One-Pan Chicken Thighs with Cilantro-Lime Black Bean Rice – flavorful, delicious, gluten free recipe! Very easy to make, everything is done in one-pot, on stove-top, no need to turn on the oven!
Just let the rice cook in the juices from the chicken thighs and in the chicken broth (or vegetable broth). The rice come out super delicious, and the chicken thighs are perfectly moist, tender, and flavorful! You don’t need to spend a lot of time making this One-Pan Chicken Thighs with Cilantro-Lime Black Bean Rice which makes it a great recipe for weeknights.
This might become one of your favorite ways to cook chicken and rice. I am really in love with this cilantro-lime black bean chicken and rice!
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How to make One-Pan Chicken Thighs with Cilantro-Lime Black Bean Rice
First, heat a large skillet on medium-high heat until hot. Add olive oil – it should run easily because the skillet is hot, but not sizzle or smoke. Season skin side of chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Sear them on high-medium heat in the skillet, skin-side down, for 5 minutes, until skins get golden brown color but don’t get burned.
Flip the chicken thighs to the other side and sear for 2 more minutes on medium heat. That’s how the chicken thigh skins should look like – nicely browned, but not burned. Skillet should not be burned on the bottom – use medium-high heat or medium heat, depending on your stove. Remove the chicken from the skillet (it will not be cooked through – you’ll continue cooking it in the next steps).
To the same (now empty) skillet, add chicken broth, water, rice, 1/4 teaspoon salt and minced garlic.
Don’t forget to add garlic – it add so much flavor:
Bring to boil. Mix everything well. Put chicken thighs on top, making wells for them in the rice. Reduce to the heat to low boil simmer. Cover the skillet with the lid.
Simmer for 15-20 minutes, covered, until the rice is cooked through and chicken is done (no longer pink in the center).
Remove the chicken from the skillet. Mix in the 1 tablespoon of lime juice, rinsed and rained black beans, and fresh cilantro into the cooked rice. Taste, and add more salt and/or another small amount of lime juice (at most 1 extra tablespoon, try adding half of extra tablespoon first). I think 2 tablespoons of lime juice (freshly squeezed only!) are just perfect, but the lime flavor might be too strong for some people, so you might use just 1 or 1.5 tablespoon instead of 2 that I used.
Add the chicken back on top and serve the dinner!
Great weeknight recipe. Flavorful, delicious, and gluten free! Make everything in one pan: both the main dish and the side dish. And, there you have your Chicken Thighs with Cilantro-Lime Black Bean Rice. All made together, in one pan!
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 chicken thighs
- salt and pepper
- 2 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup Jasmine rice , uncooked, or use any rice that says on the package that it takes 15 minutes to cook it
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tablespoons lime juice , freshly squeezed (use one 1 tablespoon first, before adding another)
- 15 oz black beans , rinsed, drained
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro , chopped
- Heat a large skillet on medium-high heat until hot. Add olive oil - it should run easily because the skillet is hot, but not sizzle or smoke. Season skin side of chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Sear them on high-medium heat in the skillet, skin-side down, for 5 minutes, until skins get golden brown color but don't get burned. Skillet should not be burned on the bottom. Flip the chicken thighs to the other side and sear for 2 more minutes on medium heat. Remove the chicken from the skillet (it will not be cooked through - you'll continue cooking it in the next steps).
- To the same (now empty) skillet, add chicken broth, water, uncooked rice, 1/4 teaspoon salt and minced garlic. Bring to boil. Mix everything well. Put chicken thighs on top, making wells for them in the rice. Reduce the heat to low boil simmer. Cover the skillet with the lid. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, covered, until the rice is cooked through, and the chicken is completely cooked (no longer pink in the center).
- Remove the chicken from the skillet. Mix in the 1 tablespoon of lime juice, rinsed and drained black beans, and fresh cilantro into the cooked rice. Taste, and add more salt and/or another small amount of lime juice (at most 1 extra tablespoon, try adding half of extra tablespoon first).
- Note: I think 2 tablespoons of lime juice (freshly squeezed only!) are just perfect, but the lime flavor might be too strong for some people, so you might use just 1 or 1.5 tablespoon instead of 2 that I used.
How would you adjust if cooking in oven? Xxxxthanks
I am assuming you want to cook only the chicken in the oven. In that case, season the chicken with salt and pepper and roast it in the oven-proof dish in the oven at 400 F until the chicken is done and no longer pink in the center. In the mean time, cook the cilantro lime black bean rice on the stove top, in a separate pan, following the recipe. In the end, add baked chicken to the cooked rice and serve.
I’m not a fan of black beans can I omit them altogether or use another kind?
You can definitely omit them – the dish will still have lots of flavor from lime juice and cilantro. You can use other types of cooked beans that you like.
DIVINE Have made this dish a few times and love it every time. I use boneless/skinless chicken breasts and 3/4c of the black beans. Rinse your rice first would be my advice to others! I like Kasmati rice. I even cheat and use the lime juice from the bottle (shhhh!). The dish is so easy to make and SOOO flavorful. CAn’t wait to make/eat it again!
So happy you like this recipe! Thank you so much for stopping by and leaving your comment!
Julia, thank you for a great recipe. I followed it exactly as written and my rice did turn out a little mushy, (I think it is because I used a T-Fal pan). My hubby loved it and had to hold himself back from having seconds, lol. I will definitely be making it again.
So glad to hear that! 🙂
Has anyone used quinoa in place of the rice?
This is the only way I have cooked this dish and I have cooked it several times now. So good!
Thank you, Melissa. I am glad you’ve been enjoying this recipe and made it several times. 🙂
Made this for dinner! Absolutely delicious! After the 20 minutes, my chicken still wasn’t cook all the way through, so I just stuck it in the oven to finish the chicken. I did also use a little white wine to deglaze the pan after I browned the chicken! So good!
Try using a Dutch oven! I had the same issue, switched it to an enamel cast iron Dutch oven….perfection, 20.minutes!
I have a larger family and seen that the boneless skinless thighs had much more pieces then the original size of 4 pieces. I follow the directions exactly and it turned out great. Very very delicious!! Thank you for sharing your recipe.
You’re very welcome! I am glad you enjoyed the recipe! Good to know it worked well with boneless skinless chicken thighs.
Thank you. Easy, inexpensive, and really tasty to boot!
I modified the recipe slightly by adding fresh Jalapeno pepper and onion. And also using just chicken broth instead of water (can use low sodium). After I browned the chicken and removed it from the pan, I added the garlic, onion, and Jalapeno pepper to the pan until they started browning, then I threw in the dry rice and mixed it up and let it all cook up for another couple of minutes. Then I added the liquid and continued with the recipe as stated.
Was delicious. Will become one of my go-to recipes.
Thanks again!
Thank you, Scott! Glad you liked it! Looks like you spiced up this dish by adding some jalapeno pepper. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
OMG just tasted it! Rice paste or not, this is DELICIOUS! (but seriously, go for just the broth, no water… although who cares because this is so damn yummy!)
Same issue with the rice — came out like mush 🙁
Smells great though, and hoping the rice-paste I’ve made is at least yummy! Definitely will opt for 2 cups of broth only the next time I make it… maybe even 1.75 cups of broth considering how mushy the rice is right now.