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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!
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
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 466 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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)
For Serving
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!
This post was originally published on August 4, 2025
I absolutely love this! It’s one of my favorites!
Hi Tanya,
Happy Sunday! Thanks for the thoughtful feedback after trying this recipe, I’m happy to hear it was a win!
We really enjoyed this easy to make one pan dish! I used more zucchini but that was the only change and it was a winner. Do you think it would be good with beef instead of Chicken? Thanks
Thanks so much, Sharon! Love to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a lot for making it! Sure, beef would also be delicious!
Hi! Do you think this dish would feeeze well?
Hey Shelley,
Totally, that would work nicely for this recipe. Please let me know if you have any other questions!
Simple to make and delicious made one with ground chicken and one with roughly chopped langostino. Sprinkled a little queso fresco too.
Hi there! Thank you so much for trying out this recipe! So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂 xT
So I have been making your recipes for years now, and I do not think I have ever left a review! This dish was such a hit in my household, my husband and kids keep talking about it days later. It is definitely going to become a staple in our household. Thank you so much for sharing your recipes with the world!
Awww, thanks so much, Annie! I truly appreciate you making so many recipes, it means so much to me! Have a great weekend! xT
My family loved this! I used diced thighs instead of ground because they are much less money. Omitted the zucchini, ick. Didn’t use the hot sauce and I thought the amount of seasoning wouldn’t be enough, but it was perfect; just enough heat. I bought 4 ears of fresh corn and it was too much. Two would probably have been enough. Made fresh tortilla chips to go with it. Yummy! Will put this in our families regular rotation. Thanks
Thank you so much for trying out this recipe! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for the kind comment! 🙂 xT
Great flavor in this meal! Ground meat is easy to work with. Love all the veggies.
Let the water evaporate when cooking the chicken and veggies. I used 1 cup of water after reading the comments, but the consistency was perfect. I broiled the cheese at the end which gave it an extra tasty flavor. Nice job Tieghan!
Hey Lindsey! Thank you so much for trying out this recipe! Loveee to hear that you enjoyed this one skillet dish! xT
Hi! Would this work with quinoa instead of rice? Thanks!
Hi Liz! I haven’t tested this recipe with quinoa so I can’t say for sure, I worry that it wouldn’t be quite the same because of the different cook times quinoa requires! Let me know if you give it a try! xT
My husband I and absolutely loved this dish! It did have a bit of extra liquid in the skillet after cooking but it still gets 5 starts because the flavors were amazing! Next time I’ll reduce the amount of water to just 1 cup. Can’t wait to have the leftovers tomorrow! 🤤
Hi Jennifer! So glad you both loved this one! Thanks for the tip on the extra liquid, simmering a bit longer or reducing the water to 1 cup next time is a perfect adjustment. And yes, the leftovers are even better the next day! Enjoy! 🙂 xT
It was easy and my husband loved it!
Hi there! I am SO glad you are loving this one skillet recipe! Thanks for giving it a try! xT
I feel as though I’ve done something very wrong. Mine has sooooo much liquid. I’m wondering if I wasn’t suppose to add the salsa and the water, too? I’m so bummed. But Im certain it will taste amazing as it smells heavenly.
Hi Lida! Oh no I’m so sorry about that! Yes, the recipe does call for both salsa and water to cook the rice. If it seems too liquidy, you can simmer a little longer or increase the heat slightly to help it reduce. Even with extra liquid, it should still taste amazing once the flavors mix! xT
Made exactly as directed. This came together easily and turned out perfectly, packing in so much flavor. We’ll be visiting this again! Thank you!
Hey Carol! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe! Thanks so much for trying it out! 🙂 xT
Delicious! I used puréed tomatillos instead of salsa verde to make it milder.
Hi Kelly! That sounds so yummy, thanks for giving the recipe a try! So glad you enjoyed this recipe! 🙂 xT
LOVED! My husband was a huge fan as well. I did reduce a lot of the ingredients because they would not fit in my cast iron pan. I also added a little salt. Overall, we are huge fans of this recipe and will definitely be making again!
Hi Marissa! So glad you and your husband loved this one skillet recipe! Thanks for giving it try! Have a great week! 🙂 xT
The liquid portions are way off.. actually, all the portions are way off as it was constantly spilling out of my 11 inch cast iron! Flavors were.. basically nothing as well
Hey Leila! I’m so sorry this recipe didn’t turn out for you! Could you tell me a little bit more about which flavors you’d like to see stand out in this recipe? Happy to help improve this dish! Thanks! xT
This recipe was absolutely delicious—my whole family really enjoyed it! Since I have a family member who can’t eat cheese, I followed the directions right up until the cheese step. Instead of baking it for the last 10 minutes, I cooked it a few minutes longer on the stovetop, then turned off the heat and let it sit with the lid on for a few minutes to finish cooking the rice. The rest of us just added cheese to our own servings and heated them until it was melted and gooey. I also used Frank’s Hot Sauce and was a little worried it might be too spicy for me, but it was just right—not too hot at all. I saw a few comments about the thinly sliced zucchini, but I thinly sliced mine and it turned out perfect! Everyone loved it and asked for it to be added to our regular dinner rotation. Thank you for such a great recipe!
Hi Brenda! Thank you SO much for all this awesome input, I really appreciate it! It’s always super helpful for others who plan on making the recipe! So glad you and your family enjoyed this recipe! 🙂 xT