Simple Chicken Rice Dinner (Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, and Oven versions)

Part of saving money on groceries is, obviously, having recipes with cheap ingredients to lean on, and this is one of my favorites.

These chicken leg quarters can be found at Walmart for $.59 per pound, and brown rice, also at Walmart costs as little as $.051 per ounce.

for us, that means this main dish costs $1.90. Add steamed broccoli for a side dish, and it ends up being about $3.

That’s a pretty darn cheap dinner!

But more importantly for us during this busy season of life where we’re homeschooling, and renovating an old house, as well as running a business, It’s fast, and requires little to no prep (depending on whether you want to add the onions and mushrooms as shown in the video below).

Gabe and I have always adored the way rice soaks up the flavor when it’s cooked with chicken, and we very rarely have leftovers because of it. It’s one of the few meals other than pizza, we both agree is so good it’s hard to resist – that’s a big deal for us!

This simple chicken rice dinner is my favorite for putting in the slow cooker when we’re going to be gone all afternoon. It’s so nice to come home to hearty meal, already cooked! But more often than that, because the Instant Pot has been a total game changer for me, I put it in the Instant pot in the late morning, and let it cook for lunch while I’m working on School lessons with Garrett.

Then, as soon as he’s done, we can put the books away, and go straight to dishing up lunch. Boom!

But even if you don’t have a slow cooker or instant pot, this recipe is still just as easy to make in the oven – in some ways, it may even be a little better, because you can uncover it during the last few minutes of baking, to crisp up the skin. Perfection!

And speaking of skin, I prefer to remove it prior to cooking in the instant pot or slow cooker, because chicken skin tends to make the dish a lot more greasy. However, my husband loves that greasiness, and insist I leave it on,

Are all guys like that? Or am I just extraordinarily averse to grease?

Simple Chicken Rice Dinner (Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, and Oven versions)

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Try this simple and delicious Instant Pot chicken and rice- perfect for a busy night!

• Author: Elise

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• Chicken leg quarters – one per person
• 1 1/2 cups brown rice
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 3/4 cup onions, chopped (optional)
• 1/2 cup chopped mushrooms (also optional)
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil (if using onions and mushrooms)
• Salt and pepper to taste

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Instructions

For Instant Pot:

1. Turn instant pot on to Sauté
2. Add oil and onions to pot
3. Sauté onions until they begin to soften
4. Add mushrooms, and cook for a minute
5. Add rice, and a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper
6. Stir to combine with onions and mushrooms
7. Place chicken on top
8. Pour water over chicken
9. Fix lid on instant pot, and close steam valve
10. Set instant pot to “poultry”, and make sure the time reads 60 minutes.
11. Let cook, release steam when done, and enjoy!

For slow cooker:

1. Sauté olive oil and onions in a small skillet until onions begin to soften
2. Add mushrooms and sauté for a minute more
3. Add rice, salt and pepper, and store to combine
4. Pour mixture into the bottom of slow cooker
5. Place chicken on top
6. Pour water over chicken
7. Place lid on cooker, and cook for four hours on high, or six hours on low.
8. Remove lid and let cool some before serving
9. Enjoy!

For oven:

1. Preheat oven to 350º
2. Sauté olive oil and onions in a small skillet until onions begin to soften
3. Add mushrooms and sauté for a minute more
4. Add rice, salt and pepper, and store to combine
5. Pour mixture into a 9×13 baking dish
6. Place chicken on top
7. Pour water over chicken
8. Cover with foil, and cook for 45 minutes
9. Remove foil, and let cook, uncovered for an extra 15 minutes to crisp up skin.
10. Let cool some before serving
11. Enjoy!

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