Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Recipe

Chicken and Wild Rice in a creamy Parmesan sauce – easy and delicious comfort food!  It’s just like a casserole, except everything is cooked in the skillet on a stovetop!

Chicken and Wild Rice

Easy Recipe

The best thing about this Chicken and Wild Rice skillet is that it’s so easy to make. The only time-consuming portion of the recipe is cooking the wild rice. As you know, wild rice cooks a long time, about 45 minutes, so plan accordingly. After the wild rice is cooked, the recipe is done very quickly.

A great variation of this recipe is a Creamy Chicken Pot Pie Wild Rice with carrots and peas.

Gluten Free Recipe

The creaminess here comes from adding half-and-half and shredded Parmesan cheese, which makes this recipe gluten-free.  There is no flour added to thicken the sauce!

How to Cook Wild Rice on Stovetop

• Combine 1 cup of wild rice, 4 cups of water (1 to 4 proportion), and salt in a saucepan. Bring to boil on high heat. Reduce heat low and simmer (cook) the rice for about 45 minutes, covered.
• After 45 minutes of cooking, stir the rice. If there is still water in the pan, cover, and let the rice sit, covered, for 10 more minutes to absorb the remaining water.
• Season the rice with extra salt, if desired.
• For more details, check out this article How To Cook Wild Rice.

How do you know when wild rice is cooked

• Cook until the rice is soft but not mushy and until most of the grains are popped. You don’t want the rice to be tough and chewy, so be patient and cook just until it’s of the right softness.
• Once the rice is cooked to the desired softness, drain extra water from the pan.

Substitutions

• Don’t have half-and-half? To make 1 cup of half-and-half, combine 1/2 cup of milk + 1/2 cup of heavy cream.
• What other cheese can you use besides Parmesan? Use Romano cheese, Asiago cheese, or Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese.
• Instead of skinless boneless chicken thighs, you can use skinless boneless chicken breasts.

5 from 11 votes

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Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Recipe

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

1 hr

Total Time

1 hr 10 mins

 

Chicken and Wild Rice in a creamy Parmesan sauce - easy and delicious comfort food!  This recipe is just like a chicken and wild rice casserole except everything is cooked in a skillet on the stovetop!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: 6 servings

Calories: 429 kcal

Author: Julia

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups wild rice , uncooked
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion , small, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves , minced
• 1 pound chicken thighs , skinless and boneless, chopped into smaller slices
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
• salt
• 2/3 cup half and half
• 1/3 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese shredded
• 1/3 cup fresh parsley , chopped

Instructions

1. Cook wild rice + 1/4 teaspoon and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a large pot of boiling water according to the cooking instructions on the package (usually, wild rice cooks about 45 minutes, so plan accordingly).
2. When wild rice is almost cooked, heat olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Add chopped onion and minced garlic, and cook on medium heat, stirring, until onion is translucent, about 1 minute.
3. Add chopped chicken, sprinkle generously with salt, oregano, thyme, parsley, and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through.
4. When the wild rice is done, add cooked wild rice to the skillet with chicken and mix everything.
5. Add 2/3 cup half and half, 1/3 cup chicken broth to the skillet with chicken and rice and bring to boil. Add shredded 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Stir, until the cheese has melted, on medium-low heat. Taste and add more salt if needed, about 1/8 teaspoon or 1/4 teaspoon more.
6. Remove from heat, stir in 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley.

Recipe Notes

What is HALF & HALF? To make 1 cup of half and half, combine 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup regular cream (heavy, or whipping cream).

Nutrition Facts

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 429 Calories from Fat 198

% Daily Value*

Fat 22g34%

Saturated Fat 7g44%

Cholesterol 89mg30%

Sodium 401mg17%

Potassium 432mg12%

Carbohydrates 34g11%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 1g1%

Protein 22g44%

Vitamin A 500IU10%

Vitamin C 7.6mg9%

Calcium 154mg15%

Iron 1.7mg9%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.