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    Home » Recipes » Main Dish Recipes

    One-Pan Ground Chicken and Rice

    Published: April 21, 2023 Updated: April 21, 2023 / By: Dawn | Girl Heart Food 5 Comments

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    Jump to Recipe Save Recipe Saved!
    Bowl of ground chicken and rice alongside a pan of it.

    With lots of warming spices, ground chicken, fluffy rice, raisins, walnuts and colourful veggies, this delicious one-pan ground chicken and rice recipe is a cinch to put together and cleanup is a breeze. If you’re a fan of sweet and savoury combinations, this ground chicken recipe is a must try!

    Ground chicken, rice and vegetables in a pan with a serving spoon.

    Who doesn’t love a flavourful one-pan dinner that requires very little fuss? This one-pan chicken and rice recipe is easy enough for a busy weeknight dinner but special enough for a lovely date night in or casual entertaining with friends.

    Fan of ground chicken recipes? Check out this yummy ground chicken meatloaf.

    Ingredients

    • Olive oil
    • Ground chicken: If you don’t have ground chicken on hand, you can substitute with ground turkey.
    • Veggies: Yellow onion, garlic, carrot and baby spinach.
    • White basmati rice: Rinse it well to remove the surface starch so it’s less sticky and more fluffy once cooked.
    • Raisins: They add a lovely sweetness to the recipe. An alternative to raisins that you can use is sweetened dried cranberries.
    • Walnuts: Give them a chop before using. Instead of walnuts, you can try using pecans, almonds or pine nuts.
    • Butter: Helps add a little lushness to the dish.
    • Seasoning: Salt, black pepper, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, crushed red pepper flakes and ground clove adds plenty of flavour.
    • Chicken broth: I prefer to use a no salt added variety. If you use a low sodium or regular version, you may want to add less salt.

    How To Make It

    Here is an overview of how to make this one-pot ground chicken and rice recipe (full details are in the recipe card below):

    1. Heat olive oil in a sauté pan and cook the ground chicken. Add the onion and cook until softened, then stir in the garlic and cook until nice and fragrant.
    2. Stir in the rice, shredded carrot, raisins, walnuts and butter, and then season with salt, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, crushed red pepper flakes and clove. Pour in the chicken broth and give everything another stir.
    3. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook until the rice is cooked through and the broth has been absorbed. Then remove the pan from the heat, leave the cover on, and let sit for about 5 minutes. Uncover and stir to fluff the rice.
    4. Stir in the baby spinach (it will wilt from the residual heat).
    Collage of steps to make a one-pot ground chicken and rice recipe.

    What To Serve With It

    This one-pan chicken and rice recipe is a meal all on its own but pairs deliciously with any of these:

    • Garlic bread
    • Grilled naan
    • Green salad
    • Roasted cauliflower

    Tip: Mix things up! Besides serving the recipe as is, you can pile some of the mixture onto a flour tortilla and enjoy as a wrap with a little plain Greek yogurt and squeeze of lemon juice (such a great lunch).

    Bowl of ground chicken and rice alongside a pan of it.

    Tips

    • I used white basmati rice for this ground chicken and rice recipe. The cook time was about 15 to 20 minutes. If not using white basmati rice, pick a rice with a similar cook time (white rice or jasmine rice are some yummy options).
    • Want to add some cheese? Some crumbled feta or goat cheese sprinkled over each serving is delicious.
    • If you want to add more colour, flavour and freshness to this ground chicken and rice recipe, garnish the finished dish with some freshly chopped parsley or mint leaves.
    Spoonful of a ground chicken and rice skillet from a bowl.

    More Easy Ground Chicken Recipes

    • Ground Chicken Rice Bowl
    • Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes
    • Chicken Meatballs With Pesto Cream Sauce

    If you make this one-pan ground chicken and rice recipe, be sure to leave a comment below!

    Ground chicken and rice skillet with a serving spoon.

    One-Pan Ground Chicken and Rice

    Dawn | Girl Heart Food
    With lots of warming spices, ground chicken, fluffy rice, raisins, walnuts and colourful veggies, this delicious one-pan ground chicken and rice recipe is a cinch to put together and cleanup is a breeze. If you're a fan of sweet and savoury combinations, this ground chicken recipe is a must try!
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Recipe Save RecipeSaved!
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 35 minutes mins
    Time to stand after cooking 5 minutes mins
    Total Time 50 minutes mins
    Course Main Course
    Servings 4 servings
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Ingredients
     

    • 1 tablespoon olive oil
    • 1 pound ground chicken
    • 1 yellow onion, peeled and diced
    • 2 cloves garlic, minced
    • 1 cup white basmati rice, rinsed well and drained
    • 1 carrot, peeled and shredded
    • ½ cup raisins
    • ½ cup chopped walnuts
    • 1 tablespoon butter
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
    • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
    • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
    • ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
    • ¼ teaspoon ground clove
    • 2.5 cups no salt added chicken broth
    • 2 to 3 large handfuls baby spinach

    Instructions

    • Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the ground chicken and cook, breaking the ground chicken into small pieces as it cooks and stirring occasionally, until fully cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes.
      Note: You want to use a large sauté pan with a tight-fitting lid (the lid will be used shortly).
    • Add the onion to the ground chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until it's mostly softened, about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
    • To the pan, add the rice, shredded carrot, raisins, walnuts and butter. Season with salt, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, crushed red pepper flakes (if using) and clove. Stir to combine, then stir in the chicken broth.
    • Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until the rice is cooked through and the broth has been absorbed.
      Note: If the rice needs a tad longer cooking time, that's okay, just continue to cook (if it needs a little more broth, you can add more as necessary).
    • Remove from the heat, leave the cover on, and let sit for 5 minutes. Once the 5 minutes is up, uncover, then stir to fluff the rice.
    • Stir in the baby spinach until it wilts from the residual heat (you can cover the pan with the lid for a couple of minutes, if you like). Season with additional salt, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg or clove, if desired. Serve and enjoy!

    Notes

    • I used white basmati rice for this ground chicken and rice recipe. The cook time was about 15 to 20 minutes. If not using white basmati rice, pick a rice with a similar cook time (white rice or jasmine rice are some yummy options).
    • Want to add some cheese? Some crumbled feta or goat cheese sprinkled over each serving is delicious.
    • If you want to add more colour, flavour and freshness to this ground chicken and rice recipe, garnish the finished dish with some freshly chopped parsley or mint leaves.

    A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.

    © Girl Heart Food Inc. Photographs and content are copyright protected.

    Keyword chicken and rice, ground chicken recipe, one pan recipe, one pot recipe

    Tried this recipe?

    If you do make this recipe, thank you!! It would mean so much if you could leave a comment below. Love to know how you enjoyed it, and it helps other readers too!

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    © Girl Heart Food Inc. Photographs and content are COPYRIGHT PROTECTED.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Valentina

      April 28, 2023 at 10:34 pm

      So interesting to add the raisins into this — I really like that touch sweetness. Love them with carrots, and with the chicken and rice, it becomes dinner. 🙂 ~Valentina

      Reply
    2. Michelle

      April 26, 2023 at 6:14 pm

      5 stars
      Love a good old one-pot meal! This is perfect for our still-gloomy weather. The addition of raisins and walnuts to the rice reminds me of tagine 🙂

      Reply
      • Dawn | Girl Heart Food

        April 28, 2023 at 9:12 pm

        Me too! It’s such a comforting recipe. Thank you, Michelle!

        Reply
    3. David @ Spiced

      April 26, 2023 at 9:03 am

      5 stars
      This sounds like my kinda one-pot meal! I used to make something similar using sliced chicken and slivered almonds. Back when I was a bachelor, it was one of my go-to recipes whenever I needed something “fancy.” 🙂 I’ll have to try your version soon!

      Reply
      • Dawn | Girl Heart Food

        April 28, 2023 at 9:11 pm

        Thank you very much, David! Hope you love the recipe!

        Reply

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