Healthy Chicken Broccoli and Rice is an easy, one pot skillet meal you’ll love! Done in under 45 minutes, this is perfect for a quick dinner!
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On nights when you don’t feel like cooking (or doing a lot of dishes) – this Healthy Chicken and Broccoli Rice is going to be your new go to!
Made in only one pan (!!!) with basic pantry staples, this cheesy one pot chicken recipe is easy to make and super filling.
We tested this recipe over 7 times to get the perfect rice to chicken to veggie ratio.
If you like chicken and broccoli, try these next: Chicken And Broccoli Stir Fry or Chicken Rice Broccoli Casserole!
3 Great Reasons to Make Chicken Broccoli Rice Skillet
- Made in one pot – Less dishes. Need we say more?! Any day we only have to wash one dish at the end of dinner time is a good day!
- Super hearty – This dish is really filling. With 47g of protein per serving and healthy carbs from the rice, this is a meal that will keep you full! Check out these High Protein Chicken Recipes if you need more meal ideas.
- Good for picky eaters – This recipe is super flavorful, but has basic ingredients like rice, chicken and broccoli that even the pickiest of eaters will still enjoy!
Ingredients Needed for This Skillet Meal
To make chicken broccoli rice you’ll need:
- olive oil – you can use olive oil spray too!
- boneless, skinless chicken breasts – chicken thighs would also work well
- onion, garlic
- long grain white rice – we only tested this recipe with white rice. All rice cooks differently so substitute at your own risk!
- broccoli
- chicken stock – look for no or low sodium!
- dried basil, dried parsley
- garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper
- parmesan cheese
You can find substitutions for all of these ingredients below in the green shaded box.
Tips for Making Creamy Chicken and Rice in One Pot
- Be sure your skillet or pot is deep enough. This recipe has a lot of ingredients and you’ll need a large pot to hold all of them! This is our favorite pot for one pot meals.
- Wait to add the broccoli! The broccoli gets added towards the end so it doesn’t overcook/get mushy.
- Use freshly grated cheese. No parmesan cheese from the green container.. use the fresh stuff!
How to Make
- Heat olive oil over medium high heat. Saute chicken for 9-10 minutes, until the edges start to brown. Add onion and garlic and saute for an additional 5 minutes.
- Stir in rice, spices, and broth. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
- Stir in broccoli, cover and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
- Sprinkle with parmesan cheese before serving.
Ingredient Substitutions and Recipe Variations
Olive Oil: You can substitute avocado oil, butter, or ghee.
Chicken Breasts: You can substitute with boneless chicken thighs or chicken tenders.
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. We don’t recommend subbing cauliflower rice because it can be very soggy, but you can stir in frozen or fresh cauliflower rice at the very end to add in extra veggies.
Broccoli: If buying pre-cut broccoli florets you might need to give them a second rough chop
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.
Dried Spices: Feel free to use a tablespoon of fresh parsley or basil instead of dried.
Parmesan Cheese: Parmesan 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 parm- no pre-shredded cheese! (It melts so much better!)
What to Serve with Chicken Broccoli Rice
This chicken broccoli rice dish is a complete meal in itself, no need to make any sides! If you want more veggies you could serve this with some Roasted Brussels Sprouts or Roasted Lemon Parmesan Asparagus.
I also like to stir in thawed frozen cauliflower rice or fresh cauliflower rice at the end of this cooking to add extra veggies.
Storing Skillet Meal Leftovers
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 stove. If reheating on the stove, lightly spray your pan with olive oil and heat until warmed through. You could add a splash of chicken broth or water to the pot if you’d like.
Other healthy one pot dinner recipes:
If you love easy one pot recipes, check these out!
Chicken Broccoli and Rice
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into small cubes
- ½ cup onion diced
- 2 tablespoons garlic minced
- 1 cup long grain white rice dry
- 3 cups broccoli florets about 10 oz
- 3 cups chicken stock low or no salt
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add olive oil to the pan.
- Add chicken to the pan and saute for 9-10 minutes, until the edges start to brown. (The chicken doesn’t have to be completely cooked because it will continue to cook)
- Add onion and garlic to the pan with the chicken. Saute for an additional 5 minutes.
- Stir in rice, spices and broth (leave the cheese 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)
- After 10 minutes, add broccoli. Stir together, cover and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
- Sprinkle with parmesan cheese before serving.
Madison says
This recipe turned out so well! It was so easy to follow and delicious. We topped ours with some shredded cheese instead of parmesan and the whole family loved it.
Liz Marino says
Yay! So glad you all enjoyed it. Thank you so much for trying!
Melissa says
The whole family loved this!
Liz Marino says
So glad to hear that, Melissa!
Kathy Cartwright says
Nice family recipe.
Marie Austin says
added half a block of 1/3 fat cream cheese and 2 slices American cheese at the end – and instead of all the spices I did 2 tbsp of an Italian bread dip blend. I also processed the broccoli so it was small pieces (my kiddos aren’t the fondest of broccoli) and wow this is a repeat! Came together in about 25 minutes on a busy weeknight. Exactly what I needed!
Liz Marino says
This is such a good idea! I have to try it with the cream cheese – yum!!
Gayle says
This was so good & easy! Ended up using a rotisserie (cooked) chicken that I added toward the end and frozen broccoli & fresh cauliflower and everything pretty much the same and we all loved it! Oh, we had some fresh basil I used as well and fantastic!