Do you remember when KFC started doing bowl meals? I don’t know if they still make them, I just remember a few (?) years back seeing advertisements for a bowl full of mashed potatoes, fried chicken pieces, and some cheese. Despite being an incredibly beige looking bowl of food, I liked the concept. I’ve wanted to throw my own colorful twist on those bowls for years. Well, today I finally did it with these Loaded Mashed Potato Bowls. Yay!
Toppings, toppings, and MORE toppings!
I decided to make my Loaded Mashed Potato Bowls vegetarian, with a mixture of fire roasted corn and black beans as the main topper. I added the requisite cheddar cheese (because cheeeeeese) and then jazzed it up with a few SUPER thin slices of jalapeño, green onion for freshness, and a light drizzle of BBQ sauce. Yes, BBQ sauce. Trust me.
And yes, chicken would still be awesome with this if you don’t want to do vegetarian (try our Honey Chipotle Chicken). I’d go with diced grilled chicken pieces to keep with that smoky theme.
Use Your Favorite Mashed Potatoes
I’m going to leave it to you to prepare your mashed potato base using your favorite recipe, but the more flavorful they are the better your bowl will be. I made some quick Instant Pot mashed potatoes because it’s my favorite and easiest way to make them, and I used vegetable broth this time instead of chicken broth to keep the bowl vegetarian. You can find my recipe for Instant Pot mashed Potatoes in this Apple Spice Pork Chop Meal Prep blog post. That said, my classic mashed potatoes recipe will always hold a special place in my heart. Two other delicious options are my dairy-free Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes or my Garlic Herb Mashed Potatoes.
Loaded Mashed Potato Bowls
Servings 4Ingredients
- 6 cups prepared mashed potatoes ($2.17)
- 2 cups frozen corn kernels* ($1.49)
- 1 15oz. can can black beans ($0.79)
- 1/2 tsp chili powder** ($0.10)
- 4 oz. cheddar, shredded ($1.00)
- 1/2 cup BBQ sauce ($0.68)
- 2 green onions, sliced ($0.22)
- 1 jalapeño, thinly sliced (optional) ($0.33)
Instructions
- Allow the corn kernels to thaw, or heat them through if you plan to eat the bowls immediately. Rinse and drain the black beans, then add them to a bowl along with the chili powder and stir until the beans are coated.
- To build the bowls, place about 1.5 cups mashed potatoes in each bowl, then top with about 1/2 cup corn kernels, 1/3 cup black beans, about 1/4 cup shredded cheddar, 2 Tbsp BBQ sauce, and a sprinkle of sliced green onions and jalapeño.
- Serve the bowls immediately, or refrigerate until ready to eat. To reheat, simply microwave until the mashed potatoes are hot and the cheese is melted.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
How to Make Loaded Mashed Potato Bowls – Step by Step Photos
I’m going to assume you have 6 cups of your favorite mashed potatoes made already. Take 2 cups frozen corn kernels out of the freezer to thaw (or heat them through if you plan to eat your Loaded Mashed Potato Bowls right away). Rinse and drain one 15oz. can of black beans, add 1/2 tsp chili powder to the beans and stir to coat.
Prep the rest of your toppings. Shred about 4 oz. cheddar cheese, thinly slice one jalapeño, and slice two green onions.
I ate one of my bowls for lunch today, and prepped these other three for meals later this week. To build each bowl, start with 1.5 cups of mashed potatoes.
Add about 1/4 of the shredded cheese to each bowl.
Add about 1/2 cup of the corn kernels and about 1/3 cup of the black beans to each of the bowls.
Finally, drizzle a couple tablespoons of BBQ sauce over each bowl and top with some sliced green onion and sliced jalapeño (optional). Either refrigerate, or dig in! If you want your cheese more melty, just microwave for a minute or so.
Yessss. There’s nothing beige about this bowl.
I’m not a fan of BBQ sauce – any substitute suggestions?
Honestly, it’s really good without any sauce at all. The cheese and potatoes are enough to make it awesome. :)
This is totally going on my meal plan for next week! I’ve recently realized how well mashed potatoes freeze, and have taken to making huge batches and freezing portions so that we always have some on hand. Usually they just become a side for meat dishes, but I’m definitely giving this a try – potatoes are 10lbs for $3 right now, so I’ll be restocking my freezer this weekend!
Have you tried this with mashed cauliflower?
I haven’t, but I bet it would be great!
That’s my idea of bowl food! Comfort food at its best. I don’t think I’ve ever had the KFC version of this, but I’ve made it. I added some peas or green beans for more color and variety.
Hi Beth, I love your recipes and use them all the time, but I keep getting tripped up with the cheese amounts. I’m used to metric and I never know if you mean 4oz of cheese by weight or by volume. Can you explain?
For cheese it’s always weight. A good rule of thumb is that solid ingredients use weight ounces and liquid ingredients use fluid (volume) ounces. I hope that helps! :)
I made this tonight but didn’t have bbq sauce and subbed in enchilada sauce. I also added some avocado since I had one that needed eating. Oh my lord this is delicious!
Yummy!! Can’t wait to make this recipe for dinner very soon!!! :-)
Looking forward to making this, Can’t wait to try it. Thanks.
My last job we sold this same bowl with fried chicken tenders and chicken gravy instead of bbq sauce. They went all the time. I have still seen the bowls at KFC around me as of a month ago.
I may try it with sweet potatoes.
I have a daughter who has suddenly gone vegetarian and now I’m looking for ideas for her .
I’ve been phasing meat out of my diet steadily over the last year or so and it’s been months since I bought any. Beth’s blog has been invaluable. There are a lot of very tasty, easy to make recipes that anyone can enjoy, not just vegetarians. Her smoked potato chickpea stew posted just recently for example, was just plain good, vegetarian or no.
Did you use a sweet or a spicy BBQ sauce?
The one I used is sweet.
Brilliant!
I don’t have a Trader Joe’s close enough to me. :( Can anyone recommend another store brand that has roasted corn?
I think I’ve seen a Whole Foods brand version as well. If you can’t find it, the bowls will still be really tasty. :)
This sounds great! I often serve foods over baked potatoes which would keep this vegan for my son (minus the cheese of course). I love BBQ sauce too.
I don’t even really enjoy mashed potatoes (I know, I’m weird), but this makes me want them!