A One-Skillet Chicken & Turmeric Rice to Add to Your Winter Rotation

For a dish to land on my weeknight dinner all-stars list, there are two key elements it must have: It must be low maintenance and filled with flavor.

This one-skillet chicken with tomato turmeric rice hits both of those marks with ease. For starters, you only need one large ovenproof pot (like a cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven). It’s also loaded with snappy pantry ingredients—including a handful of spices and two types of tomatoes— that work together like a dream.

A Flavor-Packed Spice Blend

When it comes to spices, we tend to be heavy-handed. Our intuition guides us as we voraciously shake seasoning bottles until we decide to stop. Which is why you’ll find that this dish is packed with flavor, while still maintaining a delicate balance.

As you glance at the ingredients list, you may notice the inclusion of cumin, coriander, and turmeric—spices that are typically associated with Indian cooking. The missing flavor was smoked paprika. Smoked paprika is made from pimento peppers that have been dried, smoked, and ground. This smokiness adds complexity to the chicken’s flavor by rounding out the other earthy spices and enhancing the rustic, tomatoey essence of the rice.

Bring On The Tomatoes

For being such a simple ingredient, tomatoes bring all the drama to this skillet party: body, color, and richness.

The combination of both tomato paste and chopped tomatoes brings two different elements to the rice: The concentrated tomato paste lends a deep-red hue to the rice and adds a powerful tomato flavor, while the chopped tomatoes create texture and moisture for the rice to absorb.

Tips For Making It At Home

The dish mimics the cooking method for rice pilaf or paella. Every step of the way builds a new layer of flavor: The chicken thighs are seared skin-side down until golden; once they are cooked and removed from the pan, the rice is toasted in the chicken fat, picking up the fond at the bottom of the skillet leftover from the chicken. Toasting the rice creates a floral nuttiness that you can’t achieve without this small, but mighty step. (If you want to easily amp up the floral flavor, opt for jasmine rice.)

When the rice is nice and toasty, this is when you add the tomato paste. We tend to “cook” the tomato paste first before incorporating it into a liquid to slightly caramelize the flavor and break up any clumps.

Then the chopped tomatoes and chicken stock are added to the skillet and all the ingredients are brought up to a rolling simmer. This will ensure that the rice steams immediately once it’s removed from the stovetop and placed into the oven, along with the chicken thighs. Depending on how hot or cool your oven runs and the type of rice that you cook with, the chicken and rice should be ready in 30 minutes. However, if the timer goes off and there’s still a puddle of liquid, bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Finally, finish off the dish with a hefty handful of freshly chopped cilantro for freshness and a quick squeeze of lemon.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. In a large bowl, season chicken thighs with 2 teaspoons salt, freshly ground black pepper, ground coriander, ground cumin, and smoked paprika.

3. In a large ovenproof skillet (such as a cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven), heat olive oil to medium-high heat. Place chicken thighs skin side down in the skillet. Sear for 5 minutes or until golden brown, flip and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Remove chicken from heat and set aside.

4. Reduce heat to medium and sauté onions and garlic for 2 minutes. Add the long grain rice and turmeric powder to the skillet and gently toast for 3 minutes, or until slightly translucent. Add the tomato paste, breaking up the clumps with the back of a spoon. Add the chopped tomatoes, chicken stock, 2 teaspoons salt, and bring to a rolling simmer.

5. Place rested chicken thighs directly over rice and turn off the heat. Cover the skillet with aluminum foil or lid and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked and fluffy. Finish with fresh cilantro.