This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
One Pot Italian Chicken and Rice is the kind of dinner that makes you feel like a kitchen hero with minimal effort. In just 45 minutes, you’ve got tender chicken, perfectly cooked rice, and a burst of Italian flavors all coming together in one pan. No rice cookers, no juggling pots and pans; just a simple, hearty meal that’s ready when you are.
And the best part? Fewer dishes and more time to enjoy every comforting bite. This Italian chicken recipe is the perfect way to bring carbs, comfort, and flavor to the table without the fuss.
What Makes This Recipe Work
This Italian Chicken and Rice brings comfort food to the table in just one pan, making dinner both simple and flavorful. The rice cooks in the same pot as the chicken, soaking up Italian herbs, garlic, and sun-dried tomato goodness. It’s the kind of one pot chicken and rice recipe that saves you time while delivering bold flavor.
What makes this Italian chicken recipe shine is the balance of tender, juicy chicken with fluffy, seasoned rice. You get all the cozy flavors of classic Italian cooking in under 45 minutes. And because it’s truly a one pot Italian chicken dish, cleanup is effortless; more time for eating, less time scrubbing.
What Goes Into Italian Chicken and Rice
This one pot Italian chicken recipe keeps things simple while layering big flavor into every bite.
- Chicken Thighs and Drumsticks: Juicy, flavorful cuts of chicken that stay tender while cooking and infuse the rice with rich flavor.
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes: Packed in oil, these add tangy depth and a hint of sweetness that makes this Italian chicken and rice shine.
- Long Grain Rice: Absorbs all the savory juices from the chicken, herbs, and stock, giving you fluffy rice that’s full of Italian flavor.
- Olives and Red Pepper: Briny olives and sweet bell pepper bring balance and brightness to this one pot Italian chicken dish.
Note: Please see recipe card at the bottom for a full list of ingredients with measurements.
How To Make Italian Chicken and Rice
- Preheat and Heat Oil: Preheat oven to 200°C | 400°F and warm olive oil in a ovenproof skillet or cast iron pan. Make sure the pan is hot enough to sear the chicken.
- Sear the Chicken: Add chicken thighs and drumsticks to the skillet and fry for 3–4 minutes per side. Cook until they are golden brown all over.
- Cook the Vegetables: Stir in onion wedges, chopped bell pepper, and smashed garlic. Sauté for about 3 minutes until the onion is soft and lightly golden.
- Flavor the Rice: Remove chicken from the pan and set aside. Stir in olives, sun-dried tomatoes, dried basil, oregano, parsley, and rice, letting the rice soak up the juices.
- Combine with Sauce: Return chicken on top of the rice mixture, then add tomatoes and chicken stock. Bring everything to a gentle boil while turning the chicken.
- Bake Until Tender: Cover the skillet tightly with foil and place in the oven. Bake for about 40 minutes until the rice is fluffy and cooked through.
- Broil for Crispiness: Remove the foil and change oven setting to grill or broil on medium heat. Broil for 8–10 minutes until the chicken skin is crispy and golden.
- Garnish and Serve: Season lightly with salt, sprinkle with parsley and parmesan, and serve this one pot Italian chicken and rice straight from the pan.
To round out your one pot Italian chicken and rice, serve it with something cheesy, garlicky, and irresistible. A warm side of Cheesy Pizza Pull Apart Bread is always a crowd-pleaser, giving you gooey cheese and pillowy bread to soak up all those savory juices.
For a fresh and vibrant pairing, Greek Salad adds crisp vegetables, tangy feta, and a light dressing that balances the richness of the chicken and rice. You can also bring in a fun twist with Crispy Broccoli Parmesan Fritters, which deliver a crunchy bite and cheesy flavor in every forkful.
Recipe FAQ’s
Long grain rice is ideal because it stays fluffy and separate after baking. Short grain or arborio rice may turn too creamy or sticky.
Yes, you can simmer it on the stovetop covered over low heat. Just stir occasionally to ensure the rice cooks evenly and doesn’t stick.
Zucchini, mushrooms, or spinach make great additions. Stir them in before baking so they cook along with the rice.
You might also like
Get a free eBook!
Subscribe to Cafe Delites FOR FREE and receive recipes straight into your inbox!
One-Pot Italian Tomato Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 chicken thigh cutlets
- 4 drumsticks
- 1 red onion cut into 8 wedges
- 1 red capsicum/bell pepper deseeded and chopped
- 4 cloves garlic smashed with the back of a knife
- 1/2 cup pitted olives
- 1/2 cup sundried tomato strips in oil
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley , finely chopped
- 1 cup long grain rice
- 14 oz can chopped tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock (or 1 1/2 cups water + 1 tablespoon vegetable stock powder)
- freshly grated parmesan cheese to serve
- chopped parsley to serve
Instructions
- Heat oven to 200c | 400F. Heat the oil in a large, shallow ovenproof cast iron skillet/or pan. Add the chicken and fry for 3-4 mins on medium-high heat. Turn and fry again until golden all over.
- Add the onion, red capsicum/peppers and garlic and fry for about 3 mins or until lightly golden and onion is transparent.
- Transfer the chicken onto a plate; stir the olives, sundried tomato strips, basil, oregano, parsley and rice into the pan; allow the rice to soak up all the juices.
- Return the chicken pieces back to the pan on top of the rice; add the tomatoes and stock. Bring everything to the boil, rotate the chicken in the sauce before transferring to the oven.
- Cover with foil and allow to bake for about 40 minutes (depending on your oven) until the rice has softened. Remove cover and change oven settings to grill/broil on medium heat; grill/broil for a further 8-10 minutes or until the chicken is crispy and golden.
- Season with a little salt to taste and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley and grated parmesan cheese (optional).
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
ok. I just made this. Ah. Maze. Ing. This is so good and I will be making it again. I made only a couple of changes – tinned mushrooms (because, guilty pleasure) and arborio rice (because it’s all i had, which meant I added a little extra stock). That’s it. This is a really great recipe.
Made this tonight but I added black and spicy olives
red pepper flakes and roasted red peppers.I also added minced garlic since I keep it in the fridge for quick meals. We like a lot
of heat so next time I will add hot peppers.
But relish.
I have a question please, all blogs show pictures of chicken thighs recipes with crispy brown skin, especially those cooked with rice but when i try it the skin turns soggy because of steam, not half as appetizing as in photos. Any tip please?
Did you broil it at the end? That should crisp the skin up. The chicken is resting on top of everything, which should keep it from getting soggy.
Made this for dinner last night, it was amazing…I did use a Tablespoon of the sun-dried oil to fry the chicken…will make it for company next week…thank you for a wonderful recipe….Bonita
Tried this for the first time last night. It was soooo good. I used drumsticks only as I do not like chicken thighs. Had to leave in the oven a little longer since the rice was still a tad chewy. My daughter even loved it :-). This is definitely a keeper recipe and so easy. Loved all of the flavors. I may drain the sundried tomatoes a little more next time around as I thought they made the dish a little too oily. But, otherwise it was fantastic!
I made this meal, it wos excelent. I love it. It become my favorite recipes.
I’m so happy to hear that Tanja!
Karina again you’ve made my belly very very happy. Honestly whenever I’m stuck for ideas you sort me out with your recipes and like ALL the others I have tried this one did not let me down.
Made very little alterations. Subbed long grain for brown rice cos that was all I had aside from basmati and I didn’t think the basmati could take the 40 min oven time, used chicken breast and sprinkled a teeny bit of saffron cos I saw your Spanish one pot after I’d already started this. Haha.
Rice is still in the oven as I’m meal prepping it for my training days but I do not know if I can wait till tomorrow to eat it. Just tasted it now to see if it was ready and I nearly died. So. Fricking. Good. I just had to write the review this second. As its brown rice though it’s still chewy so I added a tad bit more water and have popped it back in for 15 more mins. Regardless it tastes awesome. God bless you xx
Absolutely delicious, At this point i pretty much do my shopping list based on your recipes 🙂
This was fantastic!
I’m glad you liked it!
I made this the other night and it was great! A bit salty (from the olives I guess) and I used black olives instead of kalamata olives. Full of tomatoey flavours.
Thank you for letting me know! Hmmm I wonder why it was salty? I do believe Kalamata olives aren’t as salty as black olives…but I hope you were able to enjoy it?