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The latest in our one-dish wonder line-up, this easy one pan chicken and rice might just be my favorite skillet meal yet! Juicy chunks of chicken and tender rice tied together with a cheesy, creamy parmesan sauce and seasoned with fresh garlic and bright lemon juice. Made all together in a single skillet, this simple dinner’s as easy to clean up as it is to make!
Before You Get Started
- Bring your heavy cream and shredded parm to room temperature! If they’re cold at all, they can curdle when you add them to the hot rice, and that’ll ruin the entire dish.
- Use fresh parmesan that you shred yourself, rather than using the prepackaged stuff that contains anti-clumping agents. Those agents can keep the cheese from melting like it should. The prepackaged stuff also just isn’t as tasty as the fresh version!
How to Make This Recipe
See recipe card below for full list of measurements, ingredients, and instructions.
Sear the Chicken.
Season bite-sized pieces of boneless, skinless chicken breasts generously with salt and black pepper on all sides, then add them to a large pan of hot, neutral-flavored oil. Sear the chicken pieces, flipping and stirring them as needed until they’re browned on all sides, then transfer them to a large bowl and set them aside. Do not wipe out the skillet!
tOAST THE rICE.
Melt unsalted butter in the same skillet you just used to sear the chicken (it keeps all those flavors in the recipe!). Once the butter’s melted, toss in all the chopped onion and the minced garlic. Give everything a good stir, then sauté it all for about 5 minutes or until the onions are translucent. At that point, add in the uncooked long-grain rice and toast it for a few minutes, stirring everything pretty often so nothing burns.
Bring It All Together.
Pour in 3 cups of chicken broth and stir to incorporate the liquid fully, making sure you scrape up anything that might have stuck to the bottom of the pan. Leave the mixture alone until the liquid starts to simmer, then reduce the heat under the skillet to low and stir in the seared chicken. Once that’s incorporated, pop a lid on the skillet and simmer everything for about 20 minutes or until the rice is nice and tender.
Cheryl’s Tip: For more-tender chicken, wait until the last 10 minutes of simmering to add the chicken back to the skillet. It’s an extra step to keep up with so I didn’t write the instructions that way, but you might find the results worth the extra timer!
Make it Creamy.
When the rice is fully cooked, take the pan off the heat and let the rice & chicken mixture cool a bit. From there, add in room-temperature heavy cream, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and stir until it’s all incorporated. After that, stir in your shredded fresh parmesan and put the pan back on the heat. Keep stirring until the parmesan is completely melted, then divide the one pan chicken and rice into bowls and serve warm!
What I Love About This Recipe
- One pan chicken and rice is one of my favorite recipes because it’s JUST SO GOOD, and it’s just so easy. I love one-pot and one-pan recipes because they’re so simple and so cozy, and this one is no exception. Consider it a stovetop version of my reader-favorite Dreamy Instant Pot Chicken and Rice.
- There’s a ton of delicious flavor! The pieces of chicken are seared and the grains of rice are toasted, giving both of them a deep flavor you can’t get from seasonings alone. Then we take those amazing natural flavors and add to them – fresh garlic, fresh onion, lemon juice, plenty of salt and black pepper, savory chicken broth. All of that’s before you even factor in the rich cream and nutty parmesan. See what I mean? Sooo much flavor!
Recipe Variations
- Variety is the Spice: Feel free to get as varied as you like! Instead of lemon juice for flavor, add in lime juice and cilantro. You could also flavor the rice with taco seasoning or Cajun seasoning!
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions or variations listed are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
One Pan Chicken and Rice
Equipment
- Cutting board
- Sharp chef's knife
- large, heavy-bottom skillet with lid
- Silicone spatula or large wooden spoon
- Large bowl
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts approximately 2–3 medium chicken breasts
- salt to taste
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon neutral-flavored oil avocado oil, olive oil, refined coconut oil, etc.
For the Rice
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into pieces
- 1 cup chopped white onion approximately 1 medium onion
- 1 ½ tablespoons minced fresh garlic approximately 3 large cloves
- 1 ½ cups long-grain white rice rinsed well
- 3 cups chicken broth up to 4 cups if needed
For the Cream Sauce
- 1 cup heavy cream at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice juice from 1 small lemon, plus more as desired
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt more or less to taste
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 1 cup shredded fresh parmesan at room temperature
Serving Suggestions (All Optional)
- chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Place 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts on cutting board. Trim chicken as needed, then cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces.
- Season chicken on all sides with generous amounts of salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
- Place large skillet on stovetop over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon neutral-flavored oil to pan. Heat pan until oil is hot and shimmery.
- When oil is hot, add seasoned chicken pieces to skillet. Sear chicken pieces, flipping chicken over as needed, until lightly browned on all sides. Transfer seared chicken to large bowl and set aside.
- Return skillet to heat. Add 4 tablespoons unsalted butter to skillet and let butter melt completely.
- Once butter has melted, add 1 cup chopped white onion and 1 ½ tablespoons minced fresh garlic to pan. Stir to incorporate. Sauté ingredients, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes or until onions are translucent.
- When onions are translucent, add 1 ½ cups long-grain white rice to skillet. Stir to incorporate, then toast rice 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Once rice is toasted, add 3 cups chicken broth and stir to incorporate. Allow liquid to begin to simmer.
- Return chicken to skillet now if desired (see Notes). Stir to incorporate, then place lid on skillet and reduce heat under pan to low. Simmer chicken and rice 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Note: Check rice periodically. If all liquid is absorbed before rice is tender, stir in 1 additional cup chicken broth.
- Once rice is tender, remove skillet from heat and let mixture cool slightly.
- Add 1 cup heavy cream, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 ½ teaspoons salt, and freshly cracked black pepper. Stir until incorporated.
- Add 1 cup shredded fresh parmesan to pan. Stir until cheese is incorporated, then return skillet to heat. Continue stirring mixture until parmesan is melted and sauce is warmed through.
- Portion chicken and rice mixture into serving bowls. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley if desired and serve warm.
- For more tender chicken, let the rice simmer in chicken broth for 10 minutes, then add the chicken back to the skillet. Stir to incorporate the chicken into the rice mixture, then let everything simmer 10-15 minutes more until the rice is tender and the chicken is cooked through. The results are better this way, but it’s an additional step to keep up with, so the choice is yours!
Approximate Information for One Serving
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Frequently Asked Questions
Veggies! Any veggies you like – air fryer broccoli, green beans, sautéed mushrooms, even peas and carrots. Since this recipe’s got your protein and starch covered, veggies are the perfect “final piece” of the puzzle.
Sure! Frozen broccoli, peas, or green beans should be fine to throw in when you add the chicken broth. You could also sauté sliced mushrooms or chopped carrots along with the chopped onion.
Absolutely – boneless, skinless chicken thighs would work great here! Just make sure they cook through completely since thigh meat needs a little more time than breast meat.
Don’t Miss These Other One-Pan Recipes
- Garlic Butter Steak Bites
- Marry Me Chicken (Chicken in a Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce)
- One Pan Chicken and Veggies
- Teriyaki Shrimp
- Hot Honey Chicken Skillet
- Perfect Pan Seared Chicken Thighs
- Sheet-Pan Gochujang Chicken and Potatoes
- Chicken Ranchero
- Sauteed Shrimp in Garlic Butter Sauce
- Sheet Pan Steak and Fries (with Microwave Bearnaise Sauce)
- Keto Smothered Pork Chops
- Easy Sheet Pan Chicken Sausage
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