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The easiest One Pan Lemon Pepper Yogurt Chicken and Rice. Trust me, this is going to become your new go-to chicken and rice dinner. Chicken breasts or thighs marinated with olive oil, garlic, yogurt, lemon, pepper, oregano, thyme, and paprika. All tossed together with dry basmati rice and broccoli. This juicy marinated chicken and rice is all made in one pan without even having to cook the rice separately. Simply mix, bake, eat, and enjoy! You’re going to LOVE this.
I couldn’t think of a better Monday night dinner. I can’t even begin to express to you how simple this is, but even more importantly, how delicious!
We all know the story. When I grew up our dinners consisted of beef tacos, pasta with red sauce, maybe a takeout pizza here and there, or on very special nights, BW3s. And then, of course, there was chicken and rice. So much chicken and rice. Aside from tacos, chicken and rice was the staple meal. And it was on rotation once, twice, sometimes even three nights a week.
We ate a lot of chicken and rice growing up. It was either mom’s Sunday roasted chicken with boxed rice pilaf, dad’s grilled chicken (and rice), or my brother’s favorite, potato chip chicken (and rice). Again, so much chicken and rice.
You’d think it would be a dinner that I would not want to repeat as an adult. Shockingly, I’ll revert back to our staple family meal once or twice a month. I guess it’s just my comfort food.
For the longest time, I tried to recreate the Monday night dinner my mom would often make. Roasted chicken (whole chicken or just tenders) with a boxed rice or roni-style mix. I’ve never come close, but then I made this – and this is it.
You need just one baking dish with the most minimal ingredients and almost zero prep time.
The secret to this recipe, and all the flavor, is actually the reason the recipe is so SIMPLE – cooking the rice and chicken slowly together. This creates the most flavorful, juicy, pull-apart, tender chicken, and the tastiest rice.
Sounds too good to be true, but this is one of those recipes that just works so wonderfully well.
Ingredients
- chicken thighs or breasts
- extra virgin olive oil
- plain Greek yogurt
- lemon zest
- garlic, chopped
- black pepper, using more to your taste
- dried oregano
- dried thyme
- paprika
- onion powder
- kosher salt and chili flakes
- dry basmati rice
- salted butter
- roughly chopped broccoli
Details
Start with the chicken. The greek yogurt marinade makes all the difference. Marinate it in olive oil and yogurt with lemon zest, pepper, and garlic. Then add dried oregano, thyme, paprika, and a nice helping of salt and chili flakes (if desired).
If time allows, you can marinate the chicken for 30 minutes or overnight. If you’re in a time crunch, just start cooking. I’ve now made this both ways and there’s not a huge difference.
Start off by grabbing a baking dish. Use something around the size of a 9×13-inch pan. Add the dry rice, I love to use basmati, and then add broccoli. Pour water overtop and then add a couple of salted pats of butter.
Place the chicken directly over the rice, then bake. I don’t even cover the pan or anything. This cooks up beautifully in just about 30 minutes. But the timing will depend on the size of your chicken and the size of your baking dish.
Top with any fresh herbs you enjoy most, then serve and enjoy.
As the chicken roasts, the juices drip down into the rice creating a REAL chicken-flavored rice situation. It’s so delicious!
And the chicken doesn’t dry out since it’s roasted over a bit of water. As the water cooks into the rice, the chicken slowly and beautifully roasts and gets perfectly crisp.
It’s honestly just the best. I might not go back to cooking chicken and rice any other way! Just add some 5 ingredient beer bread to really complete the Gerard family staple. A comfort meal at its best!
Looking for other easy chicken and rice dinners? Here are my favorites:
One Skillet Louisiana Style Chicken and Rice
Broccoli Cheddar Chicken and Rice Casserole
Cheesy Zucchini Chicken and Rice Bake
Slow Cooker Herbed Chicken and Rice Pilaf
Spicy Sesame Chicken and Ginger Rice
Lastly, if you make this One Pan Lemon Pepper Yogurt Chicken and Rice, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Why do you soak chicken in yogurt and how long can I marinate chicken in yogurt?
Yogurt tenderizes chicken and gives it that juicy taste and tender texture. You can marinade chicken in yogurt for 20 minutes or up to 24 hours.
One Pan Lemon Pepper Yogurt Chicken and Rice
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 593 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs or breasts (skin on or off)
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 2-4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1- teaspoons black pepper, using more to your taste
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- kosher salt and chili flakes
- 1 3/4 cups dry basmati rice
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 cups roughly chopped broccoli
Instructions
- 1. In a bowl, toss together the chicken, olive oil, yogurt, lemon zest, garlic, pepper, oregano, thyme, paprika, onion powder, and a good pinch of salt and chili flakes (if desired). If time allows, marinate for 30 minutes or overnight.2. Preheat the oven to 400°. 3. Pour the rice and broccoli into a 9×13-inch baking dish. Pour over 2 cups of water. Add the butter. Arrange the chicken over the rice and broccoli. Add lemon wedges, if desired. Bake 30-40 minutes, until the rice is fluffy and the chicken is cooked through. If the rice is hard, add 1/3 cup water and cook for an additional 10 minutes. 4. Severe the chicken, rice, and broccoli topped with fresh basil and or thyme. And enjoy!
A no for me. Super bland and the water/rice ratio is way off. I added salt but still, even when I added the correct amount of liquid, the rice was very unevenly cooked. I liked that the broccoli wasn’t overcooked, but even the marinade (which wasn’t as flavorful as I like a marinade to be) didn’t help. I added salt and will use stock for this method again, but the only way I could save the leftovers was to use a cheese sauce. This one needs some rethinking with flavor and correct ratios. Sorry.
Thanks so much for all your food-inspo! I made this tonight (added some fresh Dill that I had lying around, jasmin rice and chicken broth instead of water). It’s now a weekly staple.
Hey Shae,
Happy Sunday!! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks a lot for making it and your review! xT
This worked great for me. Delicious! I used broth, but other than that, followed it perfectly. Topping with fresh basil and a squeezed lemon is a must. Will make it again!
Hey Tiffany,
Awesome!! Thanks a bunch for making this dish and sharing what worked well for you, so glad to hear it was enjoyed! xT
I made this and it was delicious. I added chicken broth and lemon slices before baking. Next time, I would double the brocolli. I also used boneless skinless thighes and added a couple extra.
Hi Jane,
Happy Sunday!! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks a lot for making it and your review! xT
I’m skipping making the rice/ broccoli sides with the chicken based on the comments but still wanted to try the marinade for the chicken! How long should I cook the chicken (solo) for and at what temp ?
Hi Sam,
I would follow the recipe cook time and temp as is for the chicken, it should be perfect! I hope you love this recipe! xT
This missed the mark. However, the chicken flavor was decent! I marinated the chicken overnight so that it would really soak in the flavor! The rice proportions don’t seem correct to me. Usually, it’s 2 cups of water for 1 cup of rice, and this recipe lists that you need 1 3/4 cup rice and 2 cups water. That’s probably the reason for some many people getting crunchy rice. I did 2 cups chicken broth and 1 cup basmati and it was fine! I also added onions, garlic, and mushrooms to the rice to try and jazz it up since it sounded so bland from reviewers. I also seasoned the broccoli before putting it in the casserole dish. I just couldn’t imagine eating this dish with the chicken having flavor and rice and broccoli having nothing added. My husband was also not a fan.
I agree with your observations. I feel dumb. I should’ve snapped that the ratio of water to rice was off, but I followed along like a robot. So ultimately my fault for not thinking on my own. Afterall, it could’ve just been a mistake in the recipe, a typo. I should know better though. I think the seasoning on the rice/broccoli was off. It was tasty once I added in salt. That said, I don’t use salted butter. I will try this again though, and switch out chicken broth for the water. I think that will help.
Hi Kristen,
Happy Sunday! Thanks of trying this dish and sharing your review! So glad to hear you enjoyed the chicken. I can promise you I tested this recipe a lot with all of the measurements and never had any issues, so I’m so sorry the rice didn’t work for you! Sorry for the trouble! xx
so i too read comments after i put it in the oven. i did use broth not water, but i wish i added salt to the rice and coated the broccoli with olive oil, salt and pepper or the marinade….so reviews in the house goes as follows: chicken was delish, they LOVED the flavor and make those few adjustments to the rice and broccoli next time i make it
rice cooked very well in the oven, i used jasmine and followed measurements on the bag
thx for the recipe:)
Hey Mary,
Happy Saturday!! So glad to hear that your family enjoyed the chicken, thanks for making this dish and sharing your feedback! xT
Chicken was absolutely fantastic- everything else was meh. I used too much rice, and wonder if that is the case for others who complained of blandness. The parts I mixed with rice and chicken and broccoli all together was fantastic. Will make again and cut it down to maybe just 1 cup of rice. We also used Sona Masori instead of basmati bc that’s what I had.
Hi Susan,
So glad to hear you enjoyed the flavors from the chicken!! I would try using chicken stock for the rice next time in place of the water, it seems a lot of people enjoyed that! I hope this helps! xx
No flavour! Yuck
I usually love all her dishes but this one was not my favorite. It was not tasty, felt like it needed spices. Like another person said that the marinade was good, and it was…. But the rest no! Everyone on the table passed after having a tiny bit, or left it on the plate. Adults as well as children. Will not make it again.
Hi Maggie,
So sorry to hear that this recipe was not enjoyed. Like I mentioned to another reader, I’m not sure why some are loving this and others not so much! Please let me know if there is anything I need to clarify! xx
I absolutely loved this recipe!! I used bone-in chicken thighs with skin on and it turned out so tender with the yogurt marinade! And the rice turned out great too, with a great flavor from the lemon wedges and chicken oils. My husband and kids all loved it! I didn’t (never do) measure any of the spices or the water for the rice, just eye balled it to what seemed right, so maybe others who found it bland can add more spices.
Will definitely make again!
Hey Maryam,
Thanks so much!! I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you and I appreciate you making it! Have a great weekend:)
Wish I’d read the comments before making this. The marinade is good, the chicken cooked perfectly. The rice wasn’t cooked, I probably added 3/4c more of water to get it closer to cooked and covered with foil for the last 15 minutes hoping to steam the top parts. The rice is flavorless. should have mixed in the marinade with the rice or maybe used broth? Only had half a lemon, but those bits of rice were the best. Don’t skip the lemon!
Totally agree. I gave it a rating of 3 by accident but should have been 1. Not tasty!
Hi there,
Thanks so much for making this recipe! So sorry to hear you didn’t love it! What kind of rice did you use? It seems like a lot of people are enjoying using chicken broth in place of the water to give the rice more flavor! xT
I love all your recipes and have been making a few of them as house staples, but this one totally missed the mark. 🙁 I followed it to a T and it was super plain and almost not palatable. I will stick with your curries and other dishes, they are much more delicious. 🙂
Hi Stacy,
So sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! Please let me know if there is anything that I can help troubleshoot! xx
Loved this! I was worried after reading some comments, but this will definitely be a weekday staple. I made a few adjustments based on comments and it turned out great!
Replaced water with chicken stock
Ended up cooking for a bit longer to allow all the liquid to cook down, almost 60 minutes total. Top layer or rice was a tiny bit hard but didn’t take away from the dish for me 😊
Hey Rachel,
Happy Friday!!🍉🍓 Thanks a bunch for giving this recipe a try and your comment, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! xx
We loved this. So easy and very flavorful. Honestly, I was worried about how this would work bc of all the reviews but ours turned out exactly as advertised.
The only things I can think that would help…
use an oven safe meat thermometer and pull the dish out when chicken is 165 degrees
Make sure you marinate the chicken exactly as recipe says and place all the marinade and chicken on the rice when ready to cook
Use the extra water option in recipe
🙂
Hi Juleen,
Fantastic! I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe:) Thanks so much for making it and sharing what worked well for you! xT
Agree with other reviews. I’ve tried a bunch of awesome HBH recipes and will not be trying this one again. Not enough water to actually cook rice, took much longer to cook than expected, I added a ton of seasoning to the rice so that it wasn’t just white rice. I won’t be making this again but I still love HBH!
Hi Brit,
So sorry for the trouble! Thanks for making this recipe and sharing your feedback! Let me know if there is anything that I can help with! xT