This one pot chicken and dirty rice is a dish washing hater’s dream! The chicken is cooked on top of the rice for the most flavorful dish ever!
Amazing Cajun-style flavors collide in this one pot chicken and dirty rice! The crispy chicken, spicy andouille sausage and fluffy dirty rice… all made from scratch… make each bite a true explosion of flavor!
Everyone loves a great one pot meal. Anytime you can lessen the amount of dishes that need washed, it’s a huge win. That’s the second reason why I love this one pot chicken and dirty rice SO much.
The first reason why I love this one pot chicken and dirty rice so much… is the FLAVOR!! Yep, that deserves to be in all caps, because it’s. just. that. GOOD! Even the leftovers will knock your socks off.
There really aren’t any surprise or secret ingredients to make it so good, it’s more about HOW it’s cooked. The chicken and andouille cook on top of the rice, which means all the delicious juices go right down into the rice. It’s like cooking the rice in a super concentrated chicken stock full of spices!
I used this cooking method from an amazing blogger, Nagi, from RecipeTin Eats, and just adapted it to these Cajun-style flavors!
If you’re worried about the spice, you can totally customize it to your tastes. Here’s how…
To Make it Hotter:
- Don’t take the seeds out of the jalapeno
- Add more than one jalapeno
- Use more cayenne and red pepper flakes
To Make it Milder:
- Use a green bell pepper instead of the jalapeno
- Use less cayenne and red pepper flakes
- Substitute regular smoked sausage for the andouille
This is one instance where I really love using my enameled dutch oven. There will be baked on bits of food that will probably need soaking (which you can’t do with a regular cast iron), and it browns food like a dream.
Give this one pot chicken and rice a chance this Fall… I really think you’ll love the Cajun-style flavors!! Simply put, you need this dish in your life!
Helpful Tools for This Recipe:
Lodge Enameled Cast Iron Braiser – This is my go-to pot for just about any dish like this… plus, cleanup is a dream!
Long Grain White Rice – I really like this brand!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- MARINADE:
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp dried minced onion
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- enough olive oil to make a paste about 1 Tbsp, but this will vary from person to person
- REST OF DISH:
- 2 Tbsp Olive oil
- 1 link of andouille sausage sliced into 1/4" slices
- 4 bone-in skin on chicken thighs
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 1 jalapeno pepper seeded and diced
- 2 celery stalks diced
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- pinch of red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup DRY long-grain rice
- 2 1/4 cup chicken stock or broth
- Sliced green onions for garnish
- Minced fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Combine all marinade ingredients in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add chicken thighs and turn to coat. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Add drizzle of olive oil to dutch oven and heat over MED-HIGH heat. Brown andouille sausage on both sides, then transfer sausage to a plate.
- Add chicken thighs, skin side down, and sear for 2-3 minutes per side, to develop a nice crispy skin.
- Transfer chicken to plate with the sausage, and use a paper towel to wipe out any black bits from the pan. Brown bits and pan drippings are good to leave in though.
- Lower heat to MED-LOW and add in chopped onion, jalapeno and celery. Saute for about 2-3 minutes, until softened.
- Add cayenne, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper and stir.
- Add rice and chicken stock, give it a stir, and let simmer for 1 minute.
- Nestle chicken thighs and sausage on top of the rice (pour in the juices that are left on the plate as well). Return to a simmer, then cover.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes (covered).
- Remove cover and bake another 10-15 minutes, until liquid is absorbed into the rice.
- Garnish with sliced green onions and minced parsley!
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Video
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Alissa says
Made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious!! The boyfriend devoured it even before it had time to cool down. I cooked it on the stove top though because I don’t have any oven safe cooking pots yet. I also added a frozen pea, carrot and bean mix in for some extra veg. It worked wonderfully. Definitely saving this recipe!!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Alissa 🙂 I’m SO happy to hear that you both loved it so much! I’m also glad to hear that you were able to adapt it to the stove-top 🙂
Stacey says
I was planning to try this tonight. Based on the comments, do you recommend NOT doubling the recipe, or will it just take longer to cook? I have boneless, skinless thighs on hand. Could I use them instead or should i go to the store and get skin on bone in? Thanks!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Stacey 🙂 Yes, you can use boneless skinless thighs, just put the chicken in the pan 20 minutes into the baking time (since it won’t need to cook as long without the bones). I can’t say for certain whether it can be doubled… as I’ve never done it, this meal is plenty for our family of 4. For the comment above, (without knowing the type of pan, if everything was followed correctly, type of rice used, etc), doubling it was the the only variable I could think of that would cause the recipe to turn out like she said it did. I hope you love it as much as we do!
Stacey says
Thank you! I’ll let you know how it turns out!
Arielli says
It’s Arielli again. Thanks for the tip i’ll do that!
One more thing, not sure why I’m experiencing this on this recipe but I bookmarked this page and every time I load it, it takes me straight to the bottom of the page (btw I’m on an iPhone). I bookmarked other recipes on your blog and when I load them it takes me to the top of the page, as it should. Not sure if this is associated with the particular setup of this page or if others are experiencing the same issue.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Arielli 🙂 You’re welcome! It’s because somehow when you bookmarked it, it saved it with your comment as part of the url… I’ve done this myself a few times on other websites.
Arielli says
Hi there
Made this twice (without the sausage) in the past 2weeks. Very tasty, easy and quick
I want to add (tail on) shrimp next time, when do you recommend I add it? I imagine I won’t have to precook it ?
Thanks!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Arielli 🙂 I’m so happy that you’ve enjoyed the dish!! Shrimp would be a great addition… although I haven’t cooked it that way before, so I can’t say for certain, but I think when you take the lid off for the last 10 minutes of cooking would be a good time to add the shrimp, since they don’t take long to cook 🙂
Mary Jane Watson says
Hello. I came across this on pinterest and happened to have all the ingredients on hand so I made it for dinner for my family last night. I doubled the recipe since I had 8 chicken thighs instead of 4. I have a large cast iron pot so everything fit in nicely. It came out awful. Not only did it take 40 minutes longer to cook than the recipe stated, if I hadn’t check on it and stirred the rice often ( I had to remove the chicken thighs, stir the rice, then replace the chicken) it would have all been uncooked instead of just some of the rice. The rice towards the bottom of the dish was mushy and the rice at the top was still uncooked. I went by the chicken internal temperature for my cooking time, and there was so much oil and grease that the partially cooked mostly mushy rice was inedible. The seasoning on the chicken was good, I think next time I will cook the chicken and rice separate.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Mary 🙂 I’m sorry you didn’t have a great experience with this recipe… I know how frustrating that can be. However, I think the reason it didn’t turn out is that you doubled it… as I’ve used this method NUMEROUS times, with no problems, as have many others. Even if you have a larger pan, I think there’s just too much going on for it to cook as directed in the recipe, which is why it needed much longer to cook the chicken through. I’m glad you enjoyed the flavor though, and hope next time you can adapt things to your liking 🙂
Cheryl says
This looks incredibly delicious!! I’m marinating the chicken now. My question is can it marinate overnight? Our friends surprised us by taking us out to dinner so I was going to make it tomorrow. Is that OK?
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Cheryl 🙂 I think it will be perfectly fine to marinate it overnight… just make sure it’s in an airtight bag or container in the refrigerator 🙂
Shannon says
Could this be done in a crock pot, and if so how would you suggest doing it?
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Shannon 🙂 I’ve never done it in the slow cooker, as it’s designed to be a one pot stovetop/oven meal… but it might work. What I would suggest is to brown the sausage and chicken, and cook onions and peppers as directed. Then move all the rice components, including the chicken stock, to the slow cooker. Lay the chicken thighs and sausage on top of the rice, cover and cook on LOW for 2-3 hours. I would check on the rice about halfway through cooking and see how it’s doing. If it’s dry, add a splash of chicken stock. You may have to play around with times, since all slow cookers are different and I didn’t develop and test this version myself 🙂 Good luck!
Yasmine says
Has anyone tried making this dish in a different pot than the one she mentioned? Any success? I don’t have the one she uses.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Yasmine 🙂 It doesn’t have to be the exact pot, you just want something that can go from the stovetop to the oven. If it doesn’t have a lid, you could even use foil to cover the pan 🙂
Joelle D says
This looks so good! Thanks for the recipe! Do you think I could make this in a crock pot? Any suggestions for a crock pot version?
THANKS!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Joelle 🙂 Thank you! I’ve never done it in the slow cooker, as it’s designed to be a one pot stovetop/oven meal… but it might work. What I would suggest is to brown the sausage and chicken, and cook onions and peppers as directed. Then move all the rice components, including the chicken stock, to the slow cooker. Lay the chicken thighs and sausage on top of the rice, cover and cook on LOW for 2-3 hours. I would check on the rice about halfway through cooking and see how it’s doing. If it’s dry, add a splash of chicken stock. You may have to play around with times, since all slow cookers are different and I didn’t develop and test this version myself ? Good luck!
mila says
I use Nagi’s method as well!!! It really is the best isn’t it?!? And ummm this…this is gorgeous. the colors the textures! Everything is ridiculously stunning!
Big Dave says
Made this last nite and my bride gave it 10+ stars Would love to see more “One Pot” recipes. Thank you sooooooooooo much.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Dave 🙂 I’m SO happy to hear that you both loved this dish!! I have some more one-pot style recipes in the works, so stay tuned 🙂
Julia @ HappyFoods says
This looks just perfect to me! Gosh, when it comes to dishes I sometimes feel like the huge pile in the sink is like a never ending story! I wash them, dry them and put them away and there it’s time to make another dish again lol!
Krista says
I cannot believe something this delicious can be made in just one pot!
Meg @ With Salt and Wit says
What a great looking dinner!!
Renee - Kudos Kitchen says
This dish looks seriously tasty. I love all that fluffy rice, sausage and chicken…in one pot! I’m lucky, my husband normally does the dishes after dinner so I know he’d appreciate this meal for more than one reason.
Heather | All Roads Lead to the Kitchen says
I’m raising both hands! And seriously, you can just see the flavor in this dish, it looks incredible. Adding to my “dinner” bookmarks!
Katerina @ diethood .com says
The perfect weeknight dinner!! It looks incredible!!
Kacey @ The Cookie Writer says
I am a weirdo and don’t mind dishes, lol. Everyone is floored I do not touch my dishwasher! But my hands sure hate me. I can definitely stand behind this meal if it will save me some time! Plus I know my family will love it!
Jocelyn (Grandbaby cakes) says
I seriously cannot get over how delicious this looks. Seriously unreal!
Nagi@RecipeTinEats says
This is too funny! I have almost the SAME recipe in my drafts folder right now – BA HA HA!!! This looks absolutely delicious Amanda 🙂 I’m so honoured to be mentioned, thank you!N x
The Chunky Chef says
Lmao, that is hilarious!! Great minds right? 😉 Can’t wait to see your version! Thank you so much Nagi, your cooking method is just perfect 🙂