Chipotle sells more burrito bowls than ever today. The bowl first introduced a decade ago, consisted of the eater’s choice of beans, rice, salsa, meat, and other fixings. Every item at Chipotle, including the Burrito bowls, is highly customizable. Diners can adjust the ingredients to make it high-protein, gluten-free, vegetarian, or anything in between.
However, for those trying to eat more nutritious food while dining out, things can be a bit tricky. Thankfully, Chipotle has made it easier for calorie-conscious individuals. It offers various options to personalize the bowls, letting you increase or decrease the amount of calories. What’s more, its nutrition calculator lets you find out the calories of different menu items so you can make an informed decision.
On average, calories in burrito bowls can range anywhere between 420 and 910 cal. Let’s find out more about it.
Read Also: Shredded Salad Ingredient in NYT Crossword’s 2-Down Cuisine
Calories in Individual Items that Make up a Burrito Bowl at Chipotle
Every burrito bowl at Chipotle contains the items below. These can be removed, added, or swapped with anything else to tailor the bowl according to your preferences. Let’s look at the calories in each one of them.
- Tomato green-chili salsa: 15 calories
- Romaine lettuce: 5 calories
- Fresh tomato salsa: 25 calories
- Fajita veggies: 20 calories
- Roasted chilli-corn salsa: 80 calories
- Tomato red-chili salsa: 30 calories
- Cheese: 100 calories
- Pinto beans: 115 calories
- Sour cream: 115 calories
- Steak: 150 calories
- Black beans: 120 calories
- Barbacoa: 165 calories
- Sofritas: 145 calories
- Carnitas: 210 calories
- Chicken: 180 calories
- White rice: 210 calories
- Chorizo: 300 calories
- Guacamole: 230 calories
Not being mindful of the ingredients in your burrito bowl can make you consume over 1000 calories! So, it certainly makes sense to find out what you’re putting inside your mouth.
Calories in Different Types of Burrito Bowls at Chipotle
The specific amount of calories that you consume will depend on how you have customized your bowl. However, the information below will give you a good idea of how many calories your bowl can contain.
1. A bowl consisting of pinto beans, sofritas, salsa, fajita vegetables, and lettuce will give you roughly 350 calories. This bowl will have around 20 grams of protein, 50 grams of carbohydrates, and 15 grams of fat.
PRO TIP: This bowl is suitable for those on a weight-loss journey, as it swaps cilantro rice with sofritas, which is a good source of plant-based protein.
2. A burrito bowl consisting of fajita veggies, chicken, tomato salsa, and lettuce will give you roughly 545 calories. It contains almost 70 grams of carbohydrates, 18 grams of fat, and 45 grams of protein.
PRO TIP: Skip guacamole, cheese, and sauces for vegetable toppings to reduce the overall calories.
3. A burrito bowl with black beans, white rice, carnitas, tomato salsa, fajita vegetables, guacamole, sour cream, Monterey Jack cheese, and queso easily packs more than 1000 calories. It provides almost 90 grams of carbohydrates, 30 grams of fat, and 55 grams of protein.
PRO TIP: To reduce the calories, swap carnitas, the most calorie-dense protein option, for chicken or steak.
Read Also: Gluten free pasta recipe
How to Eat Healthily at Chipotle?
Chipotle is a friendly fast-food restaurant for those wanting to lose weight. The main reason, as we already mentioned above, is that it gives everyone the ability to dial up or down the ingredients. You can change the nature of the bowl entirely by choosing healthy and less calorie-dense ingredients. Still, sometimes it’s easy to get caught up in fancy bowls and increase the calorie count. Here are some ways to eat healthy, nutritious, and lower-calorie meals at Chipotle.
1. Use Chipotle’s Nutrition Calculator
Chipotle’s nutrition calculator provides a detailed calorie breakdown of ingredients. Just choose your meal and then select the ingredients. Each ingredient’s calories and macronutrient composition are clearly displayed. While we cannot assume the calculator will give 100% accurate values, it certainly gives a good estimate of the calories.
2. Choose a Burrito Bowl or Salad over Burritos
We recommend choosing a burrito bowl or salad over burritos because the latter consists of a flour tortilla, which increases the calorie count by 300. Moreover, if you choose high-fat toppings, such as cheese and sauces, your meal can rack up over 1000 calories! Not only that, but the tortilla also contains almost 600 mg of sodium. This means lots of fluid retention. If you are trying to eat healthy, bloating is the last thing you want.
3. Choose a Protein Source
Chipotle offers various protein sources for burrito bowls. Luckily, protein options do not pack many calories. The three major ones include carnitas (210 calories), steak (150 calories) and sofritas (150 calories). All of them are great options but contain loads of sodium. So, if you are having them, it’s good to balance out the rest of your meal with less sodium-heavy ingredients.
4. Opt for Rice Only If Needed
Chipotle provides brown rice and white rice options. However, choosing rice is not necessary to enjoy a yummy burrito bowl. If your bowl already has a grain, you can skip rice. However, rice, especially the brown one can be good to balance out the sodium in your meal. However, if you’re having a burrito instead of a burrito bowl, there’s not much need for rice as you are getting the grain.
Must Read: Burger King Salads
The Healthiest Chipotle Bowls
Looking for healthy bowl combinations at Chipotle? Here are the three best options for you.
1. Protein-Packed Bowl
Customize your bowl with the following ingredients:
- Brown rice
- Chipotle Chicken
- Fresh tomato salsa
- Black beans
- Fajita veggies
- Tomatillo green chili salsa
- Light cheese
- Romaine lettuce
This bowl is perfect for after a workout. The protein will support your muscle-building efforts, while the carbohydrates will keep you satiated for a long time.
2. Vegetable Burrito Bowl
The star ingredient of this bowl is sofritas, which is shredded organic tofu seasoned with roasted poblanos and chipotle chilies. Here are the ingredients.
- Sofritas
- Brown rice
- Black beans
- Tomato salsa
- Lettuce
- Sour cream
- Cheese
This bowl packs in a whopping 20 grams of plant-based protein. It is perfect for vegetarians and vegans.
3. Low-carb Salad Bowl
This bowl is ideal for those on a low-carb, high-fat diet. Customize the bowl with these ingredients.
- Chipotle Chicken
- Supergreens base
- Fresh tomato salsa
- Cheese
- Sour cream
The low-carb salad bowl is perfect for those on a keto diet plan. It has a rich texture and the goodness of fats to help you stay full for a long time.
Summing Up
A Chipotle burrito bowl can easily become healthy or unhealthy, depending on the ingredients. Hopefully, you now have a good idea of the type of ingredients you should include in your bowl to make it nutritious yet low in calories. Use the Chipotle nutrition calculator for more assistance and make healthier choices supporting your fitness or health goals.
