Chicken and rice, quite possibly the most basic meal in existence… at least it is here in the States.
Not to be harsh on basic, I love basic. I love a basic t-shirt, a comfy pair of jeans, and there ain’t nothing wrong with a basic chocolate chip cookie. But generally speaking, basic tends to be synonymous with run-of-the-mill. Well this dish is anything but basic. This Thai-Style Chicken and Rice has the bold flavors of Thailand that you love with simple preparation you’re familiar with.
Have extra kaffir lime leaves? Make this cool and refreshing Kaffir Cooler.
The inspiration for this dish came from a dinning experience with my husband when we tried a new Thai restaurant in our neighborhood. I wanted something relatively light but something with zip to it – I ordered Tom Kha Gai, a soup made of coconut milk (tom), galangal (kha), and chicken (gai). Other prominent flavors are kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, fish sauce, and lime. It’s a soup with incredible depth of flavor that keeps you slurping down spoonful after spoonful; and it’s what the rice in this dish is cooked in.
Every grain of rice is infused with some serious flavor and as if that weren’t enough to hook you, the chicken is marinated in a blend of coconut milk and kaffir lime leaves, giving it a natural sweetness, incredible aroma, and keeping it perfectly moist as it cooks! How’s that for saying goodbye to basic?!
- Chicken & Marinade
- ½ of a 14 ounce can of unsweetened coconut milk
- 2 kaffir lime leaves
- 4 chicken thighs, bone in, skin on
- 2 tablespoon cooking oil
- Cooking Stock
- 1 cup good quality chicken stock
- 1 14 ounce can coconut milk + half a can leftover from the marinade
- 1-inch piece galangal, sliced
- 1 lemongrass stalk, cut into 1 inch pieces and smashed
- 2-3 fresh Kaffir lime leaves, bruised or muddled
- 2 Thai chilies, sliced lengthwise, seeds removed
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes + 1 more lime for garnish)
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- Rice
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 cup jasmine rice
- 6 ounces white button mushrooms, sliced
- fresh cilantro, garnish
- In a blender, combine the kaffir leaves and coconut milk. Process until the kaffir leaves are in little bits. Slather the chicken with the coconut milk and allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes, but over night is ideal.
- Meanwhile, make the cooking stock. Add the chicken stock to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Allow the stock to simmer until reduced by half. Then add the remaining 1½ cans of coconut milk, lemongrass, galangal, bruised kaffir leaves, and Thai chilies. Bring to a gentle simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add the lime juice and fish sauce. Set aside. Using a slotted spoon, remove any solids from the cooking stock.
- Remove the chicken from the coconut marinade and pat dry. Place an oven-safe heavy-bottomed skillet or pot with a tight fitting lid over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons cooking oil. Once hot, place the chicken skin side down and cook until golden-brown, approximately 5 minutes per side. Remove the chicken and set aside. Pour off the fat and wipe the pan clean with a paper towel.
- Warm a tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add the rice and stir to coat. Add the cooking stock and bring the contents to a boil. Turn off the heat, and place the chicken on top of the rice. Cover tightly with a lid and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the lid, and allow the excess liquid to cook off while in the oven for another 5 minutes. Taste and season the rice with more salt, if needed. Plate and garnish with torn cilantro leaves and a few wedges of lime. Serve and enjoy!
This looks and sounds delicious! Love those Thai flavors!
Thanks Sabrina!
This dish just proves that stepping outside your comfort zone and playing with new ingredients can create an awesome meal! This looks so so good, Kathleen! I love all the delicious, bold flavors in this dish…and that perfect crisp skin you got on the chicken…*swoon* <3
Thank you my dear. I was actually quite pleased with the way this dish developed. It started off as a soup and turned into a chicken and rice dish 😛
OMG. Talk about stepping up the “basic” chicken and rice!!! I can’t believe you figured out how to make a one pot Thai chicken & rice. YUM YUM YUM!!! I can’t WAIT TO MAKE THIS!!!!
Well it’s not quite one pot. I did use a saucepan to make the cooking broth for the rice. Though I suppose you could cook the chicken, remove, and then make the soup base for the rice to cook in 🙂
What a lovely recipe is all what I love it!
Thanks Eva!
Chicken and rice dishes are the best, especially ones that taste like Tom Kha Gai! Whaaaaat??? That’s cray-cray talk girl…but really good cray-cray talk 🙂 I have a whole chicken I just bought at the store yesterday and will breaking that down to make this Sunday night for dinner..then leftovers for Monday’s lunch. WOOHOOO!!! 😉
This is brilliant. What a great idea to cook rice in tom yum kha. Seriously. I’m gonna have to try this since I love tom yum so so much! And that chicken looks so good. This dish is just so me. Yum!
The rice is totally addictive in the tom yum kha broth! Just don’t burn your mouth eating straight out of a the hot pan like I did 😉
Gorgeous Kathleen! I love meals like this where it all ends up in one pan in the oven, and you have so much punchy Thai flavour going on – kaffir limes leaves are beautiful. And galangal and lemongrass? Definitely saving to make!
For me one pan that goes in the oven and ready to serve has comfort food written all over it 🙂
You probably know that basic’s where it’s all at where I’m concerned, and if you can manage both basic and delicious I’ll be your very best friend!
To me you’ve totally hit the mark with this one. What I love is that is really does still seem simple – there aren’t that many ingredients.Not to mention that you’ll always win me over with Thai flavours!
Thanks Helen! That means a lot to me 🙂 And I’m with you, I can always be won over with Thai flavors.
This looks fabulous! I love Thai food, so this is right up my alley. I have never seen Thai food done like this though. Looks far from basic, but still looks classic! Wonderful. Gotta give this one a try. 🙂
I’m with you, Amanda! I absolutely love Thai food, the fresh and vibrant flavors always keeping me coming back for more!
Screw basic! This chicken dish is off the charts!!! You go, girl!
Lol! You crack me up, Rachelle 😛
This is a meal I’d saddle up to the table for any night of the week! It’s so exciting and layered with flavor! I love all the restaurants you go to, Kathleen! So inspiring…just like you!
Aww… thanks, Annie *smooch! This dish definitely went through a few incarnations on paper before I hit the kitchen 🙂
What a beautiful dish and I love the flavors going on here. Tom Kha Gai soup is a must order whenever I visit a Thai restaurant. I’d love to enjoy it in a different format. I’ll probably throw in some asparagus into the skillet, so I’ll have a one-pan dinner within no time!
Absolutely! Asparagus would be an amazing addition – use up that awesome spring produce while it’s still around! 🙂
Yay for basic. I also love basic! And thai style chicken looks fantastic, Kathleen. Palatable and delicious. Wish you a lovely weekend! 🙂
Thanks Anu! I hope you had a great weekend too! 🙂
Love this dish and the great flavors you’ve created! Need to find the keffir lime leaves and try it!
You will love keffir leaves! They’re definitely a must-find!
Well this is brilliant. I love Tom Kha Gai soup. Whenever I make it, I always I’m making a fancy tea – infusing the coconut milk with all of those lovely aromatics and then removing them. It looks so plain (or basic 😉 ) but then you take a bite and KAPOW! I’d never considered doing something like this with the soup as the liquid. Love love love this recipe!!
Yes! I remember the first time I tried Tom Kha Gai… I looked at it an thought I wished I had ordered something else. It didn’t look like much, but one bite and boy was I WAY off! It was like a flavor bomb went off in my mouth! I’ve been hooked ever since 🙂
It may be basic but always comforting and you have used some delicious flavors in your dish. Can’t wait to try this.
Indeed! I hope you enjoy 🙂
Basic does not have to be bland at all – your dish looks incredible. Love the flavours that you have used in your recipe ♡
Thanks so much, Miriam 🙂 This dish definitely has some zip to it.
Ohhhh is that what Tom means! Coconut. I always learn something from your post 😀 So informative. And Chicken, coconut, lime and rice! what a combination:D Yum!
I didn’t know what ‘tom’ meant either until I did a little research on its background. So I’m learning with you 🙂
This sounds sooo good, just unfortunate I would never find gangal or keffir lime leaves here. Something to try when I go back to the U.S.
Yeah, I wish there were a good substitute for them, but there’s really not :/ You could try ordering online – gotta love the Internet these days 🙂