Buffalo Chicken and Rice is an easy one pot meal your whole family will love. Gluten free, high protein, delicious and done in under an hour!
When you need an easy one pot dinner that tastes amazing, this Buffalo Chicken and Rice is for you! This easy one pot dinner is secretly healthy, packed with protein and tastes just like Healthy Buffalo Chicken Dip.
Tender chicken and rice cook together in one pan for a no fuss meal that’s loaded with flavor. Drizzle with extra buffalo sauce and cheese for an absolutely delicious dinner!
why you’ll love this recipe
- Made in one pot: We love healthy one pan dinners and know you do too! There’s nothing better than only having one dish to clean at the end of the night!
- Perfect for meal prep: This rice skillet makes 4 large dishes. It’s great for pairing with some roasted veggies for meal prep.
- Delicious: Eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring and this recipe proves that!
Ingredients
To make buffalo chicken rice you’ll need:
- olive oil
- boneless, skinless chicken breasts – chicken thighs work too but we prefer breasts because they’re leaner
- onion & garlic
- long grain white rice – I haven’t tried with any other rice
- chicken broth – we always use our own or opt for no salt. This is a saltlier recipe, so make sure to use no/low salt chicken broth
- buffalo sauce – this is our absolute favorite
- spices: dried parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper
- cheddar cheese & blue cheese
This is our favorite pan for one pot meals.
Substitutions
Olive Oil: You can substitute avocado oil or melted butter.
Chicken Breasts: You can substitute with boneless chicken thighs or chicken tenders. We like chicken breasts best! Make sure to cut them in tiny pieces.
White Rice: Brown rice should work as a white rice substitute in this recipe, but it will take much longer to cook, and you will need to use more broth. Do not substitute 1:1 with cauliflower rice because it can be very soggy and will not absorb the broth but you can stir in frozen or fresh cauliflower rice at the very end after the rice has cooked to add in extra veggies.
Broth: Broth and stock are the same thing! You can use any broth or stock interchangeably. Beef Broth, Chicken Broth, or vegetable broth all work interchangeably. I always use low or no salt broth, especially with this recipe because buffalo sauce is salty.
Dried Spices: Feel free to use a tablespoon of fresh parsley instead of dried.
Cheese: Cheese adds so much flavor to this recipe. You can omit it, but we don’t recommend it! Feel free to substitute with dairy free cheese if you’d like. We recommend freshly grating cheddar- no pre-shredded cheese! (It melts so much better)
Add Veggies: Broccoli or green beans would be a good addition to this recipe. Add them during the last 3 minutes of cooking.
Liz’s Tip:
To speed up cook time, put your chicken broth in the microwave and warm it up! This will make the dish cook quicker.
What to Serve with this Recipe:
This buffalo chicken rice dish is a hearty meal in itself. If you want more veggies you could serve this with some Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Roasted Lemon Parmesan Asparagus, or frozen veggies (I love frozen green beans!)
I also like to stir in thawed frozen cauliflower rice or fresh cauliflower rice at the end of this cooking to add extra veggies.
Storage
Storing: This will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Freezing: You can freeze this recipe for up to 3 months. We like these containers for freezing!
Rice can get a little mushy when frozen, but it will still taste delicious.
Reheating: You can reheat this recipe in the microwave or on the stovetop in a skillet. We recommend reheating on the stovetop as chicken can get a funny texture when microwaved.
Other healthy one pot dinner recipes:
Looking for other easy meals? Check out these Healthy Dinner Recipes. Click here to grab our free one pot dinners cookbook.
Buffalo Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into small cubes
- ½ cup diced onion
- 2 tablespoons garlic minced
- 2 cups grated carrots
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup dry long grain white rice
- 3 cups chicken stock low or no salt
- 1/2 cup buffalo sauce
- 3 teaspoons dried parsley
- 3 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup blue cheese optional
- 1 cup nonfat greek yogurt optional
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add olive oil to the pan.
- Add chicken to the pan and saute for 8-10 minutes, until the edges start to brown. (The chicken doesn’t have to be completely cooked because it will continue to cook for at least another 15 minutes.
- Add onion, garlic and celery to the pan with the chicken. Saute for an additional 3 minutes.
- Stir in carrots, rice, broth, buffalo sauce and spices (leave the cheese and yogurt til the end!) Cover and cook for 10 minutes. (Pro Tip: to speed up cook time, microwave your broth until warm before adding to the pan)
- Once cooked, stir in cheddar cheese and top with blue cheese. You can drizzle with extra buffalo sauce!
Leave a Review