumber Avocado Salad
- Ginger Garlic Ramen:
- 3 to 4 packages of ramen noodles (approximately 9 to 12 ounces ramen noodles), seasoning packets discarded
- 1 cup reserved pasta water
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
- To garnish:
- ¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro
- Thinly sliced scallions, green part only
Instructions
- Marinate the chicken: In a large bowl, add coconut milk, lime zest and juice, sambal oelek, honey (or dark brown sugar), ginger, turmeric, garlic powder, paprika, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper. Whisk or stir well to combine. Add the chicken and turn over to ensure it is well coated in the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes or up to 6 hours.
- Before cooking, remove the chicken from the fridge and bring to room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes. Preheat the grill to 400°F and scrape off any leftover bits from the grates.
- While the grill is preheating and the chicken is coming to room temperature, make the Smashed Cucumber Avocado Salad, cover, and place in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Cook the chicken: Grill the chicken with the lid closed until a meat thermometer inserted into the center reads 165°F, about 6 to 8 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and allow it to rest for at least 5 minutes to retain the juiciness of the chicken. Cut into slices diagonally against the grain
- Cook the ramen: Cook the ramen according to the directions on the package (making sure to discard the seasoning packet.) Once the ramen is done cooking, drain and reserve 1 cup pasta water. Leave ramen in the colander.
- In the same pot you used to cook the ramen, add the olive oil and place over medium heat. Immediately add in the garlic, ginger, scallions and red pepper flakes and cook for approximately 2 to 4 minutes until the garlic is tender and just slightly golden. DO NOT let the garlic burn – it is better to cook low and slow or your garlic will turn bitter. Take off the heat and add the ramen noodles, salt, and ¼ cup of reserved pasta water and brown sugar and toss with tongs until well coated and loose. Taste and add more salt, as necessary. Feel free to add more pasta water to loosen the noodles and make them creamier in consistency.
- Serve in large shallow bowls with a little section of each of the following: garlic ramen noodles, grilled chicken slices, and cucumber avocado salad. Garnish with a little chopped cilantro sliced scallions and enjoy!
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
21 comments
This was so delicious! Spicy goodness! We will definitely made this on repeat!
So happy to hear that!
Just made this for dinner tonight and my boyfriend and I loved it! The chicken came out perfectly marinated, and I love the combo of it with a fresh cucumber avocado salad (never would have thought of smashing the cucumber but it turned out great!) and deceptively light ginger garlic ramen. Would highly recommend for end of summer dinner 🙂
So much flavor in every bite! Glad you both loved it!
Hello! I’d like to make these for dinner soon, but I was wondering, what brand of ramen noodles did you use? They look really tasty.
Hi! I typically just get the package of ramen noodles and discard the seasoning packet 🙂
one of the best bbq chicken recipes ive cooked .i let it marinate 24hrs i made this with the roasted veg and chickpea recipe also delicious Love your recipes
Our new fav! So glad you loved it!
Thank you for the recipe! I happen to love sambal oelek, but my kids can’t handle anything spicy at all. Can you recommend a substitute that will provide the flavor without the heat? Thanks!
Hmm I’d suggest using your favorite mild hot sauce and just halving the amount!
So incredibly flavorful and delicious! Definitely adding it to our meal prep rotation 😍
The best! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
WHAT A WINNER! We made the chicken, noodles and salad just as the recipe calls for and WOW it was so good! It was also a huge hit with our four year old. Will definitely be adding to our dinner rotation!
Love that! One of our new favs, too 🙂
What can be substituted for sambal oelek?
Feel free to use sriracha!
One of my new favorites. The flavors are just so good.
Mine too! So happy you love this one!
I literally did not feel like cooking at all today but wanted something nutritious & delicious. I’m sooo glad I made this! I didn’t have sambal oelek and it was still so good. Thank you!! xx
So happy you gave this a try!
i made this for lunch today after marinating the chicken overnight. wow! so much flavor! used 1T sriracha, loved the ramen! and didn’t make the smashed cucumber salad- just served cut up cucumbers on the side. I did however make the salad last week for a side for a cookout and it was a huge hit. people were even putting it on their burgers! very versatile to make all together or in separate parts. as always- thank you for another great recipe!