Crispy chicken thighs on top of easy peasy cheesy broccoli rice is a great, quick weeknight meal that takes very little effort but delivers big on taste and texture.
Say hello to the crispy chicken thighs of your dreams. All golden, crackly skin and succulent meat. On top of creamy, cheesy, broccoli rice. Is this the stuff weeknight meal dreams are made of? I think so. Because let’s face it, who needs more than crispy-skin chicken ON TOP of cheesy rice for dinner? No-one, that’s who.
But it’s confession time. This cheese-broccoli-rice-thingamabob has been on regular rotation in this house because a) mamma is lazy and b) cheesy-broccoli-rice is a thing that needs to be more present in all of our lives. And most nights when I serve it, I don’t even bother with the crispy chicken thighs because honestly you guys, it is that good. But every now and then I might have a few chicken thighs hanging around and in those instances, I give them a quick treatment with some s&p, olive oil and lemon before placing them in a hot oven to go all crisp and gorgeous. (I mean, can we just take a moment to appreciate that skin?!)
The deal with the rice is equally simple. Fry some onion and garlic until soft and fragrant, add the rice, a splash of wine (optional) and then stock. Slowly simmer until the rice has almost absorbed all the liquid then top with the broccoli florets and allow to steam until the rice and broccoli are both cooked. Add a splash of cream (again: optional) and a good handful of mozzarella then stir through, et voila. There is nothing more joyous than taking a big spoonful of rice from the serving dish only to be met with strands of melty mozzarella. Swoon. And we all know dinners you can swoon over are the best kind of dinners.
How to make chicken thigh skin crispy?
The best way to ensure crispy skin is to make sure the skin is quite dry before going into the hot oven. I drizzle the chicken with a little lemon juice then season generously with salt and pepper before rubbing the seasoning into the skin. Place in a baking dish or roasting pan and place in a hot oven. Allow the chicken to roast for until golden brown, crisp and cooked through.
How long to bake cook chicken thighs?
For crispy skin and fully cooked thighs, bake the chicken thighs for 30-40 minutes at 200ºC/400ºF.
What to make with chicken thighs?
- Easy side salad with lemon dressing
- Easy marinated cucumber salad
- Crispy salt and pepper smashed potatoes
- Maple butter mashed sweet potatoes
- Easy spicy garlic baked potato wedges
Chicken thigh recipes
- Lemon pepper chicken thighs
- Easy honey garlic chicken thighs
- Chicken Piccata Thighs
- Coconut curry chicken thighs
Crispy chicken thighs on cheesy broccoli rice
Ingredients
for the crispy chicken thighs
- 8 skin-on chicken thighs
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- salt & pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
for the cheesy broccoli rice
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1½ cups Jasmine rice
- ½ cup white wine
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 head broccoli broken into florets
- 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°c.
- Drizzle the olive oil and lemon juice over the chicken thighs then season with salt and pepper and place in the oven to bake for 30-45 minutes or until cooked through and the skin has crisped.
- To make the rice, add a drizzle of olive oil to a medium-sized pot/deep pan (with lid) and saute the onion and garlic until soft and fragrant.
- Add the rice, wine and stock and bring up to a boil.
- Lower the heat and cover with a lid and allow to simmer until 3/4 of the liquid has been absorbed. Add the broccoli then cover again to simmer/steam until the rice and broccoli are completely cooked.
- Turn the heat off then season to taste and add the mozzarella. Stir through.
- At this stage the rice can be allowed to steam, covered, for a further 15-20 minutes until the chicken is cooked.
- Serve the chicken on top of the cheesy broccoli rice.
Nutrition
Pro: The chicken suggestion – temp, time, seasoning – spot on! It was perfectly cooked, with crispy skin! It’s my go to plan for all bone-in thigh recipes going forward, so thank you! Con: I didn’t find the rice to be “all that”. The consistency was NOT appealing, it was bland, and I won’t be using the recipe again. I have other rice recipes that I will rely on, and will use with your chicken. I hope others have better luck and it was “operator error.”
Fabulous! Family loved it. Will definitely make this again. Thank you!
I’m so happy you and your family liked it Melissa!
Made this last night 🙂 my family loved it!! Crispy chicken with real comfort style rice! Was truly delicious!
Oh yay! I’m so glad to hear you loved it Lucy!
Perfect family dinner and my kids loved it! Thanks!
That’s so good to hear. 🙂
Lady, you are a genius with this rice!! My twins and husband wolfed it down. I served it with baked meatballs though. Definitely one to keep on the weekly menu! Thank you so much for making my life simpler xxxxx
That’s so wonderful to hear Linda. Love the idea of making it with baked meatballs!
we made these last night, they tasted just perfect. Thanks for sharing.
Simon
I’m so glad to hear that Simon! 🙂
Am I reading correctly a whole onion in the rice
Yep, but of course you could reduce the quantity to suit your own palate.
What is the difference between regular 20 minute white rice and Jasmine rice? I’ve never used Jasmine.
Thanks, Janet
Jasmine rice is much more fragrant and a little sticky, often used in Asian cooking. I just prefer it to regular rice but you could use regular white rice or Basmati in its place easily.
Holy crispy chicken Batman. Definitely on my menu for this week.
🙂 Let me know what you think once you’ve made it!
You are the queen of all chicken dishes. That skin on the chicken looks too good to be true. It actually looks fried. Drooling over here.
Oh, you are too kind. And yep, that skin is magic.
What does 100ml of white wine equate to? Recipe sounds very interesting.
Sorry for the confusion, it was actually meant to be 125ml so I’ve changed the measurement to 1/2 cup to make things easier.
I’m drooling over this dish Alida! It’s the perfect kind of comfort food! I will absolutely take more than a moment to appreciate the crispy skin on that chicken. And that rice sounds so easy and just perfect with the chicken. Thanks for sharing this one!
Thanks so much Mary Ann. That crispy skin is everything right now. 😉