When dinner must be straightforward, this lemon garlic butter baked hen and rice completely delivers. Every part goes into one baking dish. No additional pots, no stovetop steps, and no fuss. You find yourself with juicy hen thighs on prime of creamy, tacky rice, all flavored with loads of garlic, contemporary lemon, and essentially the most scrumptious seasoning mix.

It is a twist on our traditional model of baked hen and rice, which can be tasty.

Why My Recipe

• No stovetop steps. Simply combine, layer, and bake.
• Creamy parmesan rice bakes proper in the identical dish
• Garlic butter and lemon give each the creamy rice and juicy hen tons of taste.

The seasoning on the hen is completely heavenly. All that buttery, lemony taste seeps down into the rice because it bakes. It’s severely filled with taste and couldn’t be simpler to make. Simply stir the rice collectively within the pan, season the hen, and bake. This one’s positively going into the common dinner rotation.

Ingredient Notes

• Lengthy Grain White Rice: Jasmine or basmati work finest. Keep away from quick grain or prompt rice, which may flip mushy on this recipe.
• Hen Broth: Use low-sodium broth to higher management the salt. You may also use vegetable broth if wanted.
• Heavy Cream: You’ll be able to substitute with half and half, however the rice gained’t be fairly as creamy.
• Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese: Pre-grated parmesan doesn’t soften the identical means. A block of parmesan offers the perfect texture and taste.
• Minced Garlic: Contemporary garlic offers the strongest taste, however pre-minced from a jar works too. It’s simply barely extra bitter.
• Boneless Skinless Hen Thighs: Thighs keep tender and juicy. You should use hen breasts, however they might cook dinner quicker and dry out if overbaked.
• Paprika, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Crushed Purple Pepper Flakes, Black Pepper: This mix is what makes the hen so flavorful. The crushed crimson pepper provides a bit of warmth, but it surely’s not overpowering. You’ll be able to depart it out when you’re delicate to spice.
• Lemon: You’ll use each the zest and the juice, so go for a contemporary lemon as an alternative of bottled juice.
• Salted Butter: This melts over the hen because it bakes and infuses the dish with taste.
• Lemon Slices (Optionally available): These are only for garnish, however they do add a pleasant visible contact.
• Chopped Contemporary Parsley (Optionally available): Provides a pop of colour, however completely non-obligatory.

Utilizing Hen Breasts As an alternative

In the event you want hen breasts, you possibly can completely use them. Since they cook dinner quicker than thighs, you’ll need to give the rice a head begin.

Assemble the rice combination and bake it coated for 20 minutes by itself. Whereas that’s baking, season your hen breasts as directed. After 20 minutes, take away the dish from the oven, nestle the hen breasts into the rice, and return it to the oven. Proceed baking, uncovered, for one more 25 to half-hour, or till the hen reaches 165°F and the rice is tender.

Utilizing Bone-In Hen Thighs

Can you utilize bone-in, skin-on hen thighs? You certain can! It’s a bit of tougher to get that scrumptious crispy pores and skin, although. It’s a good suggestion to change on the broiler after baking to crisp up that pores and skin. Simply hold a detailed eye on it as a result of the broiler can burn fairly rapidly.

Greatest Pan to Use

A 9×13-inch baking dish is ideal for this recipe. Equally-sized casserole dishes all work nice too. You should use glass, ceramic, or metallic. Simply be sure it’s deep sufficient to carry all of the liquid with out effervescent over.

Glass and ceramic are inclined to cook dinner extra evenly and maintain warmth higher, whereas metallic could velocity up cooking only a bit. In case your dish is shallow otherwise you’re anxious about spillage, place it on a baking sheet to catch any drips.