Cheesy Mexican Chicken and Rice
Skillet Mexican chicken with green chilies, tomatoes, Mexican spices, rice, and cheese. An easy 30-minute dinner recipe!
This is one of my go-to dinners when I am in a pinch and need to whip up a quick and easy meal for my family. They all love this Skillet Mexican Chicken and Rice which is always a win-win. This is a huge bowl of comfort food packed with a crazy amount of flavor. We all need a heavy dose of comfort food these days!
I love making this Cheesy Mexican Chicken and Rice because my kids and husband devour it and we never have leftovers. They are all fighting for seconds! You know I am all about robust flavors in my recipes and this is definitely full of flavor!
This Skillet Mexican Chicken is made by sauteeing chicken breast until golden. A key to this skillet chicken and rice is to saute onion, garlic, and Mexican spices until softened. These are the flavor builders in this dish! Then you add chicken broth, fire-roasted tomatoes, green chilies, and rice and cover for about 20 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked. This makes this dish extra easy since you add the ingredients, cover it, and let it simmer untouched.
After the rice is fully cooked, stir in Mexican cheeses which gives it a rich creamy texture. We love to top this Cheesy Mexican Chicken and Rice with fresh cilantro, pickled jalapenos, and pepper jack cheese. You are going to love this Mexican Skillet Chicken and Rice.
How to make Cheesy Skillet Chicken and Rice:
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces, for about 3 minutes per side. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Once the chicken is no longer pink, remove from pan and place the chicken plus the juices on a plate. Cover.
- Add the onion to the skillet and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer. Add the rice, chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Stir in the chicken broth, tomatoes (with their juices), and green chilies. Bring to a simmer and return the chicken to the skillet.
- Reduce the heat to LOW to allow the rice to cook low and slow. Cover with a lid and cook for at least 20 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked and softened. The rice should have absorbed a lot of the liquid.
- Stir in Mexican cheese and fresh cilantro. Top with pickled jalapenos and more cheese, if so desired.
Cheesy Mexican Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon Olive or Canola Oil
- 2 lbs. Chicken Breast (cut into bite-size pieces)
- Sprinkle of Salt and Pepper
- ½ cup Onion (finely diced)
- 2 cloves Garlic (minced)
- 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Powder
- 1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1 cup White Rice
- 2 cups Chicken Broth
- (1) 15-ounce can Diced or Fire-Roasted Tomatoes (with juices)
- 4 ounce can Green Chilies
- 2 to 3 cups Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack, or Mexican Cheese B lend
- ¼ cup Fresh Cilantro (chopped)
- Pickled Jalapenos
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces, for about 3 minutes per side. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Once the chicken is no longer pink, remove from pan and place the chicken plus the juices on a plate. Cover.
- Add the onion to the skillet and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer. Add the rice, chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Stir in the chicken broth, tomatoes (with their juices), and green chilies. Bring to a simmer and return the chicken to the skillet.
- Reduce the heat to LOW to allow the rice to cook low and slow. Cover with a lid and cook for at least 20 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked and softened. The rice should have absorbed a lot of the liquid.
- Stir in Mexican cheese and fresh cilantro. Top with pickled jalapenos and more cheese, if so desired.
Elena
I would like to make this dish,unfortunately I do not have idea about mexican cheese..Can I replace this with another
kind of cheese?
Thank you very much!
Yolanda
I used Monterey Jack and it was yummy.
Lisa Haggard
I'm just wondering if i used brown rice would I adjust the amount of broth to 2/12 cups or do you think that the liquid normally left from using the white rice would be sufficient for cooking the brown rice?
Thank you
Stacie Thompson
Made this Sunday night for dinner and it was fantastic. Even better for leftovers, just added little extra cheese and homemade salsa. Yummy
Sylvia
Very delicious! You’re right about it being full of flavor! Just our style of food. And very quick and easy to prepare. I’m for sure sharing this with my daughter!
christy+blake
This is Super delicious. The rice cooked unevenly for me. But, It's so yummy, I'm excited to make again and see if I can do a better job on the rice.
Mike
As another commenter said, the rice cooks unevenly. You either need to reduce the rice or use well over 2 cups of broth for the rice to cook evenly, 3 at the very least (yes, I included all liquid ingredients including the reserved juice from the cooked chicken). I followed the recipe exactly and some of the kernels of rice were still crunchy after an entire hour of cooking on low. I often cook similar recipes using rice in a skillet with no issue so it's not my pan or anything.
I had to turn the heat up to medium-high and stir constantly until most of the rice turned into pudding to get rid of the crunchy kernels. Still 4 stars because the taste was really good even though the rice basically turned into refried beans texturally.
Rob
So easy and quick to make. It is also packed with flavor, so it tastes like it takes more work than it actually does. Love it!
Christy
I’ve been making this dish for my family for several years. It is a winner! Great as leftovers too. We also like it without chicken.