Simple, comforting, one-pot chicken and rice dinner with a tasty Middle Eastern twist. Ready in 30 minutes! Be Sure to watch the video for how to make this recipe below.
If you like this one, check out: Greek chicken and orzo; Easy Lemon Chicken; Mediterranean Kidney Bean Salad; Spanish Chickpea Stew; and Mediterranean Braised Lamb Shanks.
Chicken and rice have long been the comfort food of choice at my house. Family favorites include, this Spanish chicken and rice with chorizo, and these Lebanese chicken fatteh bowls. It’s something my kids enjoy a ton, so why stop there!
One-Pot Chicken and Rice with Middle Eastern Twist
Today’s Middle Eastern chicken and rice recipe is a riff of something my mother in law makes. She’s a master of the Levant kitchen, and anything she makes is always pure deliciousness. Last time we were visiting in Michigan, she made a simple rice with peas and carrots, plus a spiced roast chicken on the side. I decided to combine them both into this easy one-pot dinner.
First, boneless chicken pieces take on a quick Middle Eastern spice blend (the stars here are definitely allspice and green cardamom.) Then, we give them a quick browning in excellent EVOO before adding basmati rice, chickpeas, and all the rest in. Everything cooks together in one pot for about 20 minutes or so.
What to serve with this Middle Eastern Chicken and Rice?
With pomegranates so plentiful these days, I decided to serve my chicken and rice in bowls with a generous side of this zingy pomegranate tomato salad and a dollop of Greek Tzatziki sauce. Of course, if you have the time, make a big bowl of tabouli salad or fattoush salad instead. And a starter of creamy roasted garlic hummus wouldn’t hurt.
Watch the video for How to Make this Middle Eastern Chicken and Rice Recipe:
Middle Eastern Chicken and Rice
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Simple, comforting, one-pot chicken and rice dinner with a tasty Middle Eastern twist. Flavor heaven. Gluten free dinner in minutes!
Ingredients
Spice Mixture
- 2 tsp ground allspice, more for later
- 1 tsp black pepper
- ¾ tsp ground green cardamom, more for later
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric, more for later
For Chicken
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs (I use ButcherBox organic, free-range chicken)
- Salt
- Private Reserve Greek extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup chopped yellow onions (about ½ large onion)
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas (or from canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed)
- 2 cups Basmati rice, rinsed
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1 dry bay leaf
- 2 cups boiling low-fat and low-sodium chicken broth
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix the spices to make the spice mixture. Set aside for now.
- Pat chicken thighs dry and cut them into large pieces (I simply cut each in half). Season well with salt, then season with the spice mixture. Work the chicken with clean hands to make sure all the pieces are well-coated with the spice mixture. Set at room temperature for 20 minutes or so (if you have the time).
- In a large and deep cooking skillet with a lid (like this one), heat 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil on medium-high until shimmering but not smoking. Brown chicken briefly on both sides (you are not trying to fully cook the chicken at this point). Remove from skillet and set aside for now.
- To the same skillet, now add onions, carrots, and frozen peas. Cook for 4 minutes or so, tossing regularly, until tender. Add chickpeas and rice. Season with salt, ½ tsp allspice and ¼ tsp ground cardamom. Stir to combine.
- Add chicken back to the skillet (nestle the pieces in between the rice). Add cinnamon sticks, bay leaf, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil.
- Turn heat to low. Cover and cook for 20 minutes or until fully cooked.
- Remove from heat, garnish with parsley and serve with a side of this pomegranate tomato salad; fattoush salad; or this simple 3 ingredient Mediterranean salad. Add a dollop of Greek tzatziki sauce, if you like!
Notes
- Important tip: Wash the rice three times with warm water. Place rice in a bowl, tip a good amount of warm water in, swirl a little with your fingers. Dump the water out and repeat. It sounds like a bit much, but it ensures the rice never sticks. A trick I learned from Nigel Slater.
- Recommended for this Recipe: ButcherBox organic, free-range chicken (see more info in the post above!)
- Recommended for this Recipe: From our all-natural and organic spice collections, ground allspice; ground green cardamom; ground turmeric! And our Private Reserve Greek extra virgin olive oil (premium EVOO from organically grown and processed Koroneiki olives)
- SAVE! Try our Ultimate Mediterranean Spice Bundle; or Create your own 6-pack or 3-pack from our all-natural and organic spice collections!
- Category: Entree
- Cuisine: Middle Easter
Keywords: chicken and rice, middle eastern chicken recipe
This was delicious! I did deviate a little from the recipe, basically using 3 cups of broth instead of 2, and adding some chopped garlic (sauteed with the onions, carrots and peas). Oh, I also added chopped cilantro at the end (after everything was cooked), which brightened up the dish nicely. Definitely a keeper!
★★★★★
Awesome! Thanks for sharing, Caroline!
If I don’t have green cardamom on hand can I use the regular cardamom from my spice drawer?
Hi Amy, the majority of cardamom sold in stores is actually green cardamom.
In the country where I'm living, boneless chicken thighs are hard to find. Can I substitute with boneless chicken breast?
That will work, Michelle! You may adjust the cooking time a bit.
Hi, I'm currently waiting for this to be done and it already smells amazing. I have a question though because I'm inexperienced with rice dishes. The liquid doesn't cover the rice, does the rice still cook through?
★★★★★
Hi, Safiyah! Yes, for me it has always cooked perfectly. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Loved the receipe.. made it the first time During lockdown and everyone loved it.. will be making it again tomorrow..
★★★★★
Thanks great to hear, Carrie! Thank you!
I made this last night and it was a little too sweet for me. When it comes to rice dishes I prefer a more savory flavor. Next time I make this I’ll omit the cinnamon sticks.
Thanks for sharing, Emilie!
My second time making this. Wonderful flavor! This time made in instant Pot. One question, where is the extra turmeric used?
★★★★★
Lori, so glad to hear it. The turmeric is used in the chicken and the rice.
She means becuase the recipe list says 1/4tsp turmeric (more for later) and then you don’t call for more later in the recipe. I just made this recipe And was confused by that also. Used the 1/4 in the spice rub but not sure where to add more
★★★★
Thanks for sharing! We'll check this out.
I just added 1/4 t turmeric when I added the additional cardamom and allspice. It was really good!
Hello, thank you for sharing such a great recipe! I’m curious how you got your rice so yellow in your photos as my dish came out more brown? Please let me know. Thank you!
Hmmmm... I'm not sure what to tell you, Vio. I just follow the recipe and it comes out yellow every time. I don't do anything special. I'm glad you still loved the recipe, despite the color difference!
Hi Suzy,
I've literally just finished cooking this dish and I can tell you it tastes amazing!
Being on lockdown at the moment in the UK, I decided to make the most of all my saved recipes and this was one of them. I realised last minute I didn't have any rice, so I used some orzo I had in instead. I also didn't have any ground cardamom, so I googled what I could use as an alternative and came up with equal quantities of ground cinnamon and nutmeg.
I'm not entirely sure what it should taste like but I'm really impressed with the result. It's packed full of flavour and aroma, and I'll most definitely be making this again and again 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing all your wonderful recipes
★★★★★
My pleasure, Sharon! Thanks for sharing your substitutions. Sometimes, you just have to use what you have on hand! This sounded great!