Cheesy Chicken & Rice Recipe

I might be the only weirdo who does this, but when it comes to “one-pot” meals, I almost NEVER actually cook them in one pot. Especially if they involve pasta or rice like this Cheesy Chicken & Rice recipe. That is my biggest weakness, I can never seem to achieve the correct consistency for the rice or pasta when they’re mixed with other ingredients. They always come out either too mushy or way too undercooked. If anyone has perfected the art of one-pot meals with flawlessly cooked rice or pasta, please give me a holler! I’m all ears.

In the meantime, I’m going to continue putting my own spin on these types of meals by cooking the pasta or rice separately and mixing them with the rest of the ingredients last. That’s exactly what I did with this Cheesy Chicken & Rice recipe. It was a lot less hassle and the final dish had great consistency with perfectly cooked rice! No mushy messes here, thank goodness. 😉

PREPARING THE CHICKEN BREASTS

As usual, with all my recipes that include chicken, I like to include a little “how-to” list on baking the perfect chicken breasts. Following these steps has helped me tremendously in ensuring I get juicy, tender results every time. For those who’d like to give it a try, here’s my simple list of instructions below:

1. Brine the chicken breasts for 15 minutes by submerging them in cold water with 1 tablespoon of vinegar.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
3. Drain the chicken breasts and pat them dry with paper towels.
4. Rub each chicken breast with olive oil. Then sprinkle with a mixture of garlic salt, black pepper, paprika and onion powder.
5. Place chicken breasts side by side in a baking dish. Bake for about 35 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and let rest about 5-10 minutes before slicing.

USING A RICE COOKER

I mentioned earlier that I cook the rice separately from the rest of the ingredients, but I also want to take a minute to commend my trusted Rice Cooker. I’m seriously in awe of anyone who can make rice without a rice cooker. It has been an absolute life saver for me. My rice ALWAYS comes out perfect. I definitely applaud those chefs out there who have the patience and skill for making perfectly cooked rice on the stovetop. But a rice cooker just makes things so much easier by removing the water-to-rice-ratio guesswork. I love not having to worry about ruining a whole batch of rice due to incorrect water measurements. So yes, I highly recommend everyone get a rice cooker and give yourself some peace of mind. 🙂

CHEESY CHICKEN & RICE

I was quite happy with how this dish turned out. It was hearty, healthy and filling! Best of all, my kids (age 1 and 2) actually wanted to eat it too. You know how picky those toddlers can be. I think the cheese had something to do with them liking it so much. It felt great knowing they were getting their servings of vegetables and protein all in one bowl. I hope you guys will give this Cheesy Chicken & Rice recipe a try! It’s a meal the whole family will enjoy. 🙂

TRY THESE MOUTHWATERING “ONE-POT” MEALS NEXT!

1. Chicken & Sausage Jambalaya
2. Cheesy Spinach & Chicken Linguine
3. Spicy Mexican Rice Skillet

Cheesy Chicken & Rice Recipe

Course: Main CourseDifficulty: Easy

Servings

6

servings

Prep time

35

minutes

Cooking time

45

minutes

Calories

372

kcal

A cheesy dish that’s filled with vegetables, rice and chicken. Hearty, healthy and filling!

Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts

• 2 cups Jasmin rice

• 2 ½ cups chicken broth

• 4 Tbs butter

• ½ onion, chopped

• 2 celery sticks, chopped

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 2 carrots, shredded

• ½ tsp garlic salt

• ¼ tsp black pepper

• ¼ tsp thyme

• ½ cup shredded (or grated) Parmesan

Directions

• Cook the rice separately either on the stovetop or using a rice cooker (my preference). Whichever method you choose, make sure to use the chicken broth to cook it in instead of water
• Bake the chicken breasts in the oven on 400 degrees for 35 minutes
• Let chicken breasts rest 5-10 minutes. Then chop or shred them into small pieces. Set aside for now
• In a large skillet, melt the butter on medium heat
• Add the chopped celery, onions, carrots and garlic to the skillet. Mix
• Add the garlic salt, black pepper and thyme to the skillet. Mix well and heat everything for about 5 minutes
• Add the cooked rice and chopped chicken to the skillet and mix all ingredients until well combined
• Remove from heat and add the Parmesan while still hot. Mix until Parmesan is melted and well incorporated
• You can add more Parmesan as desired. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

• Calories & Nutritional Info may vary based on different brands and ingredients used. Nutritional Info below was calculated using Very Fit Well’s Nutrition Calculator.