Cheesy Salsa Verde Chicken and Rice is a one pan, 20 minute, 5 ingredient gluten-free dinner recipe that is lick your plate delicious! Cheesy and satisfying.
If your week has been anything like mine, you’re in need of a crazy easy dinner recipe to get on the table tonight.
May I suggest my 5 ingredient, 20 minute, 1 pan Cheesy Salsa Verde Chicken and Rice?
This cheesy, comforting recipe calls for simmering rice, chicken broth, salsa verde, and chopped chicken together in a saucepan, then stirring in shredded Pepper Jack cheese at the end.
20 minutes, 5 ingredients, 1 pan — say less!
This chicken and rice recipe is creamy and comforting like a casserole, but ready in a fraction of the time. An un-casserole, if you will!
I suggest serving Cheesy Salsa Verde Chicken and Rice with a big side salad, roasted brussels sprouts, or roasted broccoli, and topping it with more salsa verde, chopped green onions, or chopped cilantro before digging in.
The recipe calls for an extremely modest amount of cheese so it’s definitely not heavy, but throw some veggies on the side to make it a complete meal. I know you’re going to love it!
Try Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Rice Casserole
How to Make this Recipe
Start by adding long grain white rice, chicken broth, and salsa verde (I like Herdez,) to a 2 – 3 quart saucepan. Bring to a boil then add chicken breasts that have been cut into bite-sized pieces and seasoned with salt and pepper.
Bring the liquid back up to a boil then place a lid on top, turn the heat down to medium-low, and simmer for 12 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat then let it sit with the lid on for an additional 5 minutes.
Last step is to add freshly shredded Pepper Jack Cheese (or Monterey Jack Cheese if you’re sensitive to spice) then stir until completely melted.
Let the chicken and rice sit and thicken for 2-3 minutes then scoop onto plates and serve. Couldn’t be easier! I hope you enjoy this simple, scrumptious, stress-free dish!
More Easy Cheesy Recipes
- Cheesy Ham and Broccoli Skillet
- Beef & Veggie Enchilada Skillet
- Cheesy Chicken Burrito Skillet
- Homemade Crunchy Taco Hamburger Helper
- Cheeseburger Quesadillas
Ingredients
- 1-1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup salsa verde, I like Herdez
- 1 cup long grain white rice, I like Lundberg Farms Jasmine Rice
- 2 chicken breasts, ~1lb, cut into bite sized pieces
- salt and pepper
- 4 oz freshly shredded Pepper Jack Cheese, or Monterey Jack cheese if sensitive to spice
- Toppings: chopped cilantro, chopped green onions, salsa verde, tortilla chips
Directions
- Add chicken broth, salsa verde, and rice to a 2-1/2 - 3 quart saucepan with a tight fitting lid then turn heat to high to bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, season chicken with salt and pepper then add to the pot, stir, and bring liquid back to a boil. Place a lid on top then turn heat down to low and simmer for 12 minutes. Remove pot from the heat then let sit with the lid on for 5 minutes.
- Fluff rice and chicken then add cheese and stir until completely melted. Let dish sit for 3-4 minutes to thicken and then serve.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
This recipe is a bit misleading. The rice took significantly longer to cook than the recipe called for, so the chicken just disintegrated and was so dry not even cheese could save it. And not exactly quick….
I would certainly not call this recipe misleading and have not had one other review from someone who has made it echo what you’ve said, KC. Did you use long grain white rice? Was the liquid mismeasured? Was the heat too low, or too high? Was your chicken cut into too small or too big of pieces? These are all things to consider before resorting to calling a recipe misleading, which I take to heart as I spend a lot of time testing the recipes I develop to ensure they turn out the same way in your kitchen, as they do in mine. Finally, yes, I do consider a recipe that can be made from start to finish in 20 minutes “quick”.
Hello! We are Girl Scouts and are working on our Silver Award Project. We are building a website of dedicated celiac friendly recipes and educating people about what it means to be gluten free. We were wondering if we could have permission to use your recipe in our website. We would of course give you credit for the recipe and list your name and info on the sources page. Would this be ok?
I have been making this recipe for a couple of years. It’s so easy and delicious.
I made it in the instapot tonight and it was a game change. Made this easy recipe even easier
1 cup of rice (rinsed)
1 cup chicken broth
2 T salsa verde
Cook 3 minutes on Manuel, natural release for 10 mins.
I use rotisserie chicken mixed with salsa verde, let it sit while getting rice ready.
Once rice is ready mix everything together and enjoy.
Loe this, Michelle! Thank you so much for the details – I’ll try it in my IP sometime soon!!
I made this this afternoon and it was super easy and a huge hit!!
Love hearing that, Megan! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating!
I loved this recipe. It was easy, tasty and all in one pot. And, I didn’t have to chop anything!!! Well, other then than the chicken into pieces, but that was easy. I really have loved all of your recipes I have tried.
SO glad to hear this, Lori! Thank you so much for taking the time to comment!
Very easy, tasty, and fast! Thanks for a winning recipe!
My pleasure, Michelle!!
I made this for dinner, and it will easily be part of the 2 week rotation. It’s not spicy at all… so my one-year-old loves it. I topped mine with a little pickled jalapeños, cilantro and salsa verde. I live that it’s also an easy dinner “blueprint”. I can add a different sauce and cheese and change the flavor profile entirely. Thank you!!
Absolutely! I’m so glad this recipe was a hit with the whole family, Devon! Have you tried my Cheesy Broccoli Ham version? https://iowagirleats.com/cheesy-ham-and-broccoli-rice-skillet/
Such an easy dish to meal prep and reheat. Feels like such a luxury to be able to eat and be gluten free!
I’m so glad to hear that!! Yes, I agree – a creamy cheese sauce definitely helps!