Dinner doesn’t get any easier and better than this oven baked chicken and rice dinner! Juicy, tender, and flavorful chicken baked with fluffy butter rice. This is a family-friendly one-pot complete dinner that is loved all over the globe. and the best part? It’s entirely made in the oven (no stovetop!), and minimal prep and washing up is required. Perfect for lazy days!
Chicken and Rice Recipe
When it comes to dinner, oven-baked chicken is always a winner. I love easy baked chicken recipes like this sheet pan chicken thighs dinner with roasted veggies. It’s so quick, a breeze to make, and everyone in my family loves it.
And lately, I’ve been making this oven-baked chicken and rice quite a lot, it’s a complete meal and I LOVE how soft and flavorful the rice turns out. So this recipe has been added to our monthly rotation as it quickly became a favorite. So good!
I love recipes where the chicken is so tender and juicy because there is nothing worse than dry chicken. And this recipe ticks all of the boxes in terms of juicy, tender, and properly seasoned chicken with big flavors. And when the chicken is paired with seasoned rice, it’s so satisfying, and definitely filling!
What You’ll Need
- I use bone-in chicken thighs to make this recipe as it takes the same time as the rice to be ready. I remove the skin as I found that leaving the skin on makes the rice too greasy as the fat drips off the skin into the rice.
- Removing the skin off the chicken thighs is quite easy, and literally takes just a few seconds, plus it ensures that your rice is perfectly cooked so it’s well worth the effort.
- I like to add a lot of seasonings to the chicken, as it results in flavorful chicken AND rice. Feel free to use your favorite seasonings though. Italian seasoning is perfect in this recipe.
- You can use any long-grain white rice in this recipe (more on this below).
- The vegetable stock or chicken stock and water MUST be hot for this recipe to work. I always make my own homemade vegetable stock as it’s much healthier, cheaper, and it actually tastes better than store-bought stock.
- If you’d like to make this recipe with boneless, skinless chicken thighs, I suggest checking the chicken for doneness at the 40 minute mark. Remove the chicken once it’s fully cooked and continue to cook the rice until it’s done.
How to Make Chicken and Rice
- Rub the chicken seasonings all over the chicken thighs, marinate for 15-30 minutes if the time allows.
- To a baking dish, add onion, garlic, olive oil, melted butter, chicken or vegetable stock, hot water, rice, salt, and pepper. And give everything a quick mix.
- Add the chicken to the baking dish.
- Cover with foil and bake covered for 30 minutes.
- Uncover, spray the chicken with oil to help it crisp up and bake for 30 more minutes. Broil for a few minutes to give the chicken golden and crisp edges and crust.
- Allow the chicken and rice to rest for 10 minutes, garnish with fresh herbs, and serve!
What Type of Rice to Use
Long-grain white rice works best in this recipe. I usually either use either basmati or jasmine rice as they seem to work best. You can use brown rice, but the baking time will be different and you will need to add more liquid.
Avoid risotto, paella rice, or quick rice as these will turn into mush.
What to Serve with Chicken and Rice
I recommend serving this dish with these sides:
- Yogurt – plain natural yogurt or Greek yogurt is amazing with chicken and rice!
- Salad – simple leafy green salad with a basic vinaigrette is perfect for this dish.
- Roasted vegetables – Broccoli, asparagus, mushrooms, or green beans work best here.
Store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Recommended Tools for This Recipe
- Baking dish (I use my cast iron) 8×12 inches (20x30cm).
- Glass mixing bowl.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Oven Baked Chicken and Rice
Recipe Video
Equipment
- 8×12 inches baking dish (20x30cm)
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon garlic granules
- 6 (2 pounds, 900g) chicken thighs skinless, bone-in – See notes 1 & 2 below
For the rice
- 1 onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- 1 and ½ cups (375 ml) vegetable or chicken stock hot, Note 3
- 1 and ¼ cups (315 ml) water hot
- 1 and ½ cups (280g) long-grain rice uncooked, Note 4
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C.
- To a large mixing bowl, whisk the oil and seasonings, then add the chicken thighs and mix so that the chicken thighs are well coated. Marinate for 15-30 minutes if the time allows.
- To a baking dish, add onion, garlic, olive oil, butter, hot vegetable stock, hot water, rice, salt, and pepper. And give everything a quick mix.
- Place the chicken over the rice.
- Cover with foil and bake covered for 30 minutes.
- Uncover, spray the chicken with oil and bake for 30 more minutes. Broil for a few minutes to give the chicken golden and crisp edges and crust.
- Remove from the oven, and allow the chicken and rice to rest for 10 minutes. Fluff the rice (remove the chicken if needed then put it back in), garnish with fresh herbs and serve.
Notes:
- I use bone-in chicken thighs to make this recipe as it takes the same time as the rice to be ready. I remove the skin as I found that leaving the skin on makes the rice too greasy as the fat drips off the skin into the rice.
- Removing the skin off the chicken thighs is quite easy, and literally takes just a few seconds, plus it ensures that your rice is perfectly cooked so it’s well worth the effort.
- The vegetable stock or chicken stock and water MUST be hot for this recipe to work.
- Long-grain white rice works best in this recipe. I usually either use basmati or jasmine as they seem to work best. You can use brown rice, but the baking time will be different and you will need to add more liquid. Avoid risotto, paella rice, or quick rice as these will turn into mush.
- I like to add a lot of seasonings to the chicken, as it results in flavorful chicken AND rice. Feel free to use your favorite seasonings though.
- 8×12 inches baking dish (20x30cm) is what I use, but a slightly bigger dish works too.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Regina Ezzougay says
I loved this chicken and rice casserole! Great flavor and easy to make!!
Diana says
I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed it! It’s always wonderful when a recipe is not only tasty but also easy to put together. Thank you for the great feedback!
Heidi says
So when I take it out at 30 minutes to uncover and spray chicken with oil, do I cover it again with foil before placing back in oven? I’m making it right now and recovered it cause I figured rice would not properly cook if I didn’t .
Diana says
For this recipe, after you uncover and spray the chicken with oil at the 30-minute mark, you should leave it uncovered when you put it back in the oven. This allows the chicken to get a nice golden crust. Don’t worry, the rice will continue to cook properly even without the foil cover. Hope it turned out great!
Joyce Franz says
I don’t care for dark meat of chicken. I will substitute boneless, skinless chicken breast for the thighs. Do you see any necessity to change any of the ingredients when switching to white meat? Thank you!
Diana says
Hi Joyce, When using chicken breast, you may want to reduce the cooking time a bit as it tends to cook faster than dark meat and can dry out if cooked for too long. No other changes to the ingredients should be necessary.
Haley says
This is a family favorite- my 3 year old and (picky eater) 10 year old both love this one, too!
Diana says
That’s wonderful to hear! Thanks for sharing your success with this dish!
Wendy Bigham says
We really loved this recipe. It was easy and delicious. I will definitely add it to our dinner rotation.
Diana says
Hi Wendy, I’m glad to hear that this dish was a hit and that you found it easy to make. It’s great to know it’s earned a spot in your regular dinner rotation. Thank you for sharing your positive feedback!