This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
One Skillet Mexican Tomatillo Chicken and Rice—a colorful, summery one-skillet dinner! Ground chicken is cooked together with rice, smoky poblano peppers, zucchini, sweet summer corn, and a tangy tomatillo salsa verde. Everything is baked under a layer of melty cheese until bubbly and golden. Finish with a dollop of yogurt, lime-tossed avocado, and lots of fresh basil. This dish is packed with flavor and so easy to throw together—perfect for busy nights!
Half Baked Harvest At Home
20+ new recipes for wholesome comfort food made with everyday ingredients. Pre-order today! HBH At Home will be released on Tuesday, February 23rd!
To me, summer is the best time to make Mexican-inspired meals. Sweet corn is at its peak, poblanos are in season, and zucchini is everywhere. I know corn is used in lots of cuisines, but there’s something about pairing it with salsa verde and cheese that just feels so right.
I like to serve this with homemade tortilla chips for scooping—it’s the kind of dinner that’s fun and casual. My oldest brother, Creighton, turns his into a salad bowl, piling the cheesy chicken and rice over greens and loading it up with toppings. Always trying to sneak in more veggies!
Since corn is at its best right now, I doubled up on it. It’s especially delicious with the fresh, tangy flavors of the tomatillo salsa verde—my favorite summer combo.
The Quick Details
Ingredients
- salted butter
- ground chicken
- a yellow onion
- poblano peppers
- smoked paprika
- chipotle chile powder
- garlic powder
- dry rice
- zucchini
- fresh or frozen corn – I use fresh summer corn
- salsa verde – find with tomatillos as the first ingredient
- hot sauce
- mixed Mexican cheeses – I love a cheddar, colby jack, and pepper jack blend
Ingredients – for topping
- plain Greek yogurt – sour cream is good too
- shredded lettuce
- baby basil, cilantro, and scallions
- cubed or sliced avocado
- lime zest and lime juice
Special Tools
You’ll need a large oven-safe skillet. I recommend using an 11-inch cast iron skillet.
Steps
Step 1: Cook the chicken
Start by cooking the ground chicken in a large, oven-safe skillet with salted butter, diced onions, poblano peppers, smoked paprika, chipotle, and garlic powder. Let everything cook for about 10 minutes, until the chicken begins to brown and the seasonings are fragrant.
Step 2: Add the rice, corn, and zucchini
Stir in the uncooked rice, sweet corn, and zucchini. Let it all cook for a minute or two—I like to let the rice toast slightly in the butter for extra flavor.
Pour in the tomatillo salsa and a dash of hot sauce (optional for heat), then add water. Cover the skillet and let everything simmer over low heat until the rice is mostly cooked but still has a bit of bite.
Step 3: Add cheese and bake
Once the rice is nearly done and there’s still a little liquid in the skillet, remove from the heat and sprinkle a generous mix of shredded cheese over the top. I like to use a blend of cheddar, pepper jack, and colby jack.
Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for about 10 minutes. Let the cheese get melty, a little bubbly, and just begin to brown around the edges. The rice will finish cooking, and the top gets deliciously crisp.
If you have extra corn, scatter it over the top before baking—it gets perfectly roasted and adds a sweet, slightly crispy bite!
Step 4: Top it off!
Finish with a dollop of Greek yogurt or sour cream, avocado slices, a sprinkle of lime zest and juice, fresh baby basil leaves, green onions, and a pinch of flaked sea salt.
Serve with tortilla chips for scooping—yum!
An Idea
Swap the avocado slices for a scoop of charred corn guacamole. It adds smoky flavor and even more texture—so good!
Looking for other easy chicken and rice dinners? Here are my favorites:
One Pan Chipotle Honey Chicken and Rice
One Pan Lemon Pepper Yogurt Chicken and Rice
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 Skillet Mexican Tomatillo 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!
One-skillet Mexican Chicken And Rice
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 poblano pepper, chopped
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3/4 cup long grain rice
- 2 cups salsa verde
- 1/4 cup hot sauce
- 1 zucchini, sliced
- 2 cups fresh or frozen corn
- 1 1/2 cups Mexican cheeses, (cheddar/pepperjack/colby jack)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425°F.2. In a large oven-safe skillet, cook the butter, chicken, onion, poblano, paprika, chipotle, and garlic powder, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Cook for 10 minutes until browned. Add the rice. Stir in the salsa, the hot sauce, zucchini, and the corn. Add 1 1/2 cups of water. Bring to a boil.3. Place the lid on the skillet and turn the heat down to the lowest setting. Allow the rice to cook for 15 minutes, until most of the liquid has cooked into the rice, but not all of it.4. Remove from the heat. Sprinkle the cheese over the chicken/rice. Bake for 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.5. Serve topped as desired with yogurt, avocado, basil/cilantro, scallions, and lime. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
this was very good, the salsa verde to water ratio seemed off 3 1/2 cups of liquid to less than one cup of rice. I will cut it down a bit or add a little more rice as it never set up completely even with extra cook time. Also I added cumin, because you need cumin in everything.
Hi Robin! Thanks so much for trying out the recipe! I appreciate the input, I’ll definitely take it into consideration! Hope you have a great week! xT
My husband and I both really enjoyed this recipe. It’s a keeper! The honest reviews helped me figure out some changes. The only thing that I did differently was to cut the zucchini into thicker slices, brown them first, set them aside and fold them in at the end right before adding the cheese. I needed to omit the hot sauce (can’t do super spicy food) and honestly didn’t miss it.
The next time I make this, I might try chunking the zucchini and browning it in the oven, cooking the rice in seasoned chicken broth and adding it at the end along with the zucchini.
Tell me what you think. Oh, and btw, I’m definitely trying out your Caramel Peach Cobbler Muffins this week. Sounds yummy!
Hi Sylvie! That sounds wonderful! I love how you made the recipe your own, browning the zucchini first is such a smart move for keeping it tender but not mushy! Your idea of roasting the zucchini and cooking the rice in chicken broth is so smart! I bet it will be delicious. And yay for the Caramel Peach Cobbler Muffins! I think you’re going to love them! xT
Easy and delicious! With one-pot dishes with rice or pasta I’m always prepared to add more liquid as needed. Your Mexican-inspired meals are over the top! I would love to see your take on refried beans. Thank you yet again, Tieghan!!
Thank you SO much Lisa! So glad you loved this recipe! Love the idea of a refried beans recipe, I’ll have to try that out! xT
Family approved, portions were more on the 8 side, would do a homemade salsa Verde next time and honestly cheddar over the Mexican cheese
Thank you so so much Jen! I appreciate the input, and love to hear your family approved of the dish! xT
This sounds good, but as I’ve commented before on other recipes, I wish there were photos of the “mise en place”so we can see the sizes of the ingredients used. Based on the several photos of the dish, it looks like the zucchini is sliced thin. I’d think you’d want to cut it thicker, 3/8″-1/2” so it doesn’t turn to mush while the rice is cooking. Or add it shortly before topping with the cheese. Just my two cents… I’m looking forward to trying this. I’ll be on the lookout for chipotle chili powder. If not I’ll adjust with smoked paprika and chili.
Hi Vicki! Thank you so much for your thoughtful feedback! I love the idea of adding more “mise en place” photos, that’s such a great way to show ingredient prep more clearly! I hope you enjoy the recipe, and your smoked paprika + chili combo sounds like a perfect swap if you can’t find chipotle chili powder! xT
Unfortunately, this one was a miss. It took forever to get the rice to cook. I think it needs a vehicle – tortilla chips, tortillas – and then with that carb addition I’d cut down on the rice. Flavor wasn’t on point either. I still love HBH!!!
Hi Autumn! Thank you SO much for this input! I really appreciate it! Thanks for trying out the recipe and for being a supporter of HBH! Have a great weekend! xT
Where is the Tomatillo in this?
Hi Quinn! The tomatillo is in the salsa verde! Hope this helps! Have a great weekend! xT
What kind of hot sauce would recommend?
Hey Bonnie! I love franks red hot sauce! Hope you enjoyed the recipe. Have great weekend! xT
Delicious and so easy to make. Thank you for another great recipe.
Thank you SO much Cathy! I am so glad you’re enjoying this recipe! Thanks for trying out this yummy one skillet recipe for summer! 🙂 xT
I’m puzzled at questions that you just delete. I asked about “charred corn guacamole,” what it us and how you make it. Simple question; why wouldn’t you answer it?
Hey Kate! I am so sorry, I must have missed your previous comment! For the charred corn guacamole, simply make a classic guacamole recipe and then add some charred corn that has been cut off the cob! This also could be a fun recipe to use if you’re wanting a corn/avocado vibe! https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/grilled-street-corn-salad/ xT
The zucchini was overcooked and the rice was undercooked.
Hey Martie! I am so sorry you didn’t enjoy this recipe! I appreciate the input! xT
I made this tonight and it’s delicious! The freshness of the herbs and avocado and lime on top is just the perfect finish! I am thinking the leftovers tomorrow will be just as great!
Thank you SO much Dee! I am so glad you loved this yummy skillet recipe! xT
This was fantastic tonight. I doubled the chicken and halved the rice. Liquids took longer to burn off but it was worth it. It was too hot to turn the oven on today so I did it all on the stove.Flavor was yummy. This is going on regular rotation. Thanks T!
Hi Betsey! I am so glad you loved this recipe! Love to hear it’s going in the regular rotation! xT
I would like to use brown rice but w the additional cooking time, I fear the zucchini, etc will be overcooked. Thoughts?
Hi Stephanie! Yes, you can definitely use brown rice, but since it takes longer to cook, it’s best to partially cook it first or start it before adding the veggies. Then stir in the zucchini and corn toward the end so they don’t overcook. You may also need a bit more liquid to keep everything tender and flavorful! xT
I made this last night. A few issues, one the zucchini was absolute mush, got way over cooked. The other issue I had was this dish was very acidic, it needs something to balance the salsa verde and hot sauce. If I made it again I would probably cut the salsa verde in half and use a cup of chicken broth instead. It just didn’t taste great, the taste reminded me of a frozen premade meal.
Hey Leslie! I’m so sorry you didn’t enjoy this recipe! Thanks for giving it a try! I really appreciate it! xT