One Pot Lemon Herb Chicken and Rice
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Tonight, all eyes will be on this buttery, One Pot Lemon Herb Chicken and Rice with lemon herb spices, all cooked and ready to devour in 30 minutes in just one pot!
Loving one-pot wonders for busy nights? You’ve gotta try One Pot Cashew Chicken Ramen, One Pot Enchilada Orzo, and One Pan Mediterranean Chicken with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce.
This is one of those where-have-you-been-all-my-life moments…kinda like the first time I put on ankle socks.
Ankle socks? What does that have to do with chicken, you ask? Well, I grew up in the 90s so if you can remember back that far you might recall those long socks we used to wear all the time reaching anywhere from 2 to 5 inches above your shoes. I was fairly young and easily influenced when the ankle sock movement began, so when I finally gave into peer pressure and tried on my first pair of ankle socks, let’s just say it felt…revolutionary. I had that, “where have you been all my life?“ feeling.
That all is to say, why has everyone else in the world known how wonderful one-pot dishes were while I avoided them? Although I may not have all the answers, I do know one thing: One pot dishes are here to stay on this blog.
Why This Recipe Works
This recipe for lemon herb chicken and rice is about as easy as it gets. And so tasty too!
One pot — I have to say it again. I might even shout it from the rooftops. One-pot meals are LIFE. So easy to cook in, so easy to clean up, I wish every meal could be made in one pot.
Easy pantry staples — Doesn’t get any easier than thawing some chicken, cooking in butter, adding boxed or canned broth, rice, lemon, and some spices.
Leftovers — This recipe makes a decent amount of food and makes for great leftovers. Or, if you’re into meal prepping, this would make four excellent to-go lunches or dinners and reheats easily.
Easy to customize — If you prefer different flavors, you could do some cumin and chili powder and limes instead of lemon, or whatever is your favorite flavor.
Here’s How You Make It
Get out that one pot and that’s all you need to make this delicious lemon herb chicken and rice.
- First, melt the butter over medium-high heat in a large skillet or pan with a lid. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and add the Italian seasonings to the chicken, too. Put the chicken in the butter and brown it for 1-2 minutes on each side.
- Take the chicken off and put it on a plate (it won’t be cooked all the way through).
- Now, to the same pot, add in the rice, chicken broth, lemon juice, and the rest of the Italian seasoning. Put the chicken back in on top of this mixture and put the lid on. Simmer over medium-low heat till the liquid is dissolved and rice is cooked, about 20-25 minutes.
- Serve with fresh parsley or cilantro as a garnish and with extra lemon wedges if you prefer. Serve while hot.
Frequently Asked Questions
Although you brown the chicken before adding the rice into this dish, the chicken is basically still raw inside. So, yes, you can cook raw chicken and rice together. If you are worried about cross-contamination, remember that you’ll be cooking both the chicken and the rice so there’s no need to worry that you’ll get sick from eating undercooked chicken/contaminated rice.
For an average size bone-in breast, you should get about 1 ½ cups of chicken. For a skinless, boneless chicken breast, you’ll get about 1 ½ cups as well. Of course, it all depends on the size of your chicken breasts to begin with.
Expert Tips
- If you are cooking with bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts, up the browning time to about 3-4 minutes per side before removing to add the rice and broth. Be sure to check that the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees before eating.
- If you are using brown rice, you’ll need to up the cooking time to about 30-35 minutes. Check around the 30-minute mark for doneness.
- Some great add-ins to this recipe include one can of fire-roasted tomatoes, half a cup of frozen peas or carrots, one teaspoon of red pepper flakes, or add half a finely chopped onion to the butter to caramelize a bit before adding chicken.
- This chicken and rice recipe will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer in an airtight container.
More Recipes You’ve Gotta Try
- Baked Honey Lemon Garlic Salmon in Foil
- Chicken and Asparagus Stir Fry
- One Pan Spanish Chicken and Rice
- Lemon Herb Shrimp and Rice Skillet
Did you make this One Pot Lemon Herb Chicken and Rice recipe? YAY! Please rate the recipe below!
One Pot Lemon Herb Chicken & Rice
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons butter
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
Rice
- 1 cup uncooked white rice
- 2 ¼ cups chicken broth , (I used low sodium)
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
Instructions
- Melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet or pan (one that has a lid). Season chicken with salt and pepper to taste, and Italian seasoning. Brown chicken in the butter for 1-2 minutes on each side. (Chicken shouldn’t be cooked through at this point) Transfer chicken to a plate.
- Add rice, chicken broth, lemon juice, and remaining Italian seasoning to the pan (no need to clean it first). Place chicken on top, then cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 20-25 minutes until liquid is dissolved.
- Garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro if desired and lemon wedges for squeezing. Serve immediately.
Notes
- If you are cooking with bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts, up the browning time to about 3-4 minutes per side before removing to add the rice and broth. Be sure to check that the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees before eating.
- If you are using brown rice, you’ll need to up the cooking time to about 30-35 minutes. Check around the 30-minute mark for doneness.
- Some great add-ins to this recipe include one can of fire-roasted tomatoes, half a cup of frozen peas or carrots, one teaspoon of red pepper flakes, or add half a finely chopped onion to the butter to caramelize a bit before adding chicken.
- This chicken and rice recipe will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer in an airtight container.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
One of my favorite dishes! Great recipe, easy and so delicious
I meal prepped this for lunch and it is delicious! I added a few things too. So good!
I found this post through your cilantro lime avocado chicken dish. Are there any sauces you recommend to go with this dish? we are sauce people ourselves!
Looks so good cant wait to make
This sounds great! I have a pile of leftover cooked rice from another dish earlier this week. I’m going to shortcut this recipe by getting a cooked rotisserie bird and do everything except cooking it for more than like 5 minutes!
(fyi – I found your recipe when searching for “chicken and rice recipes”)
This looks amazing and simple! What would you classify a serving and how many calories per that serving?
Thanks!
This was good. Lemon was a bit heavy for us, so would cut that in half next time (maybe I just had a really juicy lemon). Also, you say to simmer “until liquid is dissolved.” I think you mean “absorbed.”
This was delicious! I love the flavoring and it is so easy! This is a very tasty dish that I will definitely make again!!
Hey, I made this dish with brown rice and despite the 45-minute simmer time, it turned out great. My chicken was a little dry, but nothing too unbearable.
Buuuut, I think you should update your post to reflect the difference in time and steps when using brown rice. I noticed that many people had this issue a year ago.
Other than that, thank you for an awesome recipe that I’ll be trying again. It’s the perfect meal prep recipe. Next time I’ll add vegetables’
I agree as I am in the middle of waiting for my brown rice to finish cooking. I pulled the chicken out to make sure that it did not overcook and become dry. The smell is amazing though so hoping that we are ready sooner rather than later! I added some chopped garlic in the pan before browning chicken too for some added punch.
This is my go to chicken recipe! Love it!! Made several times. Always a big hit! Usual make fresh broccoli with it. No changes to recipe. Thanks for awesome dish!!!