{"id":15982,"date":"2019-09-27T06:30:28","date_gmt":"2019-09-27T11:30:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bowlofdelicious.com\/?p=15982"},"modified":"2019-10-04T10:12:56","modified_gmt":"2019-10-04T15:12:56","slug":"spiced-chicken-and-rice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bowlofdelicious.com\/spiced-chicken-and-rice\/","title":{"rendered":"Spiced Chicken and Rice with Apples and Raisins"},"content":{"rendered":"

Move over all other fall chicken recipes- this easy spiced chicken and rice<\/strong> baked in the oven with fresh apples and plump raisins is the PERFECT one pan, cheap fall meal<\/strong>! The chicken is seasoned with warm spices like cumin and cinnamon, which pairs so well with the sweet apples and raisins. A few tricks makes the basmati rice cook up almost impossibly fluffy and delicious<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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While this recipe does take a while to bake in the oven, I love it because it takes only 10 minutes to prep<\/strong> and clean-up is a breeze since it uses only one pan<\/strong>! The warm aroma of the spices, apples, and chicken as it cooks is an excuse enough to make this recipe- eating it is an added bonus.<\/p>\n

This recipe makes a TON, and the leftovers heat up really well in the microwave, since chicken thighs are hard to overcook. At 8 servings, you can likely feed your entire family for dinner AND still have leftovers to eat for lunch throughout the week.<\/p>\n

Speaking of feeding your entire family, I should add that this meal is very kid friendly. I mean, what kid isn’t going to like the combination of rice, apples, raisins, and cinnamon?<\/p>\n

What kind of chicken thighs to use<\/h2>\n

It’s important to use bone-in, skin OFF chicken thighs<\/strong> for this recipe. Here’s why:<\/p>\n

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  1. The skin contains a lot of fat, which will make the rice way too greasy<\/strong> and not cook properly.<\/li>\n
  2. You need bone-in chicken thighs to keep the chicken super juicy and moist<\/strong>, and make sure it doesn’t get overcooked. Bone-in chicken takes longer to cook but stays much juicier. I talk a lot about this in my oven bbq chicken recipe<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Other chicken and rice recipes may use skin-on chicken thighs, but more often than not, the chicken is seared\/partially cooked before adding to the baking pan on top of the rice. This renders some of the fat off. But, in the interest of easy, one-pan meal prep, using skin off chicken thighs is much faster and easier.<\/p>\n

    You can easily take the skin off yourself by giving it a good pull. Or, if you’re squeamish about handling raw chicken like that, you can likely ask the butcher at your grocery store to do it (these services are usually free!).<\/em><\/p>\n

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    How to make Spiced Chicken and Rice with Apples and Raisins<\/h2>\n

    This recipe is as simple as seasoning the chicken thighs, mixing the rice with apples, raisins, almonds, and chicken broth, and placing the thighs on top of the rice mixture. Then, just bake!<\/p>\n

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    1. First, preheat your oven and grease a baking dish<\/a>.<\/strong><\/li>\n
    2. Then, mix olive oil, cinnamon, cumin, salt, and pepper with the chicken thighs in a large bowl<\/strong>. This will ensure the chicken gets evenly coated in all the yumminess. Don’t skimp on the salt- I used 1 1\/2 teaspoons of kosher salt for this!<\/li>\n
    3. Mix basmati rice with diced apples, raisins, slivered almonds, salt, and pepper in the greased baking dish. <\/strong>Make sure all the grains are coated in the oil, the ingredients are evenly distributed. You can use golden or regular raisins. And the slivered almonds add a fantastic crunch to the dish, but you can use sliced almonds or another nut if you want (or leave them out).<\/em><\/li>\n
    4. Pour chicken broth on top of the rice mixture. <\/strong>I like to use homemade chicken stock<\/a> for this, but store bought is fine.<\/li>\n
    5. Place the thighs on top of the rice mixture.<\/strong> Place them smooth-side up; I guess I can’t say skin-side-up since they’re skinless! I found that this dish cooked really well with the chicken crowded in the pan- if some parts of the rice are more uncovered than others, there’s a chance it wont’ cook evenly.<\/li>\n
    6. Bake covered with foil<\/strong>, then uncovered.<\/strong> And you’re done!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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      How to make the rice really fluffy<\/h2>\n

      One of the best parts about this recipe is how perfectly cooked the rice turns out- fluffy, flavorful, and moist but not greasy. <\/p>\n