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Buttery, garlicky mushrooms and rice team up with perfectly seasoned, juicy chicken in this Easy Oven Baked Chicken and Rice recipe. This chicken is so easy to put together, you’ll wonder why you haven’t tried it before.
Normally, one pan chicken and rice recipes start on the stove top first to sear chicken and render out the fat to get it ultra crispy, just like my much-loved Spanish Chicken And Rice or my One Pan Tomato Basil Chicken & Rice. Other recipes fry onion and garlic first before adding in rice. With this oven baked chicken and rice recipe, there is no need for any of that!
How? You’re going to use skinless chicken thighs (with the bone-in if you can find them for extra juicy chicken pieces), coated in an incredible flavoured rub. You can use any additional seasonings you like: dried basil or oregano, rosemary, onion powder or whatever you have at hand!
Why this Recipe Works
Mouthwatering baked chicken thighs, coated in a beautiful rub, baked on top of fluffy soft rice, all made in the oven. Dinner doesn’t get any better than this one dish wonder! I mean, who doesn’t love perfectly baked chicken and steamy, fluffy rice? Two ingredients that were meant to be together; kind of like Garlic Naan and Butter Chicken or Chocolate and Strawberries.
Plus, you’ll also have the option to add in plump garlic butter mushrooms that rival even my famous Garlic Mushrooms recipe!
What Goes into this Recipe
- Chicken: I love using bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs here. You can choose boneless thighs or any other cut of chicken you have at hand.
- Seasonings: A mix of garlic powder, onion powder, sweet paprika, dried oregano, dried thyme, light brown sugar, salt and pepper.
- Aromatics: Fresh onion and garlic, to build that savory base. I also used some chopped green onions to garnish.
- Mushrooms: For an extra nutritional boost. I used white button mushrooms.
- Chicken broth: For extra flavor. Choose low sodium chicken broth or just use water.
- Rice: I used long grain white rice here. Basmati rice and Jasmine rice are two good options that work perfectly for this recipe.
- Olive oil + butter: For that rich flavor.
- Herbs: To garnish. I used chives and parsley.
Note: please see recipe card at the bottom for list of full ingredients and measurements
How To Make
To make the easy oven baked chicken and rice, start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees.
- Marinate chicken: Combine the seasonings for the chicken along with some olive oil in a mixing bowl, and rub the marinade all over the chicken. Set this aside.
- Prep rice: Grease a 25 x 35 cm baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Add garlic, onion, oil, butter, seasonings and boiling hot broth. Add rice and give it a quick stir.
- Bake time: Arrange the seasoned chicken thighs over the rice, cover the dish with foil and bake for about 30 minutes. Uncover it, spray the chicken with oil and bake for another 25-30 minutes until the chicken gets a nice golden brown exterior. Broil during the last 2-3 minutes if you want to get that extra crispiness.
- Let it rest: Remove from the oven, place the chicken thighs on a plate. Mix the rice in the baking dish and arrange the chicken back again on the top. Cover and allow this to rest for about 10 minutes.
- Prep mushrooms: Meanwhile, heat butter in a pan over medium heat and saute the chopped garlic until soft and aromatic. Next, add the mushrooms and season with salt, pepper and chives. Cook until softened.
- Garnish and serve: Portion out the rice on a plate, add a spoonful of sauteed mushrooms and mix. Top with chicken thighs, garnish and serve.
The beauty of this dish is that it is a complete dinner on its own. If you do want a little something extra on the side, try a Soft Dinner Roll or a light side salad like my Balsamic Chickpea Avocado and Feta Salad. Veggie sides like Buttery Sauteed Green Beans and Cheesy Garlic Roasted Asparagus can also be excellent choices.
Recipe FAQ’s
Yes, you can. Just remember that brown rice takes a significantly longer time to cook, so you’ll need to adjust the cooking time accordingly.
I wouldn’t recommend using short grain rice or quick rice here. It has a tendency to turn mushy, and you won’t get those fluffy rice grains you’re looking for.
During testing, I added the mushrooms at the beginning of the baking process and didn’t enjoy them at all. They really need that buttery, garlic, pan fried cooked flavour before getting mixed through the rice for the best results.
Watch It Made
Oven Baked Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
For Chicken
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons light brown sugar option for keto: use a brown sugar substitute
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano or dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon mild sweet paprika or hot
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cracked pepper to taste
- 6 skinless chicken thighs bone in or out
For Rice
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 4 tablespoons oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cracked pepper
- 1 1/2 cups hot chicken broth or stock
- 1 1/4 cups hot water
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 1/2 cups long grain white rice
For Mushrooms (OPTIONAL)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 14 ounces button mushrooms quartered
- 1/4 cup chives or green onions, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped to garnish
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
- In a shallow bowl, mix together the olive oil, sugar, oregano, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, salt and pepper. Add the chicken and coat each piece evenly with the seasoning. Set aside, allowing the flavours to absorb into the meat. If time allows, marinade overnight for a deeper flavour.
- Spray a large baking dish (10-inch x 15-inch OR 25 x 35 cm) with nonstick cooking oil spray. Add the onion, garlic, oil, salt, pepper, HOT boiled broth, hot water and butter into the dish. Mix well to melt the butter and combine. Stir in the rice.
- Arrange thighs in the dish over the rice, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover, spray chicken with oil and bake for an additional 25-30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked right through to the bone and rice is soft. Change oven setting to broil to brown the chicken and crisp rice (only needs 3-5 minutes).
- Remove chicken thighs, mix the rice through, then arrange the chicken back on top of the rice. Cover and allow it to rest for 10 minutes to set all of the flavours in the hot dish. The rice will finish off cooking while resting.
- While chicken is resting, prepare mushrooms (OPTIONAL):Heat butter in a pan over medium-high heat. Sauté garlic until fragrant (30 seconds) and add mushrooms; cook until softened. Stir in 2 tablespoons of chives and season with salt and pepper.
- Transfer chicken onto a plate; fluff rice with forks, then mix the mushrooms through the rice. Arrange chicken back onto the rice in the dish, garnish with remaining chives and chopped parsley. SERVE and enjoy!
Notes
- Bone-in chicken thighs bake in the same time as rice, which makes them the perfect cut of chicken for this recipe. They also guarantee juicy chicken pieces without drying out. There’s nothing worse than dry chicken.
- Skin-OFF thighs work so much better when compared to skin-ON thighs. During testing, we found leaving the skin-on resulted in gluggy, sticky, half raw rice. Too much chicken fat seeped into the rice while baking.
- You can use bone-in chicken breasts in this rice casserole. Cook time is the same as chicken breasts are thicker than chicken thighs.
- Chicken drumsticks can be used with skin on or off. Both work well.
- Arrange your chicken over the rice as the image above shows. We found chicken MUST be placed over the middle section of the rice to ensure the rice gets cooked. Leaving the middle uncovered resulted in a few raw grains.
- Long grain rice is the best rice to use and cooks evenly. Basmati rice or Jasmine rice can be substituted with the same liquid ratio and cooking time.
- Please do not use short grain rice, medium grain rice, risotto, paella or minute rice.
FOR BONELESS CHICKEN THIGHS AND BREASTS
- Add rice into the baking dish WITHOUT chicken. Cover with foil and bake rice in the oven for 30 minutes.
- Remove pan from oven, uncover and arrange chicken over the top. Return to the oven, uncovered, for a further 20-25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked though and the liquid has absorbed. Rice should be soft. Continue with the recipe.
PREBOIL LIQUID
We tried and tested this recipe many times since posting as a few readers are having trouble comprehending the directions. We found adding boiled (hot) chicken broth to the rice allows the cook time to be reduced while giving you perfectly cooked rice. Please pre-boil your broth while preparing the rest of your ingredients, ensuring hot boiling chicken broth is being added in Step 3. If you don’t have chicken broth, use 4 cups boiling water and mix in 4 teaspoons chicken bouillon or stock powder.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This is my go to hearty dish & my husband loves it. I coat the chicken as directed & brown it quickly first in the oil & butter. Remove & then add the onion & garlic before adding the rice to mix & then the broth. Then I add the chicken back in & chuck in the oven. Always comes out perfect!
I’ve made this dish many times with boneless thighs. I probably make it once a month and it’s a good recipe to bring to new moms. I love that it provides leftovers for our family. Thanks once again, Karina, for a great recipe.
Hi Marcy, Thank you so much for your wonderful comment! Much appreciated and happy cooking! Xx
Can you use jasmine or basmati rice?
Hi Cheryl, Long grain rice is the best rice to use and cooks evenly. Basmati rice or jasmine rice can be substituted using the same liquid ratio and cooking time.
Really enjoy the recipe and have used it many times but my husband and I both have had issues with the cooking instructions. I would love to see a revised version of the cooking directions with more explanation on why or other options. For example, is the only reason you pre-boil the rice and broth is for saving time? Couldn’t you just cook the rice and broth on the stovetop and then add the rice and chicken to the baking dish? I accidentally spilled broth, rice and raw chicken all over the inside of my oven and floor trying to transfer the mixture to my oven and it was a nightmare trying to clean it up.
Really great meal. I included the mushrooms, which definitely added to the overall flavor. For first timers, when you pulled the foil off at 30 mins, don’t be shocked to see a lot of liquid still in the dish; it will bake out, give it time in the next 30 mins.