Healthy Chicken & Rice Recipes

Find healthy, delicious chicken and rice recipes, from the food and nutrition experts at EatingWell.

Staff Picks

Chicken & Broccoli Casserole

Rating: Unrated
7
This one-pan chicken-and-broccoli recipe comes out of the oven all browned, cheesy and bubbling like a casserole, but is really prepared more like a skillet meal on the stovetop. Serve with a crunchy green salad.
By Robin Bashinsky

Slow-Cooker Butter Chicken

Rating: Unrated
5
Browning the chicken and sautéing the aromatics before everything goes into the crock pot is key to building the flavors in our version of this popular curry.
By Adam Dolge

French Onion Dip Chicken & Rice Casserole

This creamy French onion dip chicken and rice casserole topped with crispy potato chips is perfect for game day or whenever you want a comforting meal the whole family will love.
By Liv Dansky

Louisiana Gumbo

Rating: Unrated
8
Chock-full of shrimp, chicken, sausage, okra and tomatoes, this flavorful stew is a staple in Louisiana. Make it a meal and serve with Real Cornbread (see associated recipe).
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Cauliflower Chicken Fried "Rice"

Rating: Unrated
9
Get an extra serving of vegetables and cut back on carbs by replacing rice with riced cauliflower in this healthy chicken fried rice recipe.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Arroz con Pollo

Rating: Unrated
9
Arroz con pollo, or chicken cooked with rice, is a common dish in Spain, Latin America and the Caribbean. We use quick-cooking brown rice here to help you get this on the table in just 40 minutes. Serve with a mixed green salad tossed with cilantro-lime vinaigrette.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Roast Chicken with Parmesan-Herb Sauce

Rating: Unrated
4
A store-bought rice blend and quick-cooking chicken breast help get this healthy chicken recipe on the dinner table fast. Check the label to avoid excessive sodium or other undesirable ingredients. Other herbs, such as rosemary and sage, are also delicious in this recipe.
By Hilary Meyer

Korean Chicken Soup

Rating: Unrated
4
This quick and easy spicy chicken soup recipe is made with leftover cooked chicken and is spiked with garlic, ginger and hot sauce.
By Natalie Danford

Green Veggie Bowl with Chicken & Lemon-Tahini Dressing

Rating: Unrated
4
For this healthy 30-minute dinner, treat your veggies like pasta and cook until al dente, or just done. If you have a little extra time, double or triple the lemon-tahini dressing and use it to quickly dress a salad or as a sauce for steak or shrimp.
By Joy Howard

Japanese Chicken-Scallion Rice Bowl

Rating: Unrated
15
Here's the quintessence of Japanese home cooking: an aromatic, protein-rich broth served over rice. Admittedly, Japanese cooking leans heavily on sugar--for a less traditional taste, you could reduce or even omit the sugar.
By Victoria Abbott Riccardi

Kale, Wild Rice & Chicken Stew

Chicken thighs get perfectly tender in just a few hours in the slow cooker. Plus, cooking everything together low and slow infuses all the flavors together for complexity in every bite.
By Devon O'Brien

Chicken & Broccoli with Herb Butter Sauce

This one-pan chicken and broccoli dinner is simple, healthy and packed with flavor. After the chicken roasts, we turn the drippings into a smooth and velvety pan sauce by adding a little stock and butter.
By Adam Dolge

Inspiration and Ideas

Mustard-Maple Chicken with Wild Rice Pilaf

Mustard-Maple Chicken with Wild Rice Pilaf

This slow-cooker meal is simple to prepare and will elicit rave reviews from everyone at your table. The wild rice pilaf is started early in the slow cooker and followed up by the chicken and sweet and tangy maple-mustard sauce. It's a mouthwatering combination!
Slow-Cooker Arroz con Pollo (Chicken & Rice)

Slow-Cooker Arroz con Pollo (Chicken & Rice)

Rating: Unrated
1
This one-pot chicken dinner, inspired by the traditional dish of Spain and Latin America, comes together easily in the crock pot. The instant brown rice is added near the end, to keep it from overcooking.
Gluten-Free Teriyaki Chicken with Broccoli

Gluten-Free Teriyaki Chicken with Broccoli

Lemon Chicken & Rice

Lemon Chicken & Rice

Rating: Unrated
2
Sweet & Sour Chicken

Sweet & Sour Chicken

Rating: Unrated
1
Pressure-Cooker Chicken & Rice (Arroz con Pollo)

Pressure-Cooker Chicken & Rice (Arroz con Pollo)

Rating: Unrated
3

Chili-Rubbed Chicken with Coconut Rice & Mango Salsa

Rating: Unrated
2

This recipe is great for meal prep. Divide the salsa, rice and chicken among 4 food-storage containers and you've got 4 days of ready-made meals in your fridge.

All Healthy Chicken & Rice Recipes

Thai Yellow Chicken Thigh Curry

Rating: Unrated
3
Yellow curry paste is generally spicier than green but not as spicy as red, making it just right for this easy stir-fried chicken thigh recipe. Sizzling the curry paste in oil before making the curry gives it a boost in complexity.
By Julia Clancy

Caldo Tlalpeno

Rating: Unrated
8
Although there are many variations of this Mexican chicken soup, spicy chipotle chiles are always part of the broth. Make it a meal: Serve with a Mexican beer and cheese quesadillas.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Easy Chicken Tikka Masala

Rating: Unrated
1
It's hard to believe you can get such a full-flavored, deeply spiced chicken tikka masala in just 30 minutes, but we did it! And, like the title says, this classic chicken tikka masala recipe really is as easy as it gets.
By Robin Bashinsky

Trinidadian Pelau with Chicken

Maya Feller, M.S., RD, CDN, of Brooklyn-based Maya Feller Nutrition, recommends this cost-conscious recipe to clients looking to prepare satisfying, nutritious meals at home. “Pelau is a hearty dish that can be prepared in big batches and enjoyed over time,” she says. (This recipe was part of a feature story, "The Real Cost of Healthy Food," in EatingWell magazine and has not been tested by our Test Kitchen.)
By Maya Feller M.S., RD, CDN

Meal-Prep Cilantro-Lime Chicken Bowls

Prep all four servings of this easy recipe at once for ready-to-eat dinners or packable lunches for the rest of the week. If you don't like a lot of heat, try using mild chili powder, and leave out the jalapeño from the rice.
By Carolyn Casner

Pressure-Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

This classic Indian-inspired dish typically takes several hours to make, but we simplified it by skipping the traditional yogurt marinade and letting the pressure cooker infuse the tikka masala flavor into lean chicken breasts. Cayenne adds heat, while a splash of cream keeps the spice in check (add less cayenne if you want it less spicy). Serve over rice and with a piece of naan to soak up the sauce.
By Hilary Meyer

Jerk Chicken with Coconut Rice & Peas

Rating: Unrated
6
Add some flavor of the Caribbean to your weeknight dinners with this healthy and easy jerk chicken recipe. The chicken is cooked on a grill pan rather than an outdoor grill--make sure the pan is well-heated before adding the chicken to achieve the crisp char you would get from an outdoor grill. A simple side of coconut rice and peas completes this satisfying and nutritious meal.
By Liz Mervosh

Chicken, Mushroom & Wild Rice Casserole

Rating: Unrated
14
In Minnesota, chicken, mushrooms and wild rice are often bound together in a casserole with cream of mushroom soup. We forgo the sodium-rich canned soup and make a light, creamy sauce that gets depth of flavor from dry sherry and Parmesan cheese. If you already have cooked chicken, use 4 cups and skip Step 2.
By Jessie Price

Persian Rice Pie (Tah Chin)

Rating: Unrated
1
The bottom layer of this rice pie is all tahdig--the delectable, crispy golden rice that is the highlight of an Iranian meal. Cooking the pie on the stovetop before it goes into the oven gives the rice its signature crunch.
By Louisa Shafia

Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

Rating: Unrated
1
Reduced-fat soup, semi-soft cheese and fat-free milk make this classic casserole recipe low in fat and calories.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Slow-Cooker Chicken & Rice Bowls

A bowl of tender shredded chicken, hot cooked rice and slightly spicy black beans served with fresh toppings is a meal that will satisfy anytime. Make this slow-cooker chicken dish on the weekend and reheat throughout the week for easy at-work lunches or dinner at the end of a long day. For a variation, swap the brown rice for a grain medley.
By Cooking Light

Chicken Curry with Rice

Rating: Unrated
4
Fresh ginger and pungent curry add big flavor to this one-pot meal.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Slow-Cooker Sweet & Spicy Glazed Chicken

You can fully indulge in the sticky-sweetness this slow-cooker chicken dish offers when you know that calories, saturated fat, carbs and sugar are in check.
By Cooking Light

Mango-Chutney Chicken

Fruity mango chutney, zesty barbecue sauce, and a bit of curry powder are the secrets to success in this slow-cooker chicken recipe. They combine to form a delicious glaze on the chicken, which is served over a brown rice and fresh mango mixture.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Dirty Rice

Rating: Unrated
3
A Louisiana favorite, our version of this spicy dish uses whole-grain Wehani rice. Long-grain brown rice also works. Traditionally made with chicken liver, which gives it a “dirty” color, we use healthy lean chicken sausage instead.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

Rating: Unrated
2
This slow-cooker gumbo recipe skips the fat when browning the flour and swaps in turkey sausage and brown rice, resulting in a healthier dish with the classic Creole taste.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Red Beans & Rice with Vegetables

This dish is inspired by the traditional New Orleans dish of red beans and rice, but adds plenty of roasted vegetables.
By Jackie Newgent, RDN

Slow-Cooker Chicken Mole with Cilantro Rice

Rating: Unrated
1
Mole sauce is a Mexican condiment primarily composed of fruit, chile pepper, nuts and spices. In our rendition, these ingredients take the form of raisins and tomatoes; ancho chiles; smoked almonds; and cocoa, cumin and cinnamon. The rich mixture coats the browned chicken thighs in the slow cooker, and doubles as a topping on the final dish. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves, if desired.
By Cooking Light

Jakarta-Style Savory Rice Porridge (Bubur Ayam Betawi)

We cut down the cooking time for this healthy chicken stew by fortifying store-bought broth with chicken and aromatics and then using the flavorful liquid to both simmer the rice and make the gravy. Try subbing 5 fresh curry leaves if you can't find the Indonesian bay leaves.
By JJ Goode

Sweet & Sour Chicken with Brown Rice

Rating: Unrated
4
In about the time it takes to order and pick up Chinese takeout, you can make this much healthier version of sweet & sour chicken. Our version loses all the saturated fat that comes from deep-frying, along with the extra sugar and salt. If you prefer, use tofu instead of chicken, and use your favorite vegetables; just be sure to cut them into similar-size pieces so they all cook at about the same rate.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Moroccan Chicken Salad

Rating: Unrated
3
Leftover chicken and rice come together in this flavorful main dish salad. Serve over fresh greens.
By Ruth Cousineau

Tikka Masala Stuffed Peppers

We have swapped the typical filling of ground beef and rice for a more exotic filling made with Indian-spiced chicken and rice in this stuffed bell pepper recipe. The chicken tikka masala used for the filling is quick to make, thanks to the use of a multicooker, like the Instant Pot. Want to make these ahead? Make an double batch of the tikka masala on a meal-prep day and freeze half to use later in this delicious healthy dinner.
By Lauren Grant

Chicken & Rice Soup

Rating: Unrated
3
This is a great, easy chicken-and-rice soup. We like to use instant brown rice because it cooks so quickly, but you could substitute cooked brown rice (stirred in at the end) if you have it on hand. Try the recipe with other herbs if you like, such as dill or tarragon.Chicken
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Tandoori Spiced Chicken and Rice Bake

Switch up the same old chicken and rice dinner with this flavor bursting tandoori spice mixture.
By Diabetic Living Magazine
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