Are burrito bowls lower in calories than burritos?

They usually are, because you skip the large flour tortilla, but the fillings decide the total. Rice, beans, cheese, sour cream and guacamole together add up quickly, so pick two of the rich toppings, not all of them.

How do I keep beans from getting boring?

Rotate black, pinto and white beans, and change the way you serve them: whole in soups, mashed on molletes, in salads with nopales, or blended into a dip with salsa.

Cuisine Meal Plan

Mexican meal plan: 7 days of Mexican home cooking

This Mexican meal plan is based on home-style Mexican food rather than Tex-Mex takeaway: corn tortillas, beans, salsas, grilled chicken and fish, eggs for breakfast and fresh fruit with lime and chilli. These dishes are filling and full of flavour without needing much cheese or sour cream.

Below is a full week of meals, one sample day with each ingredient weighed and its calories, protein, carbs and fat calculated from USDA data, and notes on tortillas, cheese and frying, the three places where the calories in Mexican food pile up.

Updated October 22, 2026

Sample day

1,640 kcal

Protein

122 g · 29%

Carbs

196 g · 46%

Fat

46 g · 25%

What a balanced Mexican week looks like

Choose corn tortillas most of the time. Small corn tortillas are the everyday tortilla in much of Mexico and are smaller than flour ones, so two or three tacos are a sensible portion.
Make beans a daily habit. Black or pinto beans, cooked from dry or canned and rinsed, add protein and fibre to breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Let salsa do the seasoning. Pico de gallo, salsa verde and roasted tomato salsa add flavour for very few calories, so you need less cheese and crema.
Grill, bake or stew instead of frying. Chiles rellenos, chimichangas and taco shells are fried; tacos al pastor, tinga and pescado a la talla are not.

Your 7-day Mexican meal plan

Day 1 is the sample day worked out below. Leftovers from one dinner become the next day's lunch where it makes sense.

Day 1
breakfast
Huevos rancheros with black beans
lunch
Chicken burrito bowl
snack
Mango with lime
dinner
Fish tacos with cabbage slaw and yogurt crema
Day 2
breakfast
Chilaquiles (baked, not fried) with an egg
lunch
Leftover burrito bowl
snack
Jícama and cucumber with chilli
dinner
Chicken tinga tostadas (baked tostadas) with beans
Day 3
breakfast
Yogurt with papaya and oats
lunch
Sopa de lima (chicken and lime soup)
snack
Orange
dinner
Black bean and sweet potato enchiladas (light on cheese)
Day 4
breakfast
Scrambled eggs a la mexicana, corn tortillas
lunch
Tinga leftovers in lettuce cups
snack
Watermelon with Tajín
dinner
Pescado a la talla (grilled fish), rice, salad
Day 5
breakfast
Molletes (bean and cheese toast) with pico de gallo
lunch
Chicken pozole verde
snack
Apple
dinner
Shrimp fajitas with peppers and corn tortillas
Day 6
breakfast
Smoothie with banana, oats and milk
lunch
Pozole leftovers
snack
Mango
dinner
Carne asada (lean steak) tacos with salsa and beans
Day 7
breakfast
Huevos a la mexicana
lunch
Ensalada de nopales with beans and fresh cheese
snack
Pineapple
dinner
Chicken mole (a smaller portion) with rice and greens

A sample day with calories and macros

Day 1, weighed ingredient by ingredient. Rice, pasta, beans, lentils and meat are cooked weights.

Breakfast: Huevos rancheros with black beans

470 kcal

Ingredient	Amount	kcal	Protein	Carbs	Fat
Corn tortillas	50 g	109	2.9	22.3	1.4
Eggs	100 g	143	12.6	0.7	9.5
Black beans, cooked	80 g	106	7.1	19.0	0.4
Tomato salsa	60 g	17	0.9	4.0	0.1
Avocado	30 g	50	0.6	2.6	4.6
Vegetable oil	5 g	44	0.0	0.0	5.0
Meal total		469	24.0	48.6	21.1

Lunch: Chicken burrito bowl

630 kcal

Ingredient	Amount	kcal	Protein	Carbs	Fat
Brown rice, cooked	130 g	160	3.6	33.3	1.3
Pinto beans, cooked	100 g	143	9.0	26.2	0.7
Chicken breast, cooked	110 g	182	34.1	0.0	3.9
Sweetcorn, cooked	60 g	58	2.0	12.6	0.9
Tomato salsa	50 g	15	0.8	3.3	0.1
Romaine lettuce	40 g	7	0.5	1.3	0.1
Avocado	40 g	67	0.8	3.5	6.2
Lime	10 g	3	0.1	1.1	0.0
Meal total		633	50.8	81.2	13.1

Snack: Mango with lime

100 kcal

Ingredient	Amount	kcal	Protein	Carbs	Fat
Mango	165 g	99	1.4	24.7	0.6
Lime	10 g	3	0.1	1.1	0.0
Meal total		102	1.4	25.8	0.6

Dinner: Fish tacos with cabbage slaw and yogurt crema

430 kcal

Ingredient	Amount	kcal	Protein	Carbs	Fat
Tilapia, cooked	140 g	179	36.6	0.0	3.7
Corn tortillas	75 g	164	4.3	33.5	2.1
Cabbage	70 g	18	0.9	4.1	0.1
Plain non-fat Greek yogurt	40 g	24	4.1	1.4	0.2
Lime	10 g	3	0.1	1.1	0.0
Fresh coriander	5 g	1	0.1	0.2	0.0
Vegetable oil	5 g	44	0.0	0.0	5.0
Meal total		432	46.0	40.2	11.1

Day total: about 1,640 kcal, with 122 g protein, 196 g carbs and 46 g fat (29% / 46% / 25% of calories). To fit your own target, multiply every amount by your daily calories divided by 1,640; the macro calculator gives you that target.

Figures are estimates calculated from per-100 g values in USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy). Brands, recipes and cooking change the real numbers, so treat them as a guide, not a label.

Mexican staples to keep in your kitchen

Corn tortillas
Dried or canned black and pinto beans
Rice
Tomatoes, tomatillos, onions and jalapeños
Limes and fresh coriander
Cumin, oregano and dried chillies such as ancho and guajillo
Avocados
Queso fresco or plain Greek yogurt in place of sour cream

Vegetarian, vegan and pescatarian versions

vegetarian

Use beans, eggs, mushrooms and queso fresco for the chicken and fish. Black bean tacos, mushroom tinga and huevos rancheros are all naturally meat-free.

vegan

Fill tacos and bowls with beans, potatoes, mushrooms or tofu, skip the cheese and crema or use plant-based versions, and check that refried beans were not made with lard.

pescatarian

Swap chicken for fish or shrimp: fish tacos, aguachile, shrimp fajitas and pescado a la veracruzana are all classic dishes.

Allergens to watch in Mexican cooking

Dairy: queso fresco, cotija, Oaxaca cheese, crema and sour cream. Refried beans sometimes include cheese or butter.
Gluten: flour tortillas and many burrito wraps. Corn tortillas are usually gluten-free, but check the label for blends that add wheat flour.
Nuts and seeds: mole sauces often contain peanuts, almonds or sesame, and pipián is made from pumpkin seeds.

In Meal Planner Pro you can exclude nuts, lactose, gluten, shellfish and soy. If you have a severe allergy, always check the labels of the products you buy.

How Meal Planner Pro plans Mexican meals

Choose "Mexican" as one of your cuisines in the quiz. Each day of your plan is cooked in one of the cuisines you pick, and they rotate through the week.
Each day is built around a different main protein, and no dish repeats within the week.
Your allergies and any health condition you select always come before tradition: a dish is adapted rather than served with an ingredient you've excluded.
Your country is used to choose ingredients that are easy to buy where you live.
Daily calorie and macro targets come from your age, height, weight, activity and goal. You can swap any meal you don't fancy, and the week's ingredients become one grocery list.

General information, not medical advice. If you have a health condition, are pregnant or take medication, talk to your doctor or a registered dietitian before changing your diet. Our editorial policy

Get your own Mexican week

Meal Planner Pro builds a 7-day plan in the cuisines you choose, sized to your calorie target, with recipes and a grocery list.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Either can fit, but small corn tortillas are usually lighter per tortilla because they are smaller, and they are naturally gluten-free. Count tortillas the way you'd count slices of bread.

Mexican recipes with calories and macros

Huevos Rancheros 540 kcal per serving Chicken Burrito Bowl 540 kcal per serving Fish Tacos 440 kcal per serving Chicken Tinga 270 kcal per serving

Sources: USDA FoodData Central records used

Corn tortillas: Tortillas, ready-to-bake or -fry, corn (FDC 175036)
Eggs: Egg, whole, raw, fresh (FDC 171287)
Black beans, cooked: Beans, black, mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt (FDC 173735)
Tomato salsa: Sauce, salsa, ready-to-serve (FDC 174524)
Avocado: Avocados, raw, California (FDC 171706)
Vegetable oil: Oil, corn and canola (FDC 169867)
Brown rice, cooked: Rice, brown, long-grain, cooked (FDC 169704)
Pinto beans, cooked: Beans, pinto, mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt (FDC 175200)
Chicken breast, cooked: Chicken, broilers or fryers, breast, meat only, cooked, roasted (FDC 171477)
Sweetcorn, cooked: Corn, sweet, yellow, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt (FDC 169999)
Romaine lettuce: Lettuce, cos or romaine, raw (FDC 169247)
Lime: Limes, raw (FDC 168155)
Mango: Mangos, raw (FDC 169910)
Tilapia, cooked: Fish, tilapia, cooked, dry heat (FDC 175177)
Cabbage: Cabbage, raw (FDC 169975)
Plain non-fat Greek yogurt: Yogurt, Greek, plain, nonfat (FDC 170894)
Fresh coriander: Coriander (cilantro) leaves, raw (FDC 169997)