One-Pot Chicken and Rice: A Mild Oven Dinner With One Pan to Wash

Brown six chicken thighs, toast the rice in the same pan, pour in broth, set the chicken on top and let the oven do the rest. You get juicy chicken, rice that has soaked up all the flavour from the pan, peas and carrots mixed through, and one pan to wash. The seasoning is mild, so it suits toddlers and grown-ups alike.

Serves: 6 · Prep: 15 minutes · Cook: 55 minutes (most of it hands-off in the oven) · Kid-friendly: very. Soft rice, mild chicken that pulls easily off the bone, and vegetables kids can see and pick out if they must.

What you need

You need one oven-safe pan with a lid, about 12 inches (30 cm) across, or a wide Dutch oven.

• 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2 1/2 lb / 1.1 kg)
• 1 1/2 tsp (9 g) salt, divided
• 1 tsp (2 g) sweet paprika
• 1/2 tsp (1.5 g) garlic powder
• 1 tbsp (15 ml) olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely diced (about 3/4 cup / 110 g)
• 2 carrots, diced small (about 1 cup / 130 g)
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 1/2 cups (300 g) long-grain white rice
• 2 3/4 cups (650 ml) low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup (140 g) frozen peas
• To serve (optional): lemon wedges and chopped parsley

Bone-in thighs stay juicy through the long oven time and flavour the rice as they cook. Boneless thighs work too; see the swaps below.

How to make it

1. Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C), with a rack in the middle.
2. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Mix 1 tsp of the salt with the paprika and garlic powder and rub it all over the thighs.
3. Heat the oil in the pan over medium-high heat. Lay the thighs in skin side down and leave them alone for 6–8 minutes, until the skin is deep golden and lets go of the pan. Turn them and cook for 2 minutes more, then move them to a plate. They are still raw inside; the oven finishes them.
4. Pour off all but about 2 tbsp of the fat. Add the onion and carrots and cook for 4 minutes, stirring, until the onion softens. Add the garlic for 30 seconds.
5. Add the rice and stir for 2 minutes, until every grain is coated and the edges turn see-through.
6. Pour in the broth and the remaining 1/2 tsp salt. Scrape the bottom of the pan to lift the browned bits, then bring it to a simmer.
7. Set the thighs on top of the rice, skin side up, and pour in any juices from the plate. Push them in only far enough to sit steady. The skin should stay above the broth.
8. Put the lid on and bake for 30 minutes.
9. Take off the lid, scatter the peas over the rice around the chicken, and bake uncovered for 10 more minutes, until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed.
10. Check the thickest thigh with a thermometer, not touching the bone. It must read at least 165°F (74°C), the USDA safe temperature for chicken. If it is not there yet, give it 5 more minutes and check again. Thighs stay juicy well past 165°F, so a few extra minutes will not hurt them.
11. Put the lid back on and let it rest for 10 minutes off the heat. The rice finishes steaming and settles, and the handles cool a little.

Wash your hands with soap after handling raw chicken, and wash the plate it sat on before using it again. CDC advice is not to rinse raw chicken in the sink, because splashing spreads germs.

Why the chicken sits on top

Anything sitting in the broth steams, which is why the thighs go in skin side up and stay above the liquid. The rice underneath cooks in the broth and the chicken juices that drip down into it. If your pan is so small that the thighs overlap or sink, use a bigger pan or bake two thighs on a separate small tray. Crowding works against browning here the same way it does with sheet-pan chicken fajitas.

Keep the lid on for the first 30 minutes. Lifting it early lets the steam out and leaves crunchy rice on top.

Making it work for younger kids

• Under 4s: pull the chicken off the bone, check carefully for small bones and gristle, take off the skin, and chop the meat into small pieces about 1/2 inch (1 cm) across. The AAP lists chunks of meat as a choking risk for children under 4. Lightly squash the peas with a fork for younger toddlers.
• Everyone small: the middle of the rice stays hot much longer than the top, so spread a portion out on the plate to cool for a few minutes.
• Spice: the paprika here is sweet, not hot. Grown-ups can add black pepper, chili flakes or a squeeze of lemon on their own plates.

Jobs for kids

• Ages 4–7: measure the rice and the frozen peas, mix the salt and spices in a small bowl, and tear the parsley.
• Ages 8–12: dice the carrots and onion with a small knife and an adult watching, rub the spice mix onto the chicken (then wash their hands well), and stir the onions on the stove with an adult beside them.
• Teens: brown the chicken and make the whole dish, including the thermometer check, with an adult nearby the first time.

An adult handles the hot oil, the oven and the heavy hot pan. The pan handles stay hot long after it comes out of the oven, so leave an oven mitt over the handle as a reminder.

Allergen swaps

• Gluten: rice is naturally gluten-free. Check the broth label, as some contain wheat.
• Soy: some broths contain soy; read the label or use a soy-free one.
• Dairy, eggs, nuts, sesame and shellfish: none in the recipe as written. Leftovers suit nut-free school lunches.
• Boneless thighs: brown them for 4–5 minutes on the first side, then bake covered for 20 minutes and uncovered for 10, and check for 165°F (74°C).
• Brown rice: it needs more liquid and a much longer cooking time, so it is not a straight swap in this recipe.

Storing and reheating

Get leftovers into the fridge within 2 hours, in shallow containers so the rice cools quickly. USDA guidance gives cooked leftovers 3–4 days in the fridge. Take the chicken off the bone before storing; it is easier to reheat and to pack.

To freeze, portion the chicken and rice into freezer containers. Both freeze well, though the rice turns a little softer. USDA's cold storage chart gives cooked chicken about 4 months in the freezer for best quality. Thaw it in the fridge overnight.

Reheat with a splash of water or broth, covered, in the microwave or a pan over medium-low heat, until steaming hot and 165°F (74°C) in the middle.

If you like dinners that do double duty, the mild family chili and the make-ahead turkey meatballs both make a second meal for the freezer. Cold leftover chicken and rice, packed with an ice pack, also fits the formula in these nut-free lunchbox combinations.