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This Chicken Rice Bowl recipe from Rumbi Island Grill is one of our favorite copycats! Fresh vegetables and teriyaki chicken over coconut rice topped with a tangy teriyaki sauce.
Featured With This Recipe
- What Should I Add To My Rice Bowl?
- Some Variations to Consider
- Storing and Re-Heating Leftovers
- Meal Prep Bowls
- See What Our Readers Our Saying About This Popular Recipe
- Easy Hawaiian Style Recipes
- Restaurant Copycat Recipes
- FAQs About Hawaiian Chicken Rice Bowls
- How To Make Hawaiian Chicken Rice Bowls
- Rumbi Rice Bowls (Copycat Recipe) Recipe
I love the teriyaki chicken rice bowls at Rumbi Island Grill and have been determined to duplicate their Spicy Hawaiian Teriyaki sauce for some time now. The other night I finally figured it out! (Insert me doing a happy dance here.) It all started with me coming home with a bunch of the sauce, then spending the rest of the evening with different ingredients trying to duplicate it. Even if my version isn’t an exact duplicate, it is definitely to the point where I can hardly tell any difference between the two sauces. Win!
What Should I Add To My Rice Bowl?
With rice bowls, the sky is the limit! You can add or take away whatever you want from this recipe to make it your own. Here’s what we use for these Hawaiian Chicken Rice Bowls:
- Coconut rice
- Red beans
- Carrots
- Zucchini
- Celery
- Broccoli
- Grilled chicken breasts (you can also use boneless chicken thighs)
- Homemade Teriyaki sauce (regular or spicy)
These are the ingredients we use most of the time, however, you can also add any variety of ingredients including:
- Pulled pork
- Teriyaki beef
- Pineapple
- Shredded coconut
- Green onion
- Avocado
- Red bell pepper
- Cilantro
- Kosher salt & black pepper
- Sesame seeds
- Red pepper flakes
- Any other sautéed veggies of your choosing
Some Variations to Consider
- This recipe is for the Chicken Spicy Hawaiian Teriyaki Rice Bowl with Rumbi Rice. If you don’t like Rumbi rice, of course you can serve it with regular rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice, quinoa, or even noodles.
- Don’t have time to grill? You are in luck! We also have an Air Fryer Teriyaki Chicken Bowl recipe that can easily be adapted to use for this recipe.
- Chicken things of even breaded chicken (Katsu chicken) can be use instead of chicken breasts. All of these are winning combinations
- To cut down on sodium, feel free to use low sodium soy sauce.
Storing and Re-Heating Leftovers
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can also freeze these rice bowls in a freezer safe container for up to 6 months. We personally don’t like to freeze the vegetables with the other ingredients. We found that we like it best when we freeze the rice and protein together and then heat up fresh vegetables before serving.
Meal Prep Bowls
These chicken rice bowls make for great meal prep bowls. Make a big batch and separate them into individual servings sizes and serving containers to enjoy throughout the week. Be sure to slightly undercook the veggies so when you re-heat the bowls they can cook the rest of the way.
See What Our Readers Our Saying About This Popular Recipe
“I was rather indifferent to Rumbi when we lived in Provo. But we have since moved away and I found this recipe on Pinterest. It is PHENOMENAL! I can’t stop raving about it. Better than the original. My husband followed the recipe EXACTLY as written and it turned out perfect. Thanks for sharing!” – Jessica
“A friend of mine introduced me to this recipe. I’ve never been to Rumbi (live in AZ), but this is going to be on our regular dinner rotation for sure. So easy! I use my julienne peeler for the carrots to make it a little more fancy. Thank you!” – Holly
“We made this last night….WOW! It was great, thanks for doing all the testing to get it right, it was fabulous!” – Britni
Easy Hawaiian Style Recipes
Want more delicious Hawaiian-style recipes? Here are some of our favorites that come straight from the Islands:
Read more: The BEST Hawaiian Dessert Recipes
Restaurant Copycat Recipes
If you love the idea of making your favorite restaurant recipes at home, you may want to give some of these recipes a try:
FAQs About Hawaiian Chicken Rice Bowls
For these Hawaiian rice bowls you can always add a little extra teriyaki sauce or you can a Thai peanut sauce. They are already super flavorful so try them first before adding more sauces and flavors!
You can eat rice bowls cold but they are best served warm! Simply microwave for a couple minutes to heat through.
To assemble a rice bowl, first add rice. Then add the chicken and vegetables. Next, add the sauce over the top. Finally, garnish with chopped green onion or sesame seeds.
How To Make Hawaiian Chicken Rice Bowls
Rumbi Rice Bowls (Copycat Recipe)
Ingredients
Hawaiian Coconut Rice with Beans
- 2 cups white rice long grain
- 2 1/2 cups water
- 14 ounces coconut milk
- 1/2 tablespoon sugar
- 14 ounces red beans drained and rinsed
Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce
- 3/4 cup Mr. Yoshida's Original Sweet Teriyaki Gourmet Marinade & Cooking Sauce
- 2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons cold water
For SPICY Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce
- 1-2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce (depending on how spicy you like it)
Stir Fry Vegetables and Chicken
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 4 carrots peeled and grated
- 3 celery stalks sliced
- 1 zucchini chopped into small cubes
- 1 1/2 cups broccoli florets chopped
- 2 cups chicken grilled and cut into small cubes*
Instructions
Hawaiian Coconut Rice and Beans
- Rice Cooker: Combine all ingredients in a rice cooker. Gently stir so the beans and rice are mixed. Cover and cook. Fluff rice with a fork before serving.
- Stove Top: In a saucepan, combine water, coconut milk, and sugar. Stir in rice and beans. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 18-20 minutes, until rice is tender.
Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce
- Combine Yoshida's sauce, soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, ginger, salt, and brown sugar in a small saucepan.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.
- Mix cornstarch and water together in a small bowl.
- Slowly whisk the cornstarch mixture into the simmering sauce. This will thicken the sauce slightly more than the Yoshida's sauce.
- For a spicier sauce, add 1-2 shakes of Sriracha sauce.
- Simmer for about 1 minute, then let sit until ready to serve.
Stir Fry Vegetables and Chicken
- Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Sauté carrots, celery, zucchini and broccoli until crisp-tender. About 2 minutes.
Make Rumbi Rice Bowls
- To serve, scoop Hawaiian Coconut Rice with Beans into the bottom of each bowl. Add vegetables and chicken. Serve Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce on the side, or evenly drizzle about 3 tablespoons of sauce over vegetables.
Notes
- You can use packaged grilled chicken, found in most grocery stores. Cut the chicken into cubes and sauté in a skillet with a little oil until heated.
- Sauté veggies until just done. Overcooking the vegetables may cause them to become too soft.
Do you rinse the white rice before adding it???
You can!
That spicy teriyaki sauce is calling my name! I can’t wait to try this recipe, it looks so good!
This recipe sounds wonderful! I have been looking all over for a copycat recipe for a Rumbi’s Jamaican jerk sauce, and can’t find one that looks like what they serve their. I was wondering if somewhere you might have that recipe.
We haven’t nailed that one down yet, but if we do we will definitely post about it!
You had me at rice bowl! Ha! What a delicious meal in a bowl! I loved it! Turned out great!
Yum! This is ttally my kind of meal. I’m always looking out for a good flavour-packed rice dish for my family.
The Hawaiian flavors in this bowl sound wonderful. My family is going to love this recipe.
Love this recipe! The directions made it so easy and it was so flavorful!
Do you have a recipe for Rumbi’s Jamaican Jerk sauce?
We don’t! But it is sooo good!
Can instant rice be used?
I wouldn’t recommend it but that’s just me. I don’t like the taste or texture of instant rice. If you prefer it, I am sure it will be fine. Hope this helps!
Hey I have a quick question, I wash the rice before putting all the ingredients in correct?
You can– if you wash the rice ahead of time, reduce the cooking water by about 1/2 c. just so it doesn’t get too soggy.
Awesome thank you! I made this before and it was super yummy, but I remember the rice being a bit more on the softer side.
I will try a 1/2 cup water this time making it.
I’m missing Rumbi since moving to Hawaii, so happy that this taste so close to the original
Hello! I am planning on making this next week! Did you use sweetened or unsweetened coconut milk? Looking forward to hearing from you!
sweetened 🙂 Hope this helps!
I am making this for a huge crowd this weekend and was wondering if i could make the sauce ahead of time (like 3 days) and store it in the fridge. Thanks!
Yes, you can make the sauce ahead of time. It might be thick but once you heat it up it gets thinner again.
I was rather indifferent to Rumbi when we lived in Provo. But we have since moved away and I found this recipe on Pinterest. It is PHENOMENAL! I can’t stop raving about it. Better than the original. My husband followed the recipe EXACTLY as written and it turned out perfect. Thanks for sharing!
So glad that you like it! Props to your husband for making it! You have a keeper there!
When you say red beans, do you mean kidney beans, punto beans or what? Also the chile-garlic sauce is also called samba olek.
Yes, we use the dark red kidney beans 🙂
A friend of mine introduced me to this recipe. I’ve never been to Rumbi (live in AZ), but this is going to be on our regular dinner rotation for sure. So easy! I use my julienne peeler for the carrots to make it a little more fancy. Thank you!
Hi! I just found this and am so excited to try it! Quick questions: Can I make the Rumbi Rice in a pot? I don’t use/have a rice cooker. And how spicy is the sauce? I am such a wimp about spicy food (ie medium salsa is too hot for me). If I need to make it less spicy, can I just leave out that spicy ingredient you said to add more of if people want it spicier?
Thanks so much!
Yes, you can make it in a pot. Just follow the measurements in the recipe but do it in a pot using the appropriate cooking times. For the sauce.. I don’t think it is spicy but in your case you might want to leave out the Sriracha completely!
Ok, thank-you! 🙂
I tried the recipe but the rice turned out mushy.
Sorry it turned our mushy. Did you do it on a stove top or rice cooker?
I did it in a rice cooker. I have two more questions, did you use unsweetened or sweetened coconut milk? Also when you sauté the veggies did you add any spices?
I absolutely love this recipe, however, do you have any ideas how I could better conceal the veggies for my kids they absolutely hate veggies but this tastes so great for the adults. I’d like my kids to eat it as well.
You could cut them up smaller and mix it in with the sauce… that way they won’t see the green pieces!
I have been making this for my wife and kids. I steam the veggies and use leftover pulled pork from the fridge. I like to heat up the pork or chicken in some sauce for extra flavor. I have been buying pints of sauce from Rumbi when I go in, I am so happy to know how to make it myself now. Thank You.
Hey this is Jenny with The Happy Gal……,LOVE this Recipe. One of my favorites. I featured this in a blog post this week 🙂 Just wanted to say hi and let you know I love your Blog!!
Thanks Jenny! And thank you for linking back to us! Love your site and I’m loving the tomato and zucchini post!