One Pan Mexican Chicken and Rice
One Pan Mexican Chicken and Rice is easy skillet dinner made with pantry staples. Rice and chicken breasts are simmered in salsa broth, then finished with gooey cheese and served with avocado.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 419kcal
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless chicken breasts or thighs cut into 1" pieces
- 2 cups brown or white rice rinsed & drained
- 1 large onion diced
- 3 large garlic cloves minced
- 3 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Ground black pepper to taste
- 14 oz can diced tomatoes low sodium
- 1 cup salsa I used medium
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup Tex Mex cheese cheddar or marble cheese, shredded
- Cilantro green onion, avocado, tomato, yogurt for toppings
Instructions
- Preheat large skillet on medium heat and swirl 1 tablespoon of oil to coat. Add onion and garlic; saute for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Push veggies to the side and swirl remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Add rice, cumin, salt, pepper and saute for 3 more minutes, stirring often (rice part only).
- Add chicken, diced tomatoes, salsa, water and stir. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low and cook with brown rice for 20 minutes and with white rice for 10 minutes.
- Stir, cover and cook for another 20 minutes - brown rice and 5 minutes - white rice.
- Turn off heat, add cheese and cover until melted.
- Serve hot with desired toppings like cilantro, green onion, avocado, tomato, yogurt etc.
Notes
- Store: Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Freeze: For up to 3 months.
- Don't cut the recipe. It might seem like 2 pounds of chicken and 2 cups of rice is a lot but it's not. This meal was gone between 2 adults and 2 boys in one night. You can always refrigerate and freeze leftovers.
- Brown rice: I used basmati brown rice as it stays more separated than long grain rice.
- Low sodium: If using not low sodium canned tomatoes, add less salt to taste at the end.
- Tomato sauce is OK in place of diced tomatoes. Enchilada sauce would work in place of salsa.
- More flavorful: Low sodium chicken broth or chicken stock is OK instead of water. Add a can of diced green chilies for even more Tex Mex taste.
- Lid. Your lid should fit tightly. If it's not then rice might need longer cook time.
Nutrition
Serving: 1.5cups | Calories: 419kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 56mg | Sodium: 516mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g