This Baked Chicken Rice casserole is an old fashioned recipe of how we cooked this simple dish back in my native country. In Albania we call this Tave Pule Me Oriz.
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Old Fashioned Recipe
My native country of Albania is known for its hospitality. People will welcome you in their homes and share their bread with strangers. The rice & chicken bake dish is one of those dishes that was cooked for big celebrations or for when you unexpectedly had guests drop by.
Traditionally the dish was cooked with a whole chicken. However, for this recipe I used chicken drumsticks since I happened to have 2 packages.
As economy has gotten better and people have more means, this recipe has gotten many face-lifts. A lot more ingredients are added to it thus making it an even better dish. However, given the times we are living right now (quarantine 2020) I thought of presenting this dish in an old fashioned way. Less ingredients, less fuss. See notes though for some tips on how to spruce it up if you have more ingredients available:)
Recipe Notes & Tips
I would love to share some notes and tips in this section as well as ingredient substitutions or additions.
- I season the chicken with paprika and oregano. You can also use dried thyme, parsley, rosemary or any seasoning of your choice.
- You can use a whole chicken, chicken thighs or chicken breasts for this dish. However, I prefer bone in chicken for this dish as it makes it more flavorful.
- If using whole chicken, you can boil it whole but then cut it in pieces before baking.
- Also, if using other chicken cuts please make sure you cook them accordingly. Drumsticks take less time to cook.
- Lemon adds great flavor to this dish. If you have lemon, squeeze half and add it to the tray before you place it to bake. Use the other half when you season the chicken. Sprinkle over chicken drumsticks then coat them with seasoning.
- You can add green peas to the baking tray. Usually I’d replace half a cup of rice with green peas. Add any other vegetable to your taste as needed. Be mindful of tray volume, mine was almost full once rice finished cooking so I know that if I need to add something else I have to lower the amount of rice I’m using.
- If you have baked or cooked the chicken prior as part of meal planning for the week, then you can add chicken stock to the tray to bake the rice and add chicken in during the last 10 minutes. It won’t taste as good as when it is all cooked together but it is still a good substitute.
- If you don’t mind a bit of extra work, you can fry the chicken for a minute or two in a butter coated skillet before you add to the baking dish. It gives an amazing taste to the skin, it helps keep it a bit crunchy on the outside but soft and juicy on the inside.
Process Pictures for Baked Chicken Rice Dish
See below some of the pictures I took during the process of cooking this recipe. It helps put the steps of the recipe card into perspective.
While the chicken is being cooked, saute in a skillet with butter onions and garlic.
Once onions become translucent and start shrinking in volume, then add 4 cups of rice. Stir occasionally so rice doesn’t stick as well as you coat slowly all the grains.
Then add rice to the tray you’ll use for baking this dish.
Remove chicken from pot. Season it with oregano and paprika (lemon too if you have it). Add to baking dish and arrange it in a symmetrical shape. Add stock, butter and salt if needed. Then bake!
Baked Chicken Rice
Equipment
Ingredients
- 10 chicken drumsticks
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 1 tsp peppercorn
- 8 cups water
- 4 cups white rice 1 cup rice is about 225 grams
- 1 onion (medium size)
- 5 garlic cloves add more if you like garlic taste
- 5 tbsps butter unsalted
- 1 tbsp oregano, dry
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley for garnish
- 1 lemon (optional)
Instructions
- Make sure chicken is thawed before you start cooking.
- Add chicken drumsticks to a medium size pot, add water, salt and peppercorn. Set to boil, then lower heat to medium. Cover the pot. Once water boils, let cook for 15-20 minutes. Turn heat off.
- Add 4 tbsps of butter in a skillet. Chop onion very fine and mince garlic. Add onions and garlic to skillet and saute until onion becomes translucent. Stirr often so onion cooks evenly and doesn't stick to the skillet.
- Add rice to skillet and continue mixing occasionally. You want all rice to get coated and become shiny without browning. Pour this mix into the baking tray and spread evenly.
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. (about 180 degrees Celsius)
- Remove chicken drumsticks from pot. Season the drumsticks well with paprika, oregano and a little more salt. You can fry them in butter for a minute just to give the skin that crispy look (the frying part is optional). Place them in the baking dish over the rice.
- Use a ladle to take the chicken stock from the pot and fill a measuring cup. Add exactly 8 cups to the baking dish. If there's not enough chicken stock then add the remaining cups just water. Keep the ratio 1 cup rice, 2 cups water (or stock).
- Make sure salt content is ok at this point as it is hard to add once the dish has cooked.
- Add remaining butter over chicken drumsticks, just coat them a little bit.
- Place baking dish in the oven carefully. Let bake until all stock/water has evaporated (it can take 30-40 minutes depending on oven). Once there's no more water in the dish, change oven setting to broil for few minutes, then turn it off and let the dish cool. Fluff the rice with a fork before serving.
- Garnish with freshly chopped parsley! Serve with a side salad of choice. Enjoy:)
Video
Notes
- Amount of salt is a bit tricky. If you are cooking chicken yourself, I suggest adding the salt to the pot where you’ll boil chicken. If you are using a combination of chicken stock, salted butter and water then you might have to do a little test of flavor then add salt as needed (before baking). Once you bake it and water evaporates it’s hard to add more salt.
- TBSP – Tablespoon
- TSP – Teaspoon
- Make sure you pick a tray big enough to handle 4 cups of rice cooked by volume. Otherwise cook a bit less. This tray as shown in pictures is about 2 meals for my family, sometimes even a bit more depending what side salad I use. Leftovers hold really well in the refrigerator for few days. I never froze the leftovers so I don’t know how it holds frozen.
- Lemon – not everyone is a fan of lemon in this dish so that’s why I’m adding this ingredient as optional. It’s very traditional to add it in the Mediterranean. I usually squeeze half the lemon and add it to the baking tray evenly before placing it to bake. I use the other half over the chicken drumsticks before I season them.
Nutrition Label
Nutrition
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More Chicken Recipes
If you would like to see more Chicken recipes from my blog, please check out the below posts:
Mike
Fantastic recipe. In our monthly recipe. Down to 3 cups of rice, as good as it is, it leaves a TON of rice. After the boil and season the chicken really well with paprika, some seasoning salt, garlic powder, oregano and thyme then a pretty healthy dose of cayenne. Fry them up on all sides until golden then place into the prepared rice and liquid. Frying all those seasonings onto the chicken keeps a great flavoured chicken drum and the cayenne leeches into the rice adding a mild but noticeable bite to the rice :). Fantastic in the Dutch oven!
Sonila
Thank you so much Mike! love the way you season the drumsticks! Definitely a must try.
Alma
We made this last night and it was a hit!! We added green peas and made 3 cups of rice instead of 4. Also, we used chicken thighs instead of drumsticks. My kids wanted seconds and couldn’t get enough! Love the recipe, thank you!
Jewel
My mother in law is from Serbia and she makes it this way too. Great recipe!
Sonila
Thank you so much Jewel! Yes, we definitely have lots of similarities in our Balkan cuisines. It was easier to see that when living here in US rather than when I was back in Albania.
Chris
Thank you Sonila! My two boys are so hard to feed with different tastes but they were both all over this amazing recipe. Chicken was tender and rice was fluffy with just the best bit of crunch. Much appreciated. C..
Sonila
Thank you Chris!!! It’s really a great family recipe, it can be enhanced in so many ways. Sometimes I just add steamed broccoli as a side for my kids and they’re happy for dinner:)). I appreciate your comment so much! Have a great day:)
Aliah
Have you ever baked it in a Dutch over rather than the short baking dish? I’d like to use the same sauté pan as bake pan so was thinking Dutch oven. Thank you!
Sonila
Hi Aliah, I have done variations of it in the Dutch Oven. I don’t have details written in my notes about chicken/rice in Dutch Oven but I do have a lamb/rice recipe in Dutch Oven, it’s an oval one. Here’s my Dutch Oven Lamb & Rice dish. I also have a braised beef recipe in Dutch Oven too but no rice in that one so totally different cooking time. But you’re right, it would save time and it would be less pots/pans to wash if using same pot. If you try it, please let me know how it comes out in Dutch Oven. all the best:)
Aliah
Came out great! It’s a lot of rice but glad to have left overs 😊 cooked 35 mins in the Dutch oven
Karen
This is my new go to I live in Albania and made it for my husband he was very pleased this is a definite keeper thankyou
Jay
Hi I was just wondering how many cups of water do you add once you put everything into one pan
Sonila
Hi Jay, did you add any chicken stock to the tray? My rule of thumb for total liquids is as follows: it has to be double the amount of rice. So if you’re using 4 cups of rice, you’ll need 8 cups of liquid in the pan. That liquid can be chicken stock, water or a combination. So if you use for example 6 cups of chicken stock from the pot, supplement with 2 cups of water. Hope it helps!
Pam
Should i cover the dish while its cooking ?
admin
Hi Pam, I don’t cover mine. If you notice the top getting color, then I would use aluminum foil.
Theresia lans
Hello I love this recipe
We like to eat rice and the chicken tasted so delicious
And my family loved it yummy
Theresia lans
It takes much longer then the recipe said of 35 to 40 min
Deanne
How much longer? My rice was not cooked after 45 minutes
admin
Hi Deanne, what type of rice did you use? Has the rice absorbed all the liquid in the baking tray?
Karianne Melquist
My rice isn’t cooking. I used brown rice, I went to class and my husband had taken it out of the oven and the rice was still hard I’m on my 3rd 15 minute interval and it’s still not done. I’m thinking next time I’ll use different rice. The chicken is awesome tasting
admin
Hi Karianne, oh that’s a bummer:((. I never used brown rice with this recipe, always white (basmati or jasmine). If using brown, you’d need to cook it longer and add triple the amount of liquid instead of double. I’ll actually try it with brown rice and record liquid/temperature/cooking time and add that to the notes for anyone wanting to use brown rice!! Thank you for letting me know!
Rae Bernard
Have you tried with brown rice? If so, what adjustments did you make?
admin
Hi Rae, I have tried with brown rice but I haven’t been able to replicate it the same way each type.
The closest to an instruction I can give if you’re making it with brown rice is to make sure your ratio is 3 to 1 (liquid to rice) and to maybe use aluminum foil to keep the steam in.
I usually fluff it once halfway through because the too layer will be too crunchy otherwise.
Sana
What kind of rice do you use ?
admin
Hi Sana, I tend to alternate between Jasmine & Basmati rice, whichever I have available. Thank you:)
Ana
Hi Sonila, how long should the chicken be boiled?
Sonila
Hi Ana, I boil the drumsticks for about 15 minutes. I will add that step to the recipe. Thank you
Nart | Cooking with Nart
Nice one my friend. Gotta love those drumsticks!
Enriqueta E Lemoine
Soni, I’m not a poultry person, but you got me with this Mediterranean Chicken and Rice! I simply love the way you presented it! I’mpPinning it on my rice board. Thanks for sharing.
Ideasandcreams
What delicious this chicken rice bake, I don’t know you were from Albania . I lovely the mediterranean Kitchen, because os very saludable. Thanks and Greetings.
Giuliana / Sobreelmantel
Gracias por esta receta.Amo los arroces y este mediterream rice se ve espectacular
Brieanne
Loved this recipe! Thank you for sharing.
Sonila
Thank you very much Brieanne!
Giuliana / Sobreelmantel
I really love the rices and this mediterrean rice looks amazing! Thanks for the recipe
Erika
What a great recipe! I have everything at home to make this delicious Mediterranean chicken and rice recipe. Thank you Sonila!
Sonila
Thank you so much Erika:)
Jenny
This Mediterranean Chicken looks amazing! Omg I love the presentation of the dish . I’m sure my family will love this . Thanks for the recipe
Estefania
Thanks for this recipe of baked chicken rice, very useful for this situation; healthy, easy and with ingredients we can easily find at home!
admin
Thank you Estefania!! Stay healthy.
Jess
Does the rice need to be precooked or put it in dish uncooked before baking?
admin
Hi Jess, rice is uncooked. It will cook in the oven with the water & chicken stock! Let me know if you have any other questions. I’ll add a video sooon so hopefully that makes it easier. Thank you for reading
Scarlet | Family Focus Blog
This chicken rice bake looks so good and sounds so tasty! I can’t wait to try it.