Can you microwave Chipotle bowls? Should you microwave Chipotle bowls? The Mexican cuisine restaurant is fast becoming renowned in North America, with it mentioned in the same breath as Taco Bell and QDOBA as well as Baja Fresh, Rubio’s, and Moe’s.
In particular, QDOBA and Chipotle feature similar bowls and takeout packaging. So are chipotle bowls microwavable or not? How can you go about reheating the dish? Is the bowl itself microwave-safe? Keep on reading to learn the truth.
Further reading: Can You Microwave Qdoba Bowls?
Are Chipotle Bowls Microwavable?
In regards to the Chipotle bowl, like the QDOBA bowl or the takeout bowls of Moe’s Southwest Grill, Rubio’s Coastal Grill, and Baja Fresh, it should be perfectly microwave-safe as long as you take off the aluminum lid and microwave it that way.
Make sure that the bowl indicates it’s microwave-safe though. Otherwise, your best bet is to transfer the contents of your Chipotle bowl into a microwave-safe container made of ceramic or thick glass. You can also use plastic containers from Tupperware or Rubbermaid with the microwave-safe label.
Err on the Side of Caution
Err on the side of caution. Even if you’re sure the bowl is microwave-safe, it’s even safer to just microwave its contents on a microwaveable container. It’s actually suggested by Chipotle itself as well as most experts to use a microwave-safe container for reheating purposes.
Don’t use the packaging bowl given to you from the takeout counter if you don’t have to. Otherwise, check the label to ensure no contamination happens.
What’s Chipotle Anyway?
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. is the company behind the chain of restaurants known as the Chipotle Mexican Grill. It’s not to be confused for the smoke-dried ripe jalapeño chili pepper it’s named after. By the way, that pepper is used for seasoning primarily in Mexican and Mexican-inspired cuisines.
Chipotle is essentially the Nahuatl name for the dried and smoked jalapeño. This American chain of fast casual restaurants has branches in the U.S.A., Canada, the U.K., France, and Germany. CMG is the ticker symbol of the company as it trades in the New York Stock Exchange.
The History of Chipotle
Founded on July 13, 1993 by Steve Ells, Chipotle is one of the first fast-casual dining establishments in the U.S. It had 16 restaurants in Colorado when McDonald’s turned into a major investor of the franchise in 1998.
Once McDonald’s fully divested itself in 2006 from Chipotle, the chain had developed to having 500 locations. In 2015, it had 2,000 locations, an army of 45,000 staff populating those locations, and a net income of $475.6 million.
What’s a Chipotle Bowl Anyway?
Chipotle has different dishes and bowls available such as like the chicken, steak or carnitas, barbacoa, sofritas, and vegetarian burrito bowls. It’s known for allowing you to customize the bowl just the way you want it and providing the freshest ingredients in contrast to fast-food restaurants like Taco Bell.
It goes for a more organic taste versus putting preservatives all over their menu. Chipotle specializes in Mission burritos and tacos that are made-to-order in front of you. Aside from the burrito bowl, you can also avail of tacos, salad, burrito, lifestyle bowl, and sides & drinks.
How Do You Reheat a Chipotle Bowl in the Microwave?
The easiest and quickest way to reheat a Chipotle bowl is by microwaving it. Don’t be lazy and just put the ingredients on the takeout bowl and microwave it. Use a microwave-safe container of the ceramic or microwave-safe plastic kind by Rubbermaid or Tupperware.
All you need is to microwave it for about a minute. Don’t go too long. Maybe go for a little over a minute but make sure to stop every minute to stir and heat the bowl again until you get something nice, hot, and refreshing.
Microwaving the Takeout Plastic Bowl
If you absolutely have to or want to microwave the bowl inside a literal Chipotle bowl, check if it has the microwave-safe markings at the bottom. Also, remove the aluminum cover and don’t microwave that. Sparks will fly if you microwave aluminum.
If it doesn’t, don’t microwave that bowl. You risk BPA contamination or putting plasticizer chemicals unto your Chipotle entrée, which doesn’t only ruin the taste of the dish but also puts hormone-affecting chemicals into your system if you were to eat such food.
How Do You Reheat a Chipotle Bowl Using a Conventional Oven?
It’s a bit harder to reheat a Chipotle burrito bowl or lifestyle bowl. A conventional electric or gas oven isn’t as kind to your lettuce or sour cream because it uses conductive heat instead of microwave-induced internal heat from the food’s water molecules.
Therefore, you must take out the sour cream and lettuce first. Put them back after the carnitas, steak, chicken, or barbacoa has been heated. On that note, vegetarian or vegan burrito bowls should be microwaved.
Preheating and Monitoring the Oven
From there, preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the bowl contents into an oven-safe dish then cover with aluminum foil. Don’t bake the takeout container; it’s much likelier to melt in a conventional oven than a microwave oven.
Reheat the bowl from 10 minutes to 15 minutes or if it’s fully reheated before that. After reaching the desired temperature, take the bowl out and add back the lettuce and sour cream. You can enjoy your baked delight soon after.
How Long Should You Microwave a Burrito?
If the Chipotle burrito is refrigerated, reheat inside your microwave in a safe container for 3 to 4 minutes. The microwaving should be done in 1 minute increments. Rotate or flip the burrito after every interval (the turntable isn’t enough to even out the heat)
Allow the Mexican food to sit inside the microwave for 45 seconds. This will further spread the hotness across it evenly via heat conduction. Repeat the process of microwaving until the internal burrito temperature reaches 165°F or 74°C.
The Verdict
Yes, you can microwave the Chipotle plastic bowl but only if it specifies it’s microwave-safe. It’s still better to default to putting the contents of the Chipotle burrito bowl into a separate ceramic bowl in case it requires reheating since you’re assure the ceramic bowl is safe.
Don’t forget to not put in the aluminum lid and instead use a microwave-safe lid for your microwaving requirements. This way, you can freely ingest all those delicious fresh Mexican ingredients until you end up in a food coma of sorts.
References:
- “How do y’all reheat Qdoba?“, Reddit.com, April 14, 2019
- “Can You Microwave Chipotle Bowl?“, MicrowaveMealPrep.com, August 19, 2020
