Crispy, golden chicken thighs bake over fragrant basmati rice with chickpeas, caramelized shallots, and zesty lemon for a one-pot, flavor-packed meal.
Try out the recipe below!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken thighs, skin on and bone in
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon sumac
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- 1 lemon, zested and thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small shallot, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 cup uncooked basmati rice
- 15 ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups chicken broth
- Fresh chopped parsley, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a small bowl, mix the spices, lemon zest, salt, and pepper.
- Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Rub the spice mix all over the chicken evenly.
- Heat a wide pan or Dutch oven over medium with some olive oil. Sear the chicken skin-side down until golden brown (about 3–4 minutes), then flip and cook 2 more minutes. Remove chicken to a plate.
- In the same pan, cook the shallots until soft and caramelized (2–3 minutes). Add garlic and cook another 1–2 minutes until fragrant.
- Add the basmati rice and stir so it’s coated in the pan juices. Add chickpeas and stir for another minute.
- Place the chicken on top, skin-side up. Pour chicken stock around it. Add lemon slices on top.
- Turn off the heat, cover the pot, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and bake another 10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and the chicken is cooked through.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.
Tips
If you’re like me and always struggle getting rice to cook through in the oven, feel free to pre-cook the rice by boiling it in 1.5 cups of extra chicken broth or water for about 3 minutes to give it a head start. Be sure not to boil it all the way through when you pre-cook so it still soaks up the pan juices while it finishes in the oven!