Zesty Oven Baked Chicken and Rice

Zesty Oven Baked Chicken and Rice

Z is for Zesty like #BlogchatterA2Z

Zesty Oven Baked Chicken and Rice is a family-friendly and hearty, easy one-pot meal. You have a gourmet dish with minimum prep in just an hour. This recipe takes a few ingredients in the pressure cooker, layered with fragrant rice and baked together to make the perfect dinner. Zesty Oven Baked Chicken and Rice is a favourite dinner.

Why you would love it?

It’s a one pot meal – the rice and chicken are baked together.

Fast to prepare – active prep time is under 10 minutes; and extremely delicious!

Isn’t it a perfect recipe for a family dinner or even for singles who want to show off their cooking prowess?

So here’s what you get in this chicken and rice recipe – juicy seasoned chicken….

It just needs some assembly and Voila!! You have a gorgeous gourmet meal ready! Not only is this Biryani easy, but it is also healthy and aromatic too and the spices infuse it with an explosion of flavours. It is a quicker and less laborious version of biryani  

What goes in Baked Chicken and Rice

Zesty Oven Baked Chicken and Rice has aromatic basmati rice cooked with a bouquet garni of Indian spices. The rice is layered with cooked, marinated chicken in yoghurt, ginger garlic and spices and baked for ten mutes for that gentle explosion of spices and flavours. A fusion made in culinary heaven!

Do try this Baked Chicken and Rice and tell me how you liked it. Other, chicken and rice recipes in the treasure chest are –the previous X-otic Mexican chicken and Rice, Spicy Omurice, another one-pot Mexican chicken and rice, spicy Noodles and Fried Rice, Tri-coloured rice, Curd Rice and Mushroom Mint Rice for the Vegetarians

INGREDIENTS:

For the marinade

500 gms boneless chicken cubed

2 cups thick hung curd or yoghurt

2 onions sliced

1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste

For Cooking The chicken:

4” Cinnamon stick

5 cloves

2 anise flower

2 cardamoms

Salt to taste

1 tsp Chilli powder to taste

1/4th tsp orange-red food colour

2 spoons butter

1/2 cup cream

For the rice:

2 large cups basmati rice washed and soaked

3 ½ cups water

2 tbsp Butter

For the bouquet Garni

5 cloves

6 peppercorns

5’ piece cinnamon

4 green cardamoms

2 bay leaves

1 sprig fresh Coriander

2 boiled eggs for garnishing

METHOD

Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients and keep aside for 1 hour(you can skip this step)

For Cooking the Chicken

Baked Rice Tempering

Firstly, in a pressure cooker, add the butter and then the whole spices. Add the onions and sauté till pink.

Next, add the marinated chicken. Cook for 2 whistles or until chicken is tender. If the gravy is very watery then let it cook without the lid till it reduces but should not dry. Add the cream and remove from fire.

Flavoured Basmati Rice

Wash and soak rice for 20 mins before cooking. Cook the rice until almost done or al dente as they will be baked later.

Make a bouquet garni with all the spices and put it in the rice while it is boiling. Remove it after the rice is cooked.

Layering the Baked Chicken Biryani Recipe

Preheat the oven at 100 degrees. Take a Pyrex dish and smear it with butter. Make a layer of the cooked rice. Drop some butter over it

Then spoon the chicken with the gravy all over the rice.

Make another layer with the rice and top with the chicken in the centre.

Dot the dish with butter and bake for 10 to 15 minutes at 150 degrees.

Garnish the Baked Chicken Biryani with the egg slices and fresh coriander and serve

Zesty Oven Baked Chicken and Rice has all the flavour from the juices of the chicken and the result is a rich, delectable one-pot meal with succulent and tender chicken bites.