Chicken & Turkey Recipes

One Pot Mexican Chicken and Rice

This Mexican Chicken and Rice { Arroz Con Pollo} cooks all in one pot for maximum yumminess and minimum clean up! Deliciously succulent chicken and spiced savory rice that’s packed with flavor – sure to be a family fave

  • Serves 4
  • Prep 10 minutes
  • Cook 40 minutes
  • Total 50 minutes
Jump to the recipe
One Pot Mexican Chicken and Rice

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One Pot meals FTW! I honestly try to cook most of my recipes in a single pot (or the slow cooker) because who hates washing up more than me? (Probably everyone).

Anyway this Mexican Chicken and Rice recipe SLAYS (to quote my teen daughter) and here’s why!

FULL OF FLAVOR – you can feel your mouth watering while the aroma of this dish fills the kitchen! The (mildly) spicy taco seasoning infuses this chicken and rice dish with so much yumminess. SUPER EASY – Simply season, sear, sauté and simmer. How’s that for alliteration?  ONE POT – less washing up people. It bears repeating.

Mexican Chicken and Rice Ingredients

CHICKEN: I used skin-on and bone in chicken thighs and legs. They are less likely to dry out than chicken breasts and more economical too.

SEASONING: The seasoning is what makes this dish. You can make your own homemade blend or use a good quality taco or fajita seasoning brand.

VEGETABLES: onion, garlic, jalapeno, bell peppers, corn. You can also add beans if you want to make the dish stretch further.

AND THE REST: tomato purée (= concentrated tomato paste), chicken broth, olive oil, bay leaf, parsley or cilantro to serve.

Ingredients for Mexican chicken and rice with captions

How to Make Mexican Chicken and Rice

↓ For the full ingredients and detailed method, jump to the recipe card.

Pat the chicken dry and season generously on both sides with your spice blend (see recipe card).

Heat the oil in a large skillet or chef’s pan (= a lidded deep pan). Add the chicken pieces, skin side down, once the oil is simmering. Allow the chicken to brown before flipping over to sear on the other side, about 3 minutes per side.

searing chicken thighs and drumsticks in a skillet

Set the chicken aside and use a splash of chicken broth to deglaze the pan. Lower the heat and sauté the onion, garlic and jalapeno for 5-7 minutes, adding a drizzle of oil if the pan is dry.

sauteing onion, garlic and jalapeno in a pan

Add the bell peppers, corn and tomato paste, stirring well to combine.

onion, garlic, corn and peppers in a pan

Stir in the rice and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Place the chicken back into the pan, reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for about 25-30 minutes or until the rice is and chicken is cooked through.

making arroz con pollo in a pan

Discard the bay leaf, fluff the rice with a fork and check the seasoning. Serve garnished with parsley or cilantro, lime wedges and some grated cheese if you like.

chicken thigh and spiced rice serving in a bowl

Make It Slimming Friendly

This recipe can easily be adapted to reduce the amount of calories and fat. Replace the olive oil with a cooking spray and use skinless chicken thighs (with any fat removed). You might want to skip the corn or replace it with black beans to up the protein and fiber content.

Expert Tips

  • I suggest peeking at the pan while the rice is cooking to check if you need to add a bit more water.
  • For perfect fluffy rice avoid stirring once the rice is simmering.
  • I recommend using easy-cook long grain white rice in this recipe. You can try using brown rice or basmati but you will need to adjust the cooking time.
  • If you are using a store-bought spice blend check how spicy it is before adding to the dish, especially if you are serving young / fussy children.
  • Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to three days. Make sure you reheat until piping hot all the way through before serving, adding a little water to the saucepan to avoid sticking.
One pot Mexican chicken and rice

You Will Also Enjoy…

HAVE YOU MADE MY MEXICAN CHICKEN AND RICE RECIPE? Please leave a rating, post a photo on my Facebook page, share it on Instagram, or save it to Pinterest with the tag #Nusde and make my day!

You might also like my Jerk Chicken Rice and Peas.

Recipe

One Pot Mexican Chicken and Rice

This Mexican Chicken and Rice { Arroz Con Pollo} cooks all in one pot for maximum yumminess and minimum clean up! Deliciously succulent chicken and spiced savory rice that’s packed with flavor – sure to be a family fave.

  • Serves 4
  • Prep 10 minutes
  • Cook 40 minutes
  • Total 50 minutes

Ingredients

Seasoning

  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp garlic granules (or onion powder)
  • 1 ½ tsp salt (, I used smoked sea salt)
  • ½ tsp cayenne (or mild chilli powder if preferred)
  • ½ tsp ground pepper

For the Chicken & Rice

  • 4 chicken thighs (or thighs and drumsticks)
  • 2 tbsp olive oil (, more as needed)
  • 1 onion (, finely diced)
  • 4 garlic cloves (, minced)
  • 1 jalapeno (, seeds discarded, finely diced)
  • 1 red bell pepper (, diced)
  • 1 green bell pepper (, diced)
  • 7 oz (200g) canned corn (, drained)
  • 1 ¼ cups (250g) long grain white rice
  • 2 ⅓ cups (580ml) chicken broth
  • 1 bay leaf
  • additional hot water (if needed)

To serve

  • crushed red pepper flakes (to taste)
  • Chopped parsley or cilantro ((coriander))

Method

  1. 1

    Combine the seasoning in a small bowl. If you are using store bought seasoning then use 1 ½ tbsp taco seasoning plus the oregano, salt and pepper.

  2. 2

    Pat the chicken dry and season generously on both sides with some of the spice blend.

  3. 3

    Heat the oil in a large chef’s pan. Add the chicken pieces, skin side down, once the oil is simmering. Allow the chicken to brown before flipping over to sear on the other side, about 3 minutes per side.

  4. 4

    Set the chicken aside and use a splash of the chicken broth to deglaze the pan. Lower the heat and sauté the onion, garlic and jalapeno for 5-7 minutes, adding an additional drizzle of oil if the pan is dry.

  5. 5

    Add the bell peppers, corn, tomato paste and remaining seasoning and stir well to combine. Stir in the rice to coat in the tomato paste and seasonings, add the chicken broth and bay leaf and bring to a boil.

  6. 6

    Reduce heat to a simmer, add the chicken on top of the rice, cover the pan and cook for about 25-30 minutes or until the rice is cooked.

  7. 7

    Discard the bay leaf, fluff the rice with a fork and check the seasoning. Serve garnished with parsley or cilantro, crushed red pepper flakes plus lime wedges and some grated cheese if you like.

Notes

You can add more chicken if you like but this serves four generously. I suggest peeking at the pan while the rice is cooking to check if you need to add a bit more water. For perfect fluffy rice avoid stirring once the rice is simmering. I recommend using easy-cook long grain white rice in this recipe. You can try using brown rice but you will need to adjust the cooking time. If you are using a store-bought spice blend check how spicy it is before adding to the dish, especially if you are serving young / fussy children. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to three days. Make sure you reheat until piping hot all the way through before serving, adding a little water to the saucepan to avoid sticking.

Equipment

  • Chef's Pan

Nutrition

  • Calories626 kcal
  • Carbohydrates69 g
  • Protein28 g
  • Fat27 g
  • Saturated Fat6 g
  • Polyunsaturated Fat5 g
  • Monounsaturated Fat13 g
  • Trans Fat0.1 g
  • Cholesterol111 mg
  • Sodium1076 mg
  • Potassium744 mg
  • Fiber4 g
  • Sugar6 g
  • Vitamin A1596 IU
  • Vitamin C68 mg
  • Calcium74 mg
  • Iron3 mg

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