One Pot Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice

One-Pot Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice is a super easy, delicious dinner made all in one pan. This cheesy dish is a family favorite and is packed full of simple ingredients like cheddar cheese, chicken, broccoli, and tender flavorful rice. This fast recipe cooks in 30 minutes and makes a delicious flavorful weeknight meal that only has one pan to clean.

 

This cheesy dish is so delicious, and I so love that it can be made in just one pot. My kid and my husband both raved about this dish, and it’s a recipe I put into our regular rotation at our house.

Why We Love One Pot Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice

• Packed full of flavor! – This dish is so delicious and just packed full of tender chicken, rice, broccoli and melty cheddar cheese.
• All In One Pot– Skip the dishes, this meal is made all in one pot which can save you time.
• Made In 30 Minutes– This delicious dinner can be made in about 30 minutes which means you can spend less time cooking dinner and more time at the table.
• No Cream Of Canned Soup– I’m not a huge fan of condensed soup in most dishes, and this dish packs all the flavor of a chicken broccili cheese casserole without using cream of anything. This dish packs so much flavor and still feels creamy, you won’t miss the condensed soup.

Ingredients For Your Shopping List

• 1 pound chicken breasts – cut into bite sized pieces, boneless and skinless
• 2 1/2 cups broccoli florets – cut into bite sized pieces
• 3 tablespoons olive oil – divided
• 1 ¼ teaspoons salt – divided
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup diced onion – about ¼ medium onion
• 2 cloves garlic – minced, can also use 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 cup white rice long grain – basmati and jasmine rice are considered long grain rice along with ameican long grain rice. I do not recommend subsituting a short grain rice in this recipe as it needs a different amount of liquid and will make the dish clump more.
• ½ teaspoon paprika – use smoked paprika if you have it available for more flavor
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• 2 1/2 cups chicken broth –  I use low sodium broth
• 2 cups cheddar cheese – shredded

How To Make Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice All In One Pot

1. In a large skillet add two teaspoons of olive oil and turn the oven on to medium low heat. Add onions and garlic sautéing until they soften,, about 1-2 minutes.
2. Add the sliced chicken to the pan and sprinkle 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper over both sides of the chicken. Increase the heat to medium high.

3. Cook the chicken pieces for 3-4 minutes until the pink on the outside disappears. The chicken doesn’t need to fully cook through the center at this step or it may dry out further along in the recipe.
4. Turn heat back to medium and slide all the chicken to one side of the pan. Move the pan so the empty side of the pan is over the middle of the burner.
5. Add a tablespoon of olive oil in the empty side of the pan and allow it to warm. Place the uncooked rice in the olive oil and saute for 2-3 minutes, stirring until it just begins to brown.

6. Add the chicken broth, paprika and oregano to the pan and stir. Turn the heat up to medium high and bring the liquid to a boil.
7. Once the liquid boils cover the pan with a lid and turn the heat down to medium low to keep the liquid simmering. Cook chicken and rice mixture covered for about 12-13 minutes.

8. Add broccoli and sprinkle ¼ teaspoon of salt around the pan. Stir to combine the broccoli with the rice and chicken.
9. Cover the pan again and cook covered for another 8-9 minutes on low, or until broccoli and rice are both tender and the liquid has mostly absorbed. There should be a little liquid in the pan but the dish shouldn’t be still wet.

10. Turn off the heat. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top of the rice then cover for 2 minutes to melt the cheese. Serve and enjoy!

Variations Ideas And Swaps – Change The Vegetables

You can add a few more vegetables based on what you have in the fridge. For most vegetables, I recommend adding a half cup or a cup and dicing them before adding. Here are a few ideas.

• Bell pepper – Dice this vegetable and add this at the same time you’d add broccoli
• Cauliflower– Cauliflower can be swapped for some or all of the broccoli cup for cup
• Zucchini– Zucchini can be added, but I recommend adding it in the last five minutes of cooking the broccoli to avoid overcooking.
• Carrots– Slice carrots and add at the same time you add the rice and liquid for soft carrots, or at the same time as the broccoli for al dente carrots.
• Spinach– A cup of fresh diced spinach can be stirred into the dish after cooking the broccoli but before adding the cheese.

Can I Use Frozen Broccoli?

Yes you can add frozen broccoli in this recipe but you will need to change how you add the broccoli to the recipe.

Instead of adding the frozen broccoli straight to the pan, either defrost the broccoli in the microwave or steam it in a pan separately then add it at the same time you add the cheese. (*Note You will need to cook the rice for a total of 20 minutes for it to be tender.)

Frozen broccoli typically has extra water that is frozen around it. If you add the frozen broccoli straight to the pan the extra water can make both the rice and the broccoli mushy. While this extra step does mean one extra dish, it will keep your recipe tasting delicious with frozen broccoli.

What Kinds Of Rice Can I Use?

Basmati and jasmine rice are considered long-grain rice along with American long-grain rice. Any of these rice varieties can be used in this dish. I tend to use short grain rice any time I make a one pot dish, like this one-pot smoked sausage and rice.

How Do I Brown Rice In This Recipe?

Brown rice typically has a longer cook time and needs more liquid. If I was to substitute brown rice in this recipe I would add 2/3 cup extra chicken broth and add an additional 20 minutes of cook time to the 12-13 minutes you initially cook the rice, or 32-33 minutes total. Then move to the step where you add the broccoli and continue with the instructions as listed.

Brown rice typically takes 40 minutes to cook while white rice typically cooks in 20 minutes and it needs about 25 percent more liquid. Brown rice also typically makes a little less than white rice in volume.

I have not tried this swap with brown rice myself, but this is the typical conversion for white to brown rice. If you try swapping brown rice into this recipe, please let us know how it goes in the comments.

I do not recommend substituting a short-grain rice in this recipe as it needs a different amount of liquid and will make the dish clump more.

Can I Use Instant Rice In This Recipe?

I also do not recommend swapping in instant rice. Instant rice also needs a different amount of liquid than traditional long grain rice and tends to get clumpy. Instant rice has been processed and altered to absorb liquid faster and will likely need less liquid. I have not tried this recipe to adjust for instant rice.

If you try instant rice, leave a comment down below as to what changes you made.

Cheese Variation Ideas

I prefer using sharp cheddar cheese for this dish myself, but there are more options out there! You want to pick a cheese that is a semi-hard cheese for this dish. Some other delicious cheese choices might include:

Monterey Jack

Swiss

Gouda

Havarti

Edam (Did you know Babybel is Edam cheese? My kid loves those tiny cheeses.)

You can also go a little crazy and mix cheese flavors too, no limits! If you’re more of a parmesan fan, try this creamy chicken and parmesan rice.

How To Store Cheesy Broccoli Rice Leftovers

Store any leftovers in the refrigerator in a tightly covered container for up to three days. This recipe does reheat well in the microwave as well as on the stovetop. When reheating the cheese will mix more into the rice.

You can freeze any leftovers and they will be delicious for up to about a month. After a month the quality of the recipe may start to go down. I recommend defrosting this dish before heating it through to help keep the chicken from drying out.