This Yellow Rice Chicken Skillet combines one of my favorite foods in the world, Yellow Jasmine Rice, with a couple of items that I found in the back of my freezer. I found some chicken thighs in my freezer (leftover from Lemon Pepper Chicken with Orzo) and I added some peas for extra color, flavor, and texture (another “back of the freezer” find). Everything cooks in the same skillet for more flavor and less cleanup. I love it when you can cook the main dish (chicken) and the two sides (rice and peas) all in one vessel. Hello, Yellow Rice Chicken Skillet!
Can I Use Boneless Chicken?
Yes, but keep in mind that boneless cuts of chicken cook much faster than bone-in chicken, so you run the risk of overcooking the meat. With chicken thighs this isn’t as big of an issue since the meat is fattier and does not dry out as quickly, but if you’re using boneless chicken breast it may become slightly dry.
Tips for One Pot Rice Dishes
Cooking rice can be a little tricky for some, and the same is true for one pot rice dishes where you are cooking rice in the same pot with meat and vegetables. Here are a few tips to help your one pot rice dish a success:
- Use thick, heavy cookware. If you are using thin cook ware you are more likely to have hot and cold spots in the pot which will lead to pockets burned and/or undercooked rice. Thicker cookware heats and cooks more evenly.
- Use a pot or deep skillet that is close in size to the burner. If the burner is too small for the bottom of the pot, you again run the risk of it heating unevenly and the rice in the edges of the pot undercooking.
- Make sure the liquid maintains a simmer. You may need to adjust the heat slightly up or down to keep the liquid simmering, depending on the characteristics of your range top and cookware. If the liquid isn’t simmering the rice will not cook through.
What Kind of Skillet Should I Use?
I’m using a 4 quart stainless steel deep skillet for this recipe, but this recipe also works great with a Dutch oven (affiliate link). The two most important things you need in a piece of cookware for this recipe are: that it is thick and heavy so it heats evenly and it has a lid. And you’ll probably want something that at least 3 quarts in volume.
Can I Use Plain White Rice?
You can substitute plain long grain white rice in place of the jasmine rice, but you will lose out on some of the fantastic flavor that jasmine rice has. To find the best price on jasmine rice, check the bottom shelf of the rice aisle for the larger 5 lb. bags of jasmine rice. Avoid the small specialty packages, which are usually found on higher shelves.
Yellow Rice Chicken Skillet
Servings 4Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.02)
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs ($3.48)
- 1 pinch salt and pepper ($0.05)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 1 tsp turmeric ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon ($0.03)
- 1.5 cups long grain jasmine rice ($0.78)
- 1.5 cups frozen peas ($0.72)
- 2.5 cups chicken broth* ($0.33)
- 1/4 bunch fresh cilantro (optional) ($0.32)
Instructions
- Pat the chicken thighs dry with a paper towel, then season both sides with salt and pepper.
- Heat a large deep skillet over medium heat. Add the oil, then tilt the skillet to spread the oil over the surface. Place the chicken thighs in the skillet, skin side down, and allow to brown before flipping (about five minutes). Flip the thighs and let brown on the second side (another five minutes). Remove the browned thighs to a clean plate.
- If there is excess oil in the skillet, pour it off into a bowl to cool, leaving about 1 tablespoon of oil and fat in the skillet. Add the minced garlic, turmeric, cumin, and cinnamon to the skillet. Sauté for about one minute, or until the garlic is soft and fragrant.
- Pour the chicken broth into the skillet and use a wooden spoon to dissolve any browned bits off the bottom of the skillet. Once the browned bits are dissolved, add the frozen peas and rice, and give it a quick stir to distribute the broth and spices. Nestle the browned chicken thighs into the rice and peas.
- Place a lid on the skillet and turn the heat up to medium-high. allow it to come to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low (or just above low) and let the skillet simmer for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, turn the heat off and let it sit undisturbed for an additional 10 minutes. Finally, remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork, mixing the peas in as you go. Top with fresh cilantro, if desired.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Chicken and Yellow Rice – Step by Step Photos
Start with four bone-in chicken thighs, with skin. Pat them dry with a paper towel, then season both sides with salt and pepper. Drying the surface helps them brown better in the skillet.
Heat a large deep skillet over medium flame. Once hot, add 1 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil. Tilt the skillet to spread the oil over the surface. Add the chicken thighs, skin side down, and allow them to brown before moving them (they will actually kind of stick to the surface until they are brown, at which point they usually “release”). Flip the thighs and brown on the other side. Once both sides are browned, remove the chicken to a clean plate.
If a lot of fat rendered off of the chicken thighs, pour some out until there is about a tablespoon or so left in the skillet. Add 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp cumin, and 1/4 tsp cinnamon. Sauté the garlic and spices for about a minute, or just until the garlic is soft and fragrant (but has not browned).
Deglaze the skillet with 2.5 cups of chicken broth. “Deglaze” just means to use the chicken broth to dissolve any browned bits (called fond) off the bottom of the skillet. The browned stuff is the good stuff.
Finally, add 1.5 cups of frozen peas and 1.5 cups long grain jasmine rice. Give the skillet a quick stir to distribute the spices among the peas and rice.
Return the browned chicken to the skillet, nestling it into the rice and peas.
Place a lid on the skillet and turn the heat up to medium high. Allow it to come to a boil. Once it boils, reduce the heat to low (or just above low – so that it doesn’t stop simmering) and let the skillet simmer for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, turn the heat off and let it sit undisturbed, with the lid on, for ten more minutes. The photo above is what it looks like after simmering and resting.
Use a fork to fluff the rice and stir it up a bit. All the peas and many of the spices float to the top while it simmers, so use the fluff time as a way to make sure everything is evenly mixed.
Top with fresh cilantro, if desired. YUM!
Of course, I divided my Yellow Rice Chicken Skillet up into individual containers so I could just grab one at a time and microwave it to reheat. These also freeze decently well.
This recipe is my go-to when I need to cook dinner and don’t know what to make.. Great for using up whatever frozen veggies are left in the fridge. I like to sub onions and spinach for the peas. I pull off the chicken skins before cooking, then pull them out and shred them. Makes it easier for my husband to reheat at work.
I made this last night and it was fantastic. Tonight I used the leftover rice and made a pork sausage fried rice adding an onion, mushrooms, garlic, half a bell pepper, and some frozen mixed veggies with some sesame oil and soy sauce. I highly recommend it!!
This recipe took FOREVER and the end result was mush. I used a deep 12 inch pan (w/ lid) and it was a disaster. After the first 35 mins I went to fluff the rice and it was still crunchy. Added 1/8c more watered down broth and heated for another 10 mins cooking/cooling. STILL crunchy. Did the same thing again… came out like porridge. Your other recipes have been great but this one… nope. My husband was really happy with me after making this…..
Opening the pot will let out steam. Trust the rice cooking process and don’t touch it. I didn’t open my pot the entire time it simmered or during the 10min waiting period. The rice was perfect!
Kendra, I had the same issue as the OP. I too followed the “process” (which is 35 mins) and had the same problems with way underdone rice. But, unlike the OP, I gave up after that and ate just the chicken. Next time I’ll do the two items separately so I will avoid this issue.
I always use 3 cups of water, because Jasmine rice is very thirsty. Never have any problems with crunchy or gooey rice. The type of rice you use makes a big difference. Even the type of Jasmine rice. Always double check the package for the usual cooking directions and adjust the recipe accordingly.
I think New Zealand has a larger idea of what a chicken thigh is. Mine are large triangular hunks of chicken with the bone in. I’ve halved the recipe and two thighs still take up a heap of room in there. I think I’ll cook it for a little longer too, just in case o.O
In the USA we call those chicken quarters, not thighs. The thigh is literally just the thigh, not the entire leg. If that helps at all.
I made this for the second time today, with some changes the second time around. I used whole chicken legs, and I sauteed onions with the garlic and spices. I used saffron instead of turmeric, I had some left over from a special Valentine’s dinner I made (not budget friendly). Turned out amazing. Thanks so much Beth, you are a constant inspiration in my kitchen.
I’m going to try this recipe, I only use brown rice, what will I need to do to be able to use brown rice…ty for your help…
I’m sorry, I’d have to experiment with it first to say for sure.
I made this tonight and it was amazing! I had a bag of combined frozen peas and carrots I wanted to get rid of so I used that instead of plain frozen peas, it was really good. I used low-sodium broth and ended up needing to add some salt to my food after it was plated. I think next time I might add 1/4 tsp salt to the recipe to avoid that. I might even try increasing the spices next time too, they were so tasty but slightly on the mild side and I wouldn’t mind a more powerful flavor.
Great recipe. I made this exactly as written, with no changes.
I am so obsessed with this recipe!! It is so simple, but so delicious. Goes really well with some salsa on top (or ketchup when I am a little desperate :P haha).
I am so making this tomorrow!! :)
We’ve made this a few times now and I think it’s going to be on the menu for having people over tomorrow. Any suggestions for a side dish with this? (Open to anyone, not just Beth! :) Thanks!)
Maybe something green, like sautéed kale or spinach?
Replying late but this is currently simmering on my stove :) to make enough food to feed my family of four (actually five since I’m pregnant and eating like it ;)), I made a side dish of roasted potatoes. I diced up about two pounds of red and purple potatoes. Tossed them with 1 tsp each of salt, curry powder and garlic powder. Mixed with some olive oil and roasted for 40 mins.
My fiancé and I love this recipe and have made it several times. We substitute frozen edamame for the frozen peas though, which works great.
Saving for our wedding has got us cooking more from your site and eating out less. But its still great to be able to eat good food.
I have recently come across your site and am on recipe overload! Everything looks amazing!
This chicken looks delicious! I do have one question though. When you reheat the leftovers from the freezer, how do you heat them up (microwave, stove, etc.)? Do you defrost them in the fridge before reheating? I look forward to trying this recipe!
Because it’s bone in chicken, it does reheat a little better if it’s thawed first. So, if you remember, just pop one of the single serving containers (that’s how I freeze it–individual containers) into the refrigerator the day before. If not, just loosen the lid and reheat at one minute intervals, stirring between intervals when you can. Make sure the lid is loosely set on top of the dish to hold in some of the steam, but don’t seal it or the steam will make it explode open. :P
I made this tonight with 2 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a dutch oven and doubled all the other ingredients (plus 2 more tablespoons of oil) and it was DELICIOUS!
Also it made about 10 servings (forgot to say as much) when I made it this way!
Is it necessary for the chicken to be bone-in? I know it matters for some recipes, but I have a thing about bone-in meat.
Nope, you can use boneless. :)
We made it tonight with boneless skinless chicken, and it was fantastic. Thank you so much!!!