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Keeping things simple, but delicious with this One Pot Lemon Rosemary Dijon Chicken and Butter Toasted Rice Pilaf. It’s everyone’s favorite dinner made easy and delicious in one pot. Pan-seared chicken roasted up alongside nutty wild rice, warming rosemary, and autumn vegetables. Dijon and lemon keep this dish light, but or so flavorful. This roasted chicken and rice dinner is a hearty but healthy meal to cook any night of the week, especially as the weather begins to cool. And the best part? It’s the easiest dinner to prepare and one the whole family will love.
As I sit here typing away, it’s blowing snow outside my window, my heater is on, my candles are lit, and it’s the coziest winter night…
Only, it’s September…and it’s not even fall yet. And we actually have two full weeks until fall officially arrives (let alone winter!). I know the above sounds like a nice wintery scene, but guys, I’m going to be honest, I’m not ready for this kind of weather. Not even close.
And I’m not talking a light flurry, I’m talking full-on snowstorm! This amount of snow on September 8th? Yeah, that’s just not something I can embrace.
On the bright side, all this snow is giving me the perfect excuse to cook up all the cozy fall dinners on the earlier side. I know you guys are still enjoying warm summer days, but we can all enjoy a good cozy dinner regardless of the weather, right?
I think we can! And while today’s recipe is cozy and hearty, it’s also healthy, colorful, and beyond delicious. Full-on comfort food, but not the heavy kind. This is the perfect transition recipe to slowly welcome the fall days ahead.
THIS, I can be excited about.
The story.
Once September hits, I quickly transition into creating more one pot dinners, easy family meals, and recipes that can be enjoyed by everyone in the family.
You all know the story, but growing up my dad would serve up chicken recipes at least a couple times a week. It was his staple dinner. However, on cold Sunday nights throughout the fall and winter, my mom would often roast a whole chicken, alongside carrots, with a simple rice pilaf style side dish and bread (mom likes her bread with every meal).
This dish is kind of a combination of both of their dinners, and it’s made easy in one pot. It’s got the ease of dad’s chicken and rice, but all the hearty flavors of mom whole roasted chicken.
So it’s a nice balance and truly such a wonderfully comforting meal…and yes, it smells incredible as it roasts away in the oven.
The details on this one pot lemon rosemary dijon chicken.
Like all my one pot recipes, this one is pretty straight forward, though it does have a few ingredients. Please don’t let that scare you away, I promise this is going to be easy…
I like to season my chicken with a sprinkling of paprika, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. I prefer to use mostly chicken breasts since they’re what my family prefers. But I also always love including a couple chicken thighs for added flavor. You can use either or both, just use what you and your family love most.
Now, sear the chicken to get it golden and crisp. After you sear the chicken, remove it from the pan and add in all the flavor. Meaning the shallots, vegetables, butter, wild rice, and lots of fresh garlic, rosemary, and thyme. I like to cook the rice in butter to get it nice and toasty before adding in the liquid. This is such a simple step, but it adds so much flavor.
Moving along…
After you toast the rice, toss in an apple and pour in the apple cider and white wine.
The apple and apple cider add a sweet autumn flavor that’s unexpected, but delicious. I absolutely love the pairing of wild rice, apples, and cider. I also like to use a little dijon mustard, it ties everything together in a beautiful savory way.
If the apple sounds too odd, you don’t have to use it, but I do find it to be especially delicious.
At this point, you’ll want to transfer the pan to the oven to finish cooking. As the chicken roasts, the rice soaks up all the flavors from the cider and wine. It then becomes infused with rosemary.
By the end of cooking, the kitchen should be smelling like Thanksgiving. It’s an unexpected but welcomed scent that will only get you that much more excited for dinner. Nothing beats this cozy scent, it’s beyond good.
Once you pull the pan out, fluff the rice with a fork, and serve everything together.
Simple, easy, healthy, and so delicious. This is a complete all-in-one dinner. Of course, you could also add a side of bread or a big salad, that would be delicious too.
This is one of those recipes that I’ll be coming back to time and time again. I love the idea of a Sunday night roasted chicken dinner. But honestly, it’s easy enough for any night of the week.
Looking for other cozy family dinners? Here are a few ideas:
Broccoli Cheddar Chicken and Rice Casserole
Slow Cooker Herbed Chicken and Rice Pilaf
Prosciutto Apple and Sage Butter Chicken with Cider Pan Sauce
Lastly, if you make this one pot lemon rosemary dijon chicken and butter toasted rice pilaf 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 Pot Lemon Rosemary Dijon Chicken and Butter Toasted Rice Pilaf
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 572 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts or thighs
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- juice and zest of 1 lemon
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 shallots, chopped
- 4 carrots, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups mushrooms, chopped
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 1/2 cups wild rice blend (mix wild and brown rice)
- 1/2 cup dry orzo pasta
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 whole sprig + 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, plus more for serving
- 1 small honeycrisp apple, chopped (optional)
- 2 cups apple cider (not vinegar)
- 1 cup dry white wine such, as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Season the chicken with paprika, lemon zest, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. 2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet/braiser set over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken and cook on both sides until golden, about 5 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the pan. 3. To the skillet, add the shallots, carrots, and mushrooms. Cook 5 minutes, until just caramelized. Add the butter, wild rice, orzo, garlic, rosemary, thyme, and apple, if using. Cook 5 minutes, until lightly toasted and golden. Add the apple cider, wine, dijon, lemon juice, and 1/2 cup of water. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat. 4. Slide the chicken back into the pan. Add the rosemary sprig. Bake, covered, for 30-40 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is cooked. During the last 10-15 minutes of cooking remove the lid and allow the chicken to crisp, if needed, add in 1/4 cup additional water or chicken broth to keep the rice from getting dry.5. To serve, fluff the rice with a fork and serve the chicken, rice, and veggies together. Enjoy!
This post was originally published on September 10, 2020
I have near east mix of wild rice – can I substitute thanks
Hey Elizabeth,
Yes that will work! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Made this recipe last night. It was really delicious and the flavors were interesting. My rice took longer to cook, however, I didn’t have a proper fitting lid for my cast iron so I think that’s probably why!
Hi Erin! I am glad you enjoyed this one! It most likely was the lid if I had to guess, but please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
This meal looked beautiful and the chicken was good but the rice tasted like vinegar. Is it really 2 cups of apple cider vinegar?? I was so disappointed because it looked great and I was expecting a delicious meal. Next time I would cut back on the vinegar.
Hi Amanda! This recipe calls for 2 cups of apple cider, not apple cider vinegar. Apple cider is more similar to apple juice, if you have not tried it. I am sorry for the confusion! xTieghan
Delicious – stuffed the leftovers into bell peppers and roasted them with mozzarella on top. It’s a winner!
Ooo love that! Thank you Holly! xTieghan
Made this with my husband and son’s wild Grouse and it was FABULOUS!! Will definitely be used a lot during hunting season! Flavor profile was insane-super fun to make!!!
Amazing! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you both, Whitney! Thank you for trying it! xTieghan
This recipe has potential, I’m not giving up on it. The issues were that I didn’t know when to add the lemon juice so, I figured it was a typo and I left it out. It needed the lemon juice. Also, I didn’t know when to add the apples so I added them before the liquid went in. It could have used more salt, I guess my pinches weren’t big enough. The biggest issue though was this took 2 1/2 hrs to make from the first chop to the first bite. The rice still wasn’t totally cooked but, we were so hungry we ate it anyway. The chicken was so dry, I would have not cooked it as long as I did and waited for it to cook in the oven. Not a good recipe to try on a Monday night when everyone is tired and hungry.
Hi Emily! I am sorry this recipe did not turn out well for you and there was confusion..You add the lemon juice with the cider and the apples with orzo! Please let me know if there is anything else I can help with if you choose to try this one again! xTieghan
The rice I used was still a bit hard after 40 minutes, but all of the flavors were amazing together. Will definitely make it again.
Thank you Nancy! Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
I only recently discovered HBH, and this is the first recipe I have made. I was so excited to try it! Unfortunately It didn’t turn out as good as I thought it would. The rice was very undercooked, so I ended up taking the chicken out (it was also dry by this point), adding more water, and then cooking the rice for about 25 more mins. It also is pretty sweet because I wasn’t sure when to add the lemon juice, I added it at the end after it was cooked which helped. If I were to make this again I would cook the rice longer before adding the chicken back in, and subbing some of the apple cider for chicken broth so it isn’t so sweet.
Thank you for trying this Staci! Please let me know if there is anything I can help you with! I am sorry this did not turn out as expected. xTieghan
This has a lot of promise for future rotation! We had a hard time getting the wild rice to cook through, and the original night of, the dijon flavor was incredibly overpowering, making it almost seem too acidic. The flavors mellowed a lot the next day. I think the dish needs some kind of fat to balance against the dijon and cider. We’ll tinker with proportions next time we make it, but it’s a great way to welcome fall!
Thank you so much Ashley! I am really glad you enjoyed this recipe! I hope you love all the fall recipes to come!! xTieghan
This had amazing flavor but I found that the rice was nowhere near done at the 40min mark. I kept an eye on the liquid and did have to add quite a bit more in the end.
Hi Elizabeth! I hope this turned out well for you! Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
This was a delicious combo of flavors but too sweet for me for a full entree. I would probably switch at least half the cider to broth to cut down on the sugar next time.
Thank you Kaitlyn! Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
Just made this tonight, it’s such a great fall dish!
Although what am I doing wrong, everything was great but my rice was still crunchy I added more liquid than required and left it 20 minutes longer than the recipe and it’s still crunchy? ?
Hey Beth,
Thanks so much for trying the recipe, I am so sorry that you had issues with the rice. I am wondering what kind of rice you used and if you adjusted the recipe at all? Either of these could have affected the turn out. I hope this helps for next time! xTieghan
hi tieghan! i don’t have a large pot that i can use covered in the oven. is it possible to cook the chicken, start the rice, and then once it boils transfer to another dish and finish baking the whole thing uncovered? i would love to try this recipe but just don’t have the pot possible to do it! love your recipes by the way. big fan!
Hey Nessa,
Yes that is totally fine to do! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Can’t wait to try this! Would a 3.5qt size braiser work for this recipe?
Hey,
I would recommend using a skillet for this recipe and then transferring to a baking dish if needed. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi! The flavors of this were absolutely delicious, but when we made it the rice stayed hard and uncooked, while the chicken ended up being overcooking trying to wait for the rice to be done. Any suggestions? Should we add more liquid? Or cook longer at a lower temp? Thanks!
Hey Kate! What brand of wild rice are you using? Is it a mixed blend? I would try using slightly larger chicken pieces to ensure the chicken cooks within the same time frame as the rice. What size was your chicken?
For the rice, try adding 1/2 additional water. I think that will help. Please let me know if you have any other questions. Thank you!! xTieghan