One-Pot Chicken And Rice Recipe

Before you start cooking, go ahead and assemble all the ingredients so you know you've got what you need. Some chopping and measuring is required for this one-pot chicken and rice. If you can, it's nearly always better to do that before you turn on the stove. That way when it's time to add that next ingredient, it's ready to go into the pot. Prepping all your ingredients ahead of time is a handy chef trick known as mise en place, by the way.

For this one-pot chicken and rice recipe, you'll need 3 tablespoons of olive oil, along with 1 1/2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. You'll also need 1 yellow onion, 4 carrots, 4 celery stalks, 1 1/2 cups white jasmine rice, 2 cups of chicken broth, 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon of minced garlic, 1/3 cup chopped parsley, and 1/2 cup of shredded parmesan cheese. 

You'll also need some cutting boards, a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed soup pot, a wooden spoon for stirring, and a small microwave-safe bowl. While you're here, take a few minutes to dice up the onion, celery, and carrots.

Once your chicken is cooked, you can now add the onions, carrots, and celery to the pot. Saute the veggies in the pot with the chicken for another five minutes. They will start to soften and become fragrant.

We highly recommend a fine chop for the celery, onions, and carrot. They will cook faster that way and blend in better with the other ingredients to create that perfect bite where you can taste everything in the recipe. If you don't have the patience to finely dice everything by hand, a food processor can be a huge help here. If you've got sensitive eyes, it can also help save you the tears of slicing into onions. If you do go the food processor route, however, take a minute to study up first though because, believe it or not, there is a wrong way and a right way to use a food processor.

Toward the end of the designated chicken and rice simmering time, go ahead and prepare the garlic butter. Oh, did you not know that you're combining the butter and garlic in this one-pot chicken and rice recipe to make garlic butter? You're welcome. This easy addition will bring up the taste of this recipe to delightful levels. To make the garlic butter, take a small, microwave-safe bowl, add butter and garlic, then heat the bowl in the microwave for about 30 seconds. 

This added step is worth it because, as Carli tells it, "[T]he garlic butter adds luxurious rich flavor when added at the end." Personally, we don't want a flavor in our meal if it's not luxurious, so we're going to trust her on this one. Also, microwaving isn't exactly "work", so while this might technically be considered an extra step outside of the one-pot structure, there are way more labor-intensive things we could ask of you when it comes to preparing this hearty main course.

Now all you have to do is stir to combine all of the ingredients in the pot. Once that's done, remove the dutch oven from the heat and serve this delicious dish up to your waiting diners. You could also divide this one-pot chicken and rice into separate meal prep containers to refrigerate and then reheat throughout the week. This one-pot chicken and rice should stay good in the fridge in an airtight container for up to three days. 

There is also plenty of room for variation here, especially once you feel comfortable with the basic chicken and rice recipe. If you want to spice it up, toss in some red pepper flakes with the chicken or bust out the hot sauce. This meal is a dinner and lunch-time staple that can be seasoned to taste however you want.

If you decide to go the slow cooker route, we'd recommend still browning the chicken in a dutch oven first. Once that's accomplished, you can add it to all the other ingredients in the slow cooker. Give everything in the slow-cooked a good stir, then cook it allon high for four hours.