Dig into this cozy comforting one pan Arroz con Pollo. It’s filled with flavorful rice, perfectly cooked chicken, spices, garlic, tomato sauce, onion, capers, green olives, and more!
How to make Arroz Con Pollo:
Begin by cutting the chicken into 6 pieces. There should be two breast, two thighs, and two legs. Save the carcass and roast it in the oven while making this recipe. Throw it in the instant pot with filtered water, carrots, celery, onion, salt, and pepper. The best chicken stock is simple, flavorful, and practically free!
Dry the chicken pieces off with paper towels. This will keep the skin crispier as it browns. Season well with salt and pepper on both sides of the chicken.
Next, heat butter or olive oil (I use butter and the flavor is insane) in a large stainless steel pan. When the butters melted and no longer bubbling, add the chicken pieces to the pan. Cook on each side for approximately 5-7 minutes until the skin is a deep golden brown color. Remove the chicken with tongs to a large plate and set aside for later use.
Next steps:
Additionally, add about two teaspoons of butter to the skillet along with the whole chopped onion. Stir the onion with the butter. Sauté the onions for 3-5 minutes until slightly softened. Also, the onions don’t need to be cooked all the way through as it will have more time later to cook with the rest of the ingredients.
To the same skillet, add the cumin, paprika, sea salt, black pepper, chili flakes (if using), and minced garlic. Stir the ingredients well and quickly to avoid burning. After about 30 seconds, add chicken stock or water to the skillet.
Quickly scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. The brown bits also add incredible flavor to the dish so don’t skip this part.
Next, add the rinsed rice (use a fine mesh strainer to rinse the rice well for 1-2 minutes), tomato sauce, olives, and capers. Stir to combine all the ingredients together.
Bring the plate of browned chicken back over to the skillet and nestle the chicken pieces evenly to the pan. Then, add the two bay leaves to each side of the skillet.
Additionally, allow the pan to come to a low simmer. There will be small bubbles beginning to come to the surface of the pan when this happens. From here, lower the heat to maintain a slow simmer. Cover the pan with a fitted lid for about 35 -45 minutes. The rice will be fluffy and the chicken will be cooked through.
Lastly, add finely chopped parsley to the top, serve, and enjoy!
Arroz con Pollo tips:
This might sound a little strange with the tip I am about to give you but hear me out. When the rice is cooked through, leave it on the stove a bit longer. The natural sugar from the tomatoes during cooking will burn the rice a bit on the bottom. The slightly burned crispy rice on the bottom tastes delicious!
Additionally, I sometimes use kitchen shears/scissors to cut chicken if my knifes are unsharpened and I don't have time to sharpen them. This works well in a pinch and every kitchen needs a pair.
FAQ:
What are capers?
Capers are about the size of a pea and they have a bright lemony flavor with a salty flavor. Typically, capers are used in Mediterranean cuisine and some French recipes, coming from a bush like shrub called the Capparis Spinosa. The flower buds from the shrub are pickled and sold in stores as capers. Capers go well with chicken which is why they have been added to this recipe. Give them a try!
Prep Ahead:
Because this dish is cooked all in one pan, there's not much to prep ahead. If cutting a whole chicken sounds like a challenge to conquer, then check out this video on how to cut a whole chicken.
Additionally, if time is of the essence and cutting a chicken is not an option, there are stores like Trader Joe’s who sell whole cut chickens. Ask your butcher to cut the chicken so you can save a bit more time in the kitchen.
Print
Arroz con Pollo
- Total Time: 55
- Yield: 10
Ingredients
- Butter or olive oil
- 1 whole chicken (about 5 pounds) cut into 6 pieces*
- 1 large yellow onion chopped
- 1 teaspoon of minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoons sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ⅛-¼ teaspoon chili flakes (optional)
- 2 ½ cups chicken stock or filtered water*
- 2 cups long grain rice such as jasmine or basmati rice rinsed well and drained*
- ¾ cup tomato sauce
- ⅔ cup green olives
- 1 Tablespoon capers drained
- 2 medium bay leaves
- ¼ cup finely chopped parsley for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Cut chicken into 6 pieces (see notes). Dry chicken with paper towels and then add salt and pepper to both sides.
- Heat a 12 inch skillet over medium heat. Add butter or olive oil (I used salted butter) to pan as it is heating. Add chicken and cook 5-7 minutes on each side until deep golden brown.
- Once browned, remove chicken with tongs to a large plate and set aside.
- If needed add two teaspoons of butter to the skillet and the chopped onion. Stir the onion to coat with butter. Sauté onion for about 5 minutes until tender but not cooked all the way through.
- Add cumin, paprika, sea salt, black pepper, chili flakes, and garlic to the onion and stir for about 30 seconds to one minute.
- Add stock or water to the pan scraping the brown bits off of the bottom of the pan. Add rice, tomato sauce, olives, capers, and then stir until incorporated.
- Nestle the browned chicken pieces into the pan. Add bay leaves to each side of the pan.
- Bring to a simmer, lower the heat, cover with a lid that fits the pan, and cook for about 35-45 minutes until the rice is cooked through and the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Sprinkle with finely chopped parsley if desired, serve, and enjoy!
Notes
When cutting a whole chicken I use the two thighs, two drumsticks and two breasts. I used to cut each breast in half and have four total breast pieces. I noticed over time that the breasts would dry out and be quite tasteless. Leave them whole and they will cook perfectly and be moist. I sprinkle on a bit more salt if I am eating the breast meat as it can sometimes be more challenging to get the flavors to come through on such a large and lean piece of meat.
Chicken stock is a great flavor boost and adds some extra minerals to the dish. Add it if you can but filtered water will work as well. I have used water when in a pinch and it turns out great!
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