Rich, creamy & full of flavour — this is chicken and rice meal prep done right.
Niall Kirkland is kicking off the New Year with this delicious one-pot recipe to help you nail your nutrition right from the get-go. It’s great for making up a batch on a Sunday night to get you ahead for the week.
First, you make a simple marinade to lock in all that spice and flavour, but after that everything just goes into the same pan — so don’t worry about the washing up. This is home-cooked food at its best.
Serves 4
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 5-6 skinless chicken thighs
- 2 tbsp. yoghurt
- 1 tsp. ginger
- 1 tsp. turmeric
- ½ tsp. chilli powder
- ¼ tsp. salt
For the pot:
- 1 tbsp. coconut oil
- 1 onion (thinly sliced)
- 2-3 garlic cloves (grated)
- 1 tsp. ginger (grated)
- ½ tsp. chilli powder
- 250g basmati rice (soaked and drained)
- 1 can light coconut milk
- ½ large mug of boiled water
To serve:
- Chopped cashews
- Coriander
Method
- Add the chicken thighs, yoghurt, ginger, turmeric, chilli powder, and salt to a bowl and mix well until the chicken is completely coated. Set aside and leave to marinade at least 15 minutes, preferably overnight.
- Heat coconut oil in a large deep pan or casserole dish on a medium heat and add the chicken thighs.
- Cook for 5 minutes before flipping and cooking for a further 5-10 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- Add the onion to the pan with a small splash of water and fry for 5 minutes. Then add the garlic, ginger, chilli powder, and another splash of water. Stir constantly until the onion is coated in spices and leave to fry for 2 minutes.
- Stir the basmati rice into the onion and spices, then add the coconut milk and 1/2 a mug of boiled water. Give it all a good stir, bring to a simmer, and then place the chicken thighs back into the pan on top of the rice.
- Cover with a lid and leave to cook for 15-20 minutes, until rice is cooked.
- Garnish with chopped cashews and coriander before serving — then enjoy!
