Chef Ally
Beef Bourguignon
Humble beef transformed by good red wine, patience, and the kind of slow cooking that fills a house with warmth and brings everyone to the table asking when dinner will be ready.
Culinary Explorer
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Chicken and Rice
Created by
Bone-in chicken roasted atop rice that drinks in every drop of savory juice, emerging from the oven with golden skin, tender meat, and grains infused with the essence of the bird itself.
Main Dishes
American
Weeknight
Comfort Food
One Pot
20 min
Active Time
1 hr cook•1 hr 20 min total
Yield6 servings
Start with the chicken. A good one, from a farmer who raises birds properly on pasture, with room to move and a varied diet. You will taste the difference in the first bite. The meat carries more depth, the fat renders cleaner, and the bones give up their richness willingly when asked.
This dish asks almost nothing of you, and that is the point. Brown the chicken to build a fond, soften your aromatics, add rice and stock, then let the oven do the rest. The rice absorbs the drippings as the chicken roasts above it. Every grain becomes a small vessel of flavor.
I have made this dish a thousand times, and it reminds me why simple food endures. When your ingredients are honest, you do not need to compensate with complexity. A good chicken, decent rice, a few vegetables, fresh herbs. That is the whole list. The technique is in service of the ingredients, not the other way around.
Every meal is a meaningful choice. Buying that chicken from a local farmer keeps a small operation alive. The rice from a domestic grower supports an agricultural tradition. These choices ripple outward, and they make the food taste better too.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces
Quantity
3 1/2 pounds
thighs, drumsticks, or a mix
kosher salt
Quantity
2 teaspoons, divided, plus more to taste
black pepper
Quantity
1 teaspoon, divided
freshly ground
olive oil or unsalted butter
Quantity
2 tablespoons
yellow onion
Quantity
1 large
diced
garlic
Quantity
4 cloves
minced
long-grain white rice
Quantity
1 1/2 cups
chicken stock
Quantity
2 3/4 cups
preferably homemade
fresh thyme leaves
Quantity
1 teaspoon
bay leaf
Quantity
1
fresh parsley
Quantity
2 tablespoons
chopped
lemon
Quantity
1
cut into wedges
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| bone-in, skin-on chicken piecesthighs, drumsticks, or a mix | 3 1/2 pounds |
| kosher salt | 2 teaspoons, divided, plus more to taste |
| black pepperfreshly ground | 1 teaspoon, divided |
| olive oil or unsalted butter | 2 tablespoons |
| yellow oniondiced | 1 large |
| garlicminced | 4 cloves |
| long-grain white rice | 1 1/2 cups |
| chicken stockpreferably homemade | 2 3/4 cups |
| fresh thyme leaves | 1 teaspoon |
| bay leaf | 1 |
| fresh parsleychopped | 2 tablespoons |
| lemoncut into wedges | 1 |
Equipment Needed
- •12-inch oven-safe skillet or Dutch oven
- •Instant-read thermometer
- •Sturdy tongs
Instructions
- 1
Season and temper the chicken
Pat the chicken pieces completely dry with paper towels. Season generously on all sides with one teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of pepper. Let the pieces sit at room temperature while you prepare everything else, at least fifteen minutes. Cold meat hitting a hot pan steams instead of browns.
Drying the skin is the single most important step for achieving crisp, golden results. Wet skin steams. - 2
Preheat and prepare
Position a rack in the center of your oven and preheat to 375 degrees. Measure your rice, stock, and aromatics so everything is ready. Once you start browning, the process moves quickly.
- 3
Brown the chicken
Heat the olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the chicken pieces skin-side down, working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding. Let them cook undisturbed for five to seven minutes until the skin releases easily and has turned deep golden. Flip and brown the other side for three minutes more. Transfer to a plate.
If the skin sticks, it is not ready. Wait. It will release when properly browned. - 4
Build the aromatic base
Pour off all but two tablespoons of fat from the pan. Reduce heat to medium. Add the diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning to turn golden at the edges, about five minutes. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, thirty seconds. The fond on the bottom of the pan should be lifting and incorporating into the onions.
- 5
Toast the rice
Add the rice to the pan and stir to coat each grain with the fat and aromatics. Toast for two minutes, stirring frequently, until the rice smells faintly nutty and some grains turn opaque at the edges. This step builds flavor and helps the rice cook evenly.
- 6
Add liquid and seasonings
Pour in the chicken stock, scraping up any remaining browned bits from the bottom. Add the thyme, bay leaf, remaining teaspoon of salt, and remaining half teaspoon of pepper. Stir once to distribute everything evenly. Bring the liquid to a simmer.
- 7
Nestle and bake
Remove the pan from heat. Nestle the browned chicken pieces on top of the rice, skin-side up. Do not submerge them. The skin should sit above the liquid so it can continue crisping in the oven. Transfer to the oven and bake uncovered for forty to forty-five minutes, until the rice has absorbed the liquid and the chicken registers 165 degrees at the thickest part.
Resist the urge to stir or check too often. Opening the oven releases heat and moisture, disrupting the cooking. - 8
Rest and finish
Remove from the oven and let rest for five minutes. The rice will finish absorbing any remaining liquid and the chicken juices will redistribute. Discard the bay leaf. Scatter fresh parsley over the top and serve directly from the pan with lemon wedges alongside. The acid brightens everything.
Chef Tips
- •Seek out a chicken from a farmer who raises birds on pasture. The flavor difference is not subtle. Ask at your farmers market or look for local farms that deliver.
- •If you have homemade chicken stock in your freezer, now is the time to use it. Store-bought works, but the body and depth of homemade stock transforms this dish.
- •Dark meat works better than breasts here. Thighs and drumsticks stay moist during the long bake and release more fat to flavor the rice. Breasts dry out.
- •In winter, add a handful of sturdy greens like kale or chard to the rice before baking. They wilt into the dish beautifully.
- •Save any leftover pan drippings. Strained and refrigerated, they become cooking gold for sautéing vegetables or starting soups.
Advance Preparation
- •Season the chicken up to 24 hours ahead and refrigerate uncovered. The salt will penetrate the meat and the skin will dry out, producing even crispier results.
- •This dish is best served immediately but reheats well. Add a splash of stock before warming in a 325-degree oven, covered, for 20 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 300g)
Calories
545 calories
Total Fat
24 g
Saturated Fat
6 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
16 g
Cholesterol
115 mg
Sodium
820 mg
Total Carbohydrates
44 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
2 g
Protein
35 g
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