One Pot Mexican Chicken and Rice

Name: One Pot Mexican Chicken and Rice
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 5 serving
Ingredients: 2 tsp garlic powder; 2 tsp paprika; 2 tsp cumin powder; 1 3/4 tsp salt; 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper; black pepper; 5 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin on; 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 tbsp lime juice; 1 small onion; 1 garlic clove; 1 red capsicum; 1 cup long grain rice; 1 cup chicken stock/broth; 3/4 cup tomato passata; 1 cup frozen corn kernels; 1 can (400g/16oz) black beans; 1 lime; coriander/cilantro; Sliced jalapeño peppers

User Reviews

4.9

402 reviews

Excellent

Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
55 mins
Servings
5
Calories
713 kcal
Course
Side Dish, Main Course, Dinner
Cuisine
Mexican

One Pot Mexican Chicken and Rice

Paige Becker

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Recipe video above. Chicken seared with Fajita flavours then baked with seasoned Mexican red rice. This is a flavour explosion in one pot! People love that it's finished in the oven. No need to worry about a scorched base!Makes more rice than you'll need because it is difficult to make less using this method of cooking. Nobody complains, cause it's so good!

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Ingredients

Servings

Mexican Spice Mix

2 tsp garlic powder (or 2 garlic cloves, minced)
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp cumin powder
1 3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (Note 1), optional
black pepper

Chicken

5 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin on (Notes 2 and 3)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lime juice

Rice

1 small onion , peeled and diced (or 1/2 large)
1 garlic clove , minced
1 red capsicum (bell pepper), diced or sliced
1 cup long grain rice , uncooked (Note 4)
1 cup chicken stock/broth , low sodium (or vegetable stock)
3/4 cup tomato passata (US: tomato puree) (Note 5)
1 cup frozen corn kernels (or canned - drained)
1 can (400g/16oz) black beans , drained and rinsed (sub red kidney beans)

Garnish

1 lime , plus extra to serve
coriander/cilantro
Sliced jalapeño peppers (optional)

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Instructions

Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160° fan).
Mexican spice mix - Mix the ingredients in a small bowl.
Rub Chicken - Place 1 1/2 tablespoons of the Mexican Spice Mix in a large bowl (reserve rest for rice) with 1 tablespoon olive oil and lime juice. Mix to form a paste then add the chicken and toss to coat the chicken.
Marinate (optional) - Marinate chicken for 1 hour, or even overnight, if you have the time. Otherwise, it's fine to proceed with the recipe!
Sear chicken - Using a large deep skillet preferably with a lid (Note 6), heat the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat. Sear the skin side of the chicken for 4 minutes until light golden, then sear the flesh side for 1 1/2 minutes (will still be raw inside). Remove onto a plate.
Sauté aromatics - If you've got a lot of burnt spices on the base, scrape off and discard some of it. Then in the same skillet, still over medium high heat, add the onion, garlic and capsicum (bell peppers). Sauté for 3 minutes until the onion softens.
Rice & liquid - Add the rice and stir. Add chicken stock, tomato passata, corn, beans and remaining Mexican Spice Mix. Stir to combine.
Top with chicken - Place chicken on top of the rice, skin side up. It will be partially submerged but most of the skin should be above the liquid.
Bake covered 25 min - Bring to simmer, then cover skillet with a lid or foil and place in the oven for 25 minutes.
Bake uncovered 15 min - Remove the lid/foil and bake for a further 15 minutes until only small puddles of liquid remain on the surface of the rice.
Rest 10 minutes - Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes (uncovered). Any remaining liquid will evaporate in this step.
Serve - Squeeze the juice of 1 lime over the chicken and rice. Remove chicken or push to the side then fluff the rice. Serve, garnished with coriander/cilantro leaves, extra lime wedges and sliced jalapeños, if desired. Sour cream also goes well with this, or a dollop of guacamole or avocado sauce!

Notes

Spiciness - This recipe isn't very spicy, but feel free to reduce or omit the cayenne pepper as desired.
Bone-in skin-on chicken works best because the meat is juicier and I love the crispy skin. This also works really well with drumsticks.
Works pretty well with boneless chicken thighs (see below for directions). Breast will also work using the same directions as for boneless thighs, but the flesh is not quite as juicy.
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs - Sear chicken per recipe so it's mostly cooked through,. Then just put it on top of the rice at the point you remove the lid. The last 15 minutes in the oven is all that's needed to finish cooking it through.
Rice - You can substitute the long grain rice with basmati or medium grain rice. Short grain rice, risotto rice and paella rice are not suited to this recipe (the rice will end up mushy).
Tomato passata - Pureed, strained pure tomatoes, sometimes labelled “tomato puree” in the US (here’s a photo of Mutti tomato passata sold at Walmart). Readily available in Australian supermarkets nowadays, alongside pasta sauces. More on tomato passata here. Substitute with canned crushed tomato (but rice colour will not be as red).
Cooking vessel - I use my 30cm/12" shallow casserole pan (2.5 L / 2.5 qts) which has a lid and is the ideal shape for stove-to-oven recipes like this. An ovenproof skillet / fry pan will also work, or a large oven-proof pot. No lid? Just use foil!
Baking dish (ceramic, glass, metal) - Start it in a skillet then transfer it to a baking dish. To do this, after you add the stock and tomato passata, bring it to a simmer and scrape the base clean so any brown bits gets mixed into the stock. Then pour all the liquid into a baking pan, add corn and black beans. Top with chicken, cover with foil then proceed with recipe.
Leftover rice will keep for 2 days, and cooked chicken will keep for 3 - 4 days.
Nutrition per serving.

Nutrition Information

Show Details

Serving 442g Calories 713cal (36%) Carbohydrates 61.2g (20%) Protein 40.8g (82%) Fat 33.9g (52%) Saturated Fat 1.1g (6%) Cholesterol 144mg (48%) Sodium 1612mg (67%) Potassium 793mg (23%) Fiber 7.4g (30%) Sugar 6.1g (12%) Vitamin A 1200IU (24%) Vitamin C 48.7mg (54%) Calcium 70mg (7%) Iron 5mg (28%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 5Serving

Amount Per Serving

Calories 713 kcal

% Daily Value*

Serving	442g
Calories	713cal	36%
Carbohydrates	61.2g	20%
Protein	40.8g	82%
Fat	33.9g	52%
Saturated Fat	1.1g	6%
Cholesterol	144mg	48%
Sodium	1612mg	67%
Potassium	793mg	17%
Fiber	7.4g	30%
Sugar	6.1g	12%
Vitamin A	1200IU	24%
Vitamin C	48.7mg	54%
Calcium	70mg	7%
Iron	5mg	28%