Garlic Butter Chicken with Rice
Chicken thighs seared skin-side down until the fat renders and the skin turns deep gold, then finished in the oven on a bed of garlic-butter rice that absorbs all the drippings. The rice cooks in chicken fat and broth simultaneously — which is why it tastes nothing like rice made separately. One pan, under 40 minutes, 38g of protein per serving.
Ingredients
- 800 gbone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 300 glong-grain white rice
- 480 mlchicken broth
- 3 tbspbutter
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1 small onion
- 1 tspsmoked paprika
- ½ tspdried thyme
- salt and black pepper to taste
- fresh parsley
Method
- Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F). Pat chicken thighs completely dry with paper towels. Season all over with smoked paprika, thyme, salt, and pepper.
- Heat an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tbsp butter. Place chicken skin-side down and do not move it. Sear 5–6 minutes until the skin is deep golden and releases cleanly from the pan. Flip and sear 2 more minutes. Transfer to a plate.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add remaining 2 tbsp butter, onion, and garlic. Cook 2–3 minutes, stirring, until soft and fragrant.
- Add rice. Stir to coat every grain in the butter for 30 seconds. Pour in chicken broth, stir once to level the rice, then stop completely. Do not stir again.
- Place chicken thighs on top, skin-side up. The skin must sit above the liquid, not touching the broth. Cover tightly with foil or a lid.
- Bake covered at 200°C for 25 minutes. Remove the cover and bake 10–12 minutes more until all liquid is absorbed and the skin is crispy. Rest 5 minutes, garnish with parsley, and serve from the pan.
FAQ
The rice absorbs the chicken drippings and fat as it bakes — it cooks in what is essentially a homemade stock. Chicken thigh fat is dense and rich, far more flavorful than the water plain rice cooks in. Combined with the garlic-butter base at the start, the rice picks up layered flavor you cannot replicate by cooking the components separately.
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Comments (2)
Объедение
An instant-read thermometer eliminates all guesswork with garlic butter chicken with rice. Chicken is perfectly done at 74°C in the thickest part. Every degree beyond that moves you further from juicy toward dry.