Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles

44 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure policy.

Jump to Recipe

Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles is an easy, low-carb, gluten-free recipe full of delicious, spicy flavor. A simple combination of zucchini noodles, pico de gallo, chicken and cumin, it’s the perfect weeknight meal and takes less than 30 minutes to make.

Zucchini noodles with chicken and pico de gallo on a white plate.

I’m always conjuring up new, healthy and delicious recipes with zucchini noodles. Because who doesn’t love zoodles? They’re a blank slate for so much flavor.

And with Cinco de Mayo right around the corner I wanted a light, fresh meal with some spicy kick. Thus, these Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles were born. They’re tasty, spicy, easy to make and can be on your plate in less than 30 minutes!

After my celiac diagnosis several years ago I learned to make zucchini noodles (or zoodles) in a spiralizer, to replace any pasta cravings. Since then, I’ve become slightly obsessed with my spiralizer. The spiralizer is affordable, simple to use and will make any pasta recipe sooo much healthier.

If you’re new to spiralizing, I’ve prepared a Beginners Guide to Spiralizing which will give you more ideas on the best vegetables to spiralize.  I’ve also created a guide on 5 Ways to Make Zucchini Noodles (and how best to cook them). Both of those posts should have you covered in the zucchini noodle zoodle department.

Cooking the chicken and making the zucchini noodles recipe.

Zucchini noodles with chicken and pico de gallo on a white plate.

How To Make Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles

The great thing about this recipe is 1) how easy it is to make, and 2) how much flavor there is. Just follow these five steps for a delicious, Mexican-inspired dinner recipe that’ll knock your socks off.

  • Sauté the Chicken: Dice up the chicken to your desired size, I prefer bite size (fit more food on the fork and kid-friendly). With a little bit of oil in the pan, sauté the chicken until cooked all the way through.
  • Add the cumin: Cumin provides a rich, earthy, nutty and slightly spicy flavor to this recipe. It’s also a popular spice in many Mexican recipes. Sprinkle the cumin onto the chicken and then stir until combined.
  • Add the salsa: Toss in the pico de gallo, stir for about a minute and turn off the heat. The goal is to warm the salsa rather than cook it.
  • Add the zucchini noodles: I prefer my noodles a little firmer and with a little crunch after plating, so the zoodles need to be mixed in with the chicken and salsa only enough until they’ve warmed up. If you leave the zoodles in too long, they may get a little watery.
  • Plate and Serve! You can also add some optional toppings such as cotija cheese, queso fresco, cilantro, or even avocado. I used queso fresco and cilantro for this recipe.

Zucchini noodles with chicken and pico de gallo on a white plate.

Meal Prep with Zucchini Noodles

Zucchini noodles are a perfect ingredient to meal prep. Once you’ve spiralized your zucchini, place them in an airtight storage container on top of a paper towel. The paper towel will absorb any excess moisture. The zoodles will stay good for 4-5 days in the refrigerator.

For more ideas on the foods I meal prep frequently, make sure to check out my Meal Prep Ideas for Spring, Summer, and Winter.

Close up of zucchini noodles with chicken and pico de gallo on a white plate.

For More Healthy Zucchini Noodle Recipes

Zucchini noodles with chicken and pico de gallo on a white plate.

Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles

5 from 16 votes
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 30 minutes
Servings: 4
Author: Lisa Bryan

Description

Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles are simple combination of zucchini noodles, pico de gallo, chicken and cumin. It's the perfect weeknight meal and takes less than 30 minutes to make!

Ingredients 
 

  • 3 cups pico de gallo, (1 recipe)
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 2 medium zucchini
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • queso fresco, to garnish (optional)
  • cilantro, to garnish (optional)

Instructions 

  • Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan on medium high heat. Add the diced chicken and cumin and stir together for 8-10 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. 
  • While the chicken is the cooking, spiralize the zucchini. Trim the zucchini noodles with kitchen scissors to prevent extra long pieces. 
  • Once the chicken is cooked through, add the pico de gallo salsa to the pan. Stir gently for one minute, to warm it through, then turn off the heat. 
  • Add the zucchini noodles to the pan and toss together with the chicken and pico de gallo.
  • Plate the Mexican chicken zucchini noodles, garnish with cilantro, queso fresco and enjoy!

Lisa's Tips

  • On the third time making this recipe I added diced avocado and it was divine! Definitely consider adding avocado to the recipe either as fresh avocado, Guacamole or drizzle on my Avocado Dressing for a creamy sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 120kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 36mg | Sodium: 124mg | Potassium: 518mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 337IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 1mg
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: mexican zucchini noodles, zoodles, zucchini noodles, zucchini noodles recipe, zucchini noodles with chicken
Did you make this recipe?Mention @downshiftology or tag #downshiftology!

You May Also Like

About the author

Lisa Bryan

Lisa is a bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, and YouTuber (with over 2.5 million subscribers) living in sunny Southern California. She started Downshiftology in 2014, and is passionate about making healthy food with fresh, simple and seasonal ingredients.

5 from 16 votes

Leave a comment

All comments are moderated before appearing on the site. Thank you for sharing your feedback!

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




44 Comments

  1. Hello Lisa,

    This was so yummy. I did add additional spices on the chicken, chili powder, garlic, but I can’t wait to eat the leftovers. SOOOO Good. I could eat this everyday!5 stars

    1. Zucchini noodles in general don’t freeze well, unfortunately. They become really limp and soft when thawed, as they have so much water content. So I’d say this recipe is best fresh.

  2. I made this tonight and it was delicious. But it was really watery. Also I forgot to cut the zoodles and thus it was difficult to eat.

  3. Love the recipe. How many servings and is the nutritional values for the whole recipe or is it per serving? Thank you

  4. I never would have thought of this combo, but the flavors are great together – and so fresh and healthy! The queso fresco and avocado I added made it even better. This is also a quick and easy recipe (especially by using store bought zoodles). I’m definitely adding this to my recipe rotation!5 stars

  5. Can you please tell me where all the carbohydrates are coming from in this recipe? The ingredients just don’t seem to warrant all those carbs!

    Thank you

  6. Love all the flavors in this recipe. I also love that it’s low carb and good for me too. Thanks!5 stars

  7. This is a delicious zoodles recipe! I love the chicken and flavors added to it, thanks for the dinner inspo!5 stars

  8. I haven’t tried Mexican flavor with zoodles. I will be trying this one night this week. Thanks for the inspiration! Also, I just made a batch of chia pudding and put some in the freezer.

  9. I made this for dinner tonight. I added a little bit of oregano and smoked paprika to the chicken and it was amazing thanks for sharing your recipes!5 stars

    1. Wonderful! I’m happy you enjoyed the recipe and it sounds great with those additional spices!

  10. Great quick healthy cinco de mayo dinner. I to make it vegetarian used black beans instead of chicken.5 stars

    1. Hi Susan – I’m so happy you truly made this dish you’re own! And so glad you loved your vegetarian mexican zucchini noodles! :)

    1. Oh yay! I’m so happy you loved the recipe Melinda. It’s amazing what happens when you just throw some delicious ingredients together. ;) x

  11. Spiralizing zukes is my favorite veg to replace pasta.  I repurposed the egg box, lined with paper towel, and the zukes keep for over a week that way.  I actually find it helps keep them fresh but dry so they din’t get mushy ahead of using.  This recipe looks like a keeper!

    1. Hi Hillary – Yes, zucchini is perfect for replacing pasta and I love the egg box idea! I’ll have to try it out. Thanks for sharing your tips and you’ll love this mexican zoodle dish. :)

  12. This looks delicious. I happen to have some cojito in the fridge and can’t wait to use it with this recipe!5 stars

  13. This recipe was SO delicious. I have a family member with celiac and she LOVED it, but so did all of my wheat pasta loving family members!5 stars

  14. This dish looks so full of flavor and I love that it’s lightened up with those zucchini noodles! Look forward to trying this!5 stars

  15. Great sounding recipe, and I had no idea you could store spiralized zucchini for several days. Good to know!5 stars

    1. Yep, which is fantastic when you don’t want to bust out the spiralizer ever night. :)