Creamy Chicken Broccoli and Rice

This Creamy Chicken Broccoli and Rice combines perfectly with a light creamy cheese sauce, tender chicken breast, and slightly steamed broccoli, giving it a pop of color that is perfect over some fluffy rice! Its extraordinary flavors create a taste that will fill your body with warmth and creamy comfort. Serve this dish with a side salad and make it a perfect cream of chicken night!

this RECIPE!

Whether cooking for family or friends or treating yourself, this recipe will become your favorite GO-TO meal in your kitchen! The first time I tried this recipe out, I was instantly in love, it gives you a feeling of pure comfort and delight. I had no idea what I was getting myself into and don’t regret it at all! It’s a delicious meal in one and my family instantly adopted this recipe to be a once-a-week ordeal!

This recipe was inspired by my Creamy Chicken Mushroom Capellini Pasta which has a thicker sauce due to the use of heavy whipping cream. The great part of this Creamy Chicken Broccoli and Rice recipe is that the creamy sauce is very light because I used milk instead of heavy whipping cream. It’s a big difference but both are very good and it depends on how you’re feeling that night! 😋

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IN THIS POST: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW TO MAKE THE PERFECT CREAMY CHICKEN BROCCOLI AND RICE

• WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS CREAMY CHICKEN BROCCOLI AND RICE RECIPE
• 🍴INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED TO MAKE THIS CREAMY CHICKEN BROCCOLI AND RICE RECIPE
• SUBSTITUTIONS AND ADDITIONS TO THIS RECIPE
• STEPS TO MAKE THIS CREAMY CHICKEN BROCCOLI AND RICE
• PREFER TO WATCH STEP-BY-STEP RECIPE VIDEO INSTEAD OF READING?
• JUMP TO RECIPE CARD

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS CREAMY CHICKEN BROCCOLI AND RICE RECIPE

This is such a comforting meal because it’s ready in just 30 minutes!

The chicken and rice are cooked separately but you can always cook this as a one-pot meal as well! The great part of this recipe is that it’s done on the stovetop and not oven-baked which cuts most of the time in half. It’s made with simple ingredients, quick meal prepping time, and not a lot of mess to clean up after and it’s perfect for leftovers and a great freezer prep meal!

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🍴INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED TO MAKE THIS CREAMY CHICKEN BROCCOLI AND RICE RECIPE

Here is a preview of the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe! You can find these at your local grocery store or you can shop online. (Detailed Ingredients in Recipe Card down below)

• Chicken Breasts – Large filet chicken breasts
• Ricotta Cheese – Don’t skip this 😉
• Milk – Whole milk
• Fresh Parmesan Cheese
• Broccoli – Fresh broccoli is suggested, but if you choose to use frozen broccoli make sure to defrost, drain and pat dry before placing it into your pot to cook.
• Garlic Cloves
• Flour – All-purpose Flour
• Limes – Fresh lime juice is preferred
• Smoked Paprika
• Chicken Seasoning
• Salt
• Pepper
• White Cooking Wine
• Rice – Rose rice is our preferred choice because it’s full and thick as it pairs well with the sauce but go ahead and use whatever rice you have on hand.

SUBSTITUTIONS AND ADDITIONS TO THIS RECIPE

• Swap Chicken with – seafood like Shrimp, Salmon, Scallops, and Lobster. For the seafood, follow the same steps for marinating and make sure to cook them properly according to the seafood you choose. If Beef or Turkey, meatballs are seasoned with the same seasonings as the chicken and cooked the same way you would the chicken.
• Swap Broccoli with – any type of veggie you prefer. Here are a few of my favorites; mushrooms, spinach, chestnuts, cauliflower, zucchini, and squash.
• Swap Rice with – your choice of pasta noodles or place it in a bread bowl and make a soup out of it!

STEPS TO MAKE THIS CREAMY CHICKEN BROCCOLI AND RICE

TIPS BEFORE STARTING THIS RECIPE:

• Fillet your Chicken – Make sure your chicken isn’t too thick. To make your chicken thinner, place parchment paper over the chicken and pound it with a meat tenderizer to thin your chicken out more.
• Do Not Over-cook Your Chicken – While you saute your chicken, make sure not to over-brown it, this will dry up your chicken.
• Whole Milk or Heavy Whipping Cream – Depending on how thick you want your sauce to be you can use heavy whipping cream and exclude the flour which creates more of a thicker sauce. However, if you want a thinner sauce you can use milk. We used whole milk in this recipe, but if you use 2% milk or 1% it will give you a thinner sauce. It all depends on your preference.
• Make it Spicy 🔥– Add some Cayenne Pepper to add a little spice!
• Fresh Broccoli vs Frozen Broccoli (Blanched) – I don’t prefer using frozen broccoli because it is already pre-cooked and frozen. I prefer it to be fresh. But if you choose to use frozen, make sure to thaw completely and pat dry before placing it into the pan along with the chicken.

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Step 1: COOKING RICE

Start by rinsing your rice in cold water about 2-3 times and strain in a strainer. Place a tablespoon of olive oil and place rinsed rice into a pot. Fill water over the rice, mix in the chicken bouillon powder, and make sure your rice is fully submerged in the water. Close the lid of the pot and put the fire on high until it comes to a full boil. Move the pot to a smaller fire, lowering your heat to low, and allow this to cook until done.

Step 2: PREPARING CHICKEN & VEGGIES

Start by filleting your chicken into thin strips cutting them into small cubed pieces and placing it into a large bowl. Season chicken with salt, pepper, paprika, and chicken seasoning, and allow this to sit for 30 minutes in the fridge while you start to prep your veggies. Chop your onions, broccoli and garlic into small pieces and set aside.

Step 3: COOKING CHICKEN

Heat oil in a large skillet, add in your onions and saute for 3 minutes on high heat. Add your seasoned chicken to your pan and lay it in one layer. Once you place your chicken into the pan, you’ll notice the onions will be pushed to the sides, that’s how it should be (do not mix in your onions at this time). Cook chicken until slightly browned on one side before turning over. Once turned over start to separate the chicken pieces and saute your onions into the chicken. Cook until both sides have browned for about 5 minutes.

Step 4: ADD VEGGIES

Add the chopped broccoli and garlic to the chicken and saute for 2 minutes on high heat. After a few minutes place the lid of the pan over your chicken and broccoli and set your fire to medium. Cook for a few more minutes until you notice the broccoli is vibrant in color (try not over-cooking your broccoli).

Step 5: CREAM SAUCE

Lastly, place your fire on low and add in milk, lime, and ricotta cheese, stir together and bring to a gentle simmer. Add flour, remaining paprika, and salt to your taste. Then add white cooking wine, and freshly grated parmesan cheese and mix. Allow this to simmer on low heat until the sauce has thickened. Serve with a side of rice or pour over and enjoy!

PREFER TO WATCH STEP-BY-STEP RECIPE VIDEO INSTEAD OF READING?

Have any questions about this recipe or have you tried making our recipe yet? If so, we would LOVE to hear how it turned out! You can post, tag, rate, and comment down below and on Instagram! 👇 Thank you in advance!

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RECIPE CARD

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: CREAM OF CHICKEN BROCCOLI AND RICE

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