Chicken and Rice with Asparagus, Peas + Artichoke

Active Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Why we love it:

Every region and culture has a version of chicken and rice and they’re all worth eating - maybe that could be a cookbook? This one though, is for the culture of “we need dinner in 30 minutes or less because, Wednesday.” It's also a spring time update of a customer favorite fall recipe. We hope you love it!

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Ingredients

1 Lemon
1¹⁄₂ teaspoons Turmeric
1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
1 teaspoon Black Pepper
1¹⁄₂ teaspoons Kosher Salt (divided)
¹⁄₄ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper (optional, if you like a kick!)
1¹⁄₄ pounds Chicken Thighs (bone in, skin on. Reduce weight if getting boneless)
3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Yellow Onion (small dice)
5 cloves Garlic
1 Green Bell Pepper
1¹⁄₂ cups Basmati Rice (White)
1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste
¹⁄₃ cup White Wine (optional, or use cider vinegar)
4 cups Chicken Stock
¹⁄₂ pound Asparagus
1 6-ounce can Artichoke Hearts (can size may vary, or use a jarred version)
1 cup Frozen Peas

Cooking Instructions

1. PREHEAT THE OVEN TO 450 DEGREES
2. CHICKEN

In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest only (for now), turmeric, dried thyme, cumin, black pepper, and half of the salt. Add cayenne, if using.

Line a baking sheet with parchment and put the chicken thighs on it. Drizzle them with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil. Then, pour the dry spices on the chicken and rub them in.

Spread out the chicken pieces with some space in between and skin side up. Place it in the oven. Roast for about 13 minutes.
3. AROMATICS

Dice the onion. Mince the garlic. Slice the pepper into long strips about ¼” wide.

Use a wide bottomed skillet or pot (it’s ideal to have short sides but if the widest bottom you have is a pot, use that). Over medium high, heat the remaining oil. Add onion, garlic, and bell pepper to the pan; cook, stirring often, 4 minutes.
4. RICE

Add rice and tomato paste to the pan; cook, stirring often, 2 minutes.

Add wine (or vinegar); it will sizzle and bubble, cook for 1 minute. Now add the stock, and crank the heat to high, stirring occasionally. Bring the stock to a full boil. Stir well and reduce to medium. Cover and cook for about 6-7 minutes.
5. BRUSSELS

Trim the end of the brussels if needed and cut them in half. When the chicken has roasted for 13 minutes, slide the pan out and add the brussels. Return to the oven for 4 minutes longer.
6. ARTICHOKES + PEAS

Drain the can of artichokes and cut them into quarters. Measure out the peas. Have these ready by the stove.
7. TWO BECOME ONE

When the brussels have roasted 4 minutes and the rice has simmered for the first 7 minutes, remove the chicken from the oven. Open the lid on the rice and stir the pot well, scraping the bottom.
Flatten the rice down, and nestle the chicken thighs into the pan. Add the brussels, artichokes, and peas over top.

Cover and cook for a final 5-8 minutes or until the rice is al dente.
8. SERVING

Remove from the heat and squeeze the lemon over top. Gently fluff and stir the rice and all. Serve in large bowls.

Leftovers are amazing!

*Don’t forget to freeze the tomato paste. If you have extra from the can, make 1 tablespoon sized blobs on a plate and freeze them for 1 hour. Then, pop them off the plate and you can store them together in a tupperware or jar. Freezing them on a plate first will let you pull out just 1 Tablespoon at a time as needed.

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Substitutions

PALEO:

omit the rice and sauté the veggies instead. Omit the wine and reduce the stock to just 1 cup. Add a bag of cauliflower rice to the pan after the veggies are sautéed, then the cup of stock. Add the peas, and artichokes too at this time. Cook for just 5 minutes until all is hot and tender. Cook the chicken fully in the oven and just plate it on top of the cauli rice bed.
CHICKEN THIGHS:

you can use boneless skinless if you prefer. Also, breast meat would be ok but cut the oven time in half.
ARTICHOKES:

from a can are unflavored and convenient, but if you have the marinated kind from a jar those will be ok too
PEAS:

omit
ASPARAGUS:

any green veggie - brussels, broccoli, green beans, etc
BELL PEPPER:

ok to omit or use a different color, or a carrot
FRESH GARLIC:

ok to use 1 tsp garlic powder per 4 servings
STOCK:

use water or veggie stock