This baked one pot Greek lemon chicken and rice is the classic Greek recipe which is a stunner on its own! This easy & simple dish is proof that beauty & perfection are found in simplicity most of the time!
Looking for a stunning recipe which is different from most of the lot to prepare for a party? But without sweating for hours in the kitchen?
Then look no further than this absolutely gorgeous baked one pot Greek lemon chicken and rice! I know, the name is a mouthful, right!
I tried this recipe as I wanted to give a shot to something different from my regular Indian dishes. When I came across this one, it looked so impressive and easy at the same time that I instantly hooked my mind on this!
And after tasting this Greek lemon chicken and rice, I fell short of words to describe how tasty it was! That fresh lemony flavor with chicken & rice wrapped in the zest of fresh herbs proved to be a match made in heaven!
I insist you make this one as soon as you can and I am sure you will come back to thank me later!
What is One pot Greek lemon chicken and rice?
The one pot Greek lemon chicken and rice is a classic Greek recipe which I discovered in Akis’ YouTube channel and instantly fell in love with it!
As he said, this is a very traditional homely Greek recipe which is enjoyed by Greek families during a lazy Sunday lunch. Thanks to the power of the internet, I can access such traditional recipes and recreate them in my Indian kitchen and thoroughly enjoy it!
This is a classic one pot recipe where chicken & rice are arranged in a single pot together and then placed in the hot oven to get cooked slowly. This way the chicken will release all its flavors and infuse the rice.
And the rice will fluff up absorbing all the flavors from chicken, lemon, herbs and olive oil! All this transformation makes the rice incredibly tasty which I was just blown away with!
The fresh rosemary and dried oregano impart their magic to the rice & chicken and convert them to something precisely delicious. All in all this is a must-try recipe for your upcoming sunday brunch!
What makes it even more special is the ease and simplicity of making this dish. It hardly takes any effort and the oven will do all the hard work!
Ingredients for One pot Greek lemon chicken and rice
Only a handful of ingredients are required to churn out this delicious Greek delicacy.
Chicken drumstick: I used skin-on chicken drumsticks for my dish for 2 reasons – it was easier (and better to look at!) to fit drumsticks in my skillet and they taste best for us! Chicken thighs will also be equally good! I would not recommend using chicken breast for this as it may turn dry and tough upon 1 hour of baking.
Rice: Basmati is a good choice of rice for making this one pot chicken & rice dish. Basmati rice has a flavor of its own which is perfectly complemented by the fresh herbs and lemon juice.
Lemon juice and lemon peel: Lemon is the star of this dish which is precisely why it is called lemon chicken! While making this dish, you may feel that there is too much lemon; but just trust the process and I guarantee you that you would love this like crazy even if you haven’t tasted anything like this before!
Extra Virgin olive oil: This dish needs a good drizzle of olive oil! First you sear the chicken using olive oil and then you add a generous amount into the rice so that they do not become too sticky and also absorb delightful flavor.
Bay leaf: For flavoring the rice, there are just a handful of aromatics and bay leaf is one of the key among them. It adds a beautifully subtle aroma to the rice, so I urge you not to skip this.
Garlic: The must have aromatic for any chicken recipe is undoubtedly garlic. Throw in as much or as little as you like as I believe there is nothing called “too much garlic”!
Fresh rosemary: Now comes the fresh herbs and rosemary is an irresistible combination with chicken. You can easily grow rosemary in a small pot in your kitchen garden or can get your hands on it in the specialty section of your local supermarket.
Dried oregano: Oregano always has its special place in the series of favorite herbs and it adds its magic here too! Just a teaspoon of dried oregano is enough to impart that stunning flavor.
Chicken stock: To cook the rice, ideally you should use a good quality, preferably homemade, chicken stock as the stock adds its own flavors to the rice and chicken while being baked.
But just in case you don’t have stock handy and you still want to go ahead with this recipe, then feel free to substitute chicken stock with water. Thanks to all the flavorful herbs and freshly squeezed lemon juice, the chicken and rice both will turn out mind-blowingly delicious.
Salt & black pepper: Season the chicken while searing and also season the rice with salt & freshly crushed black pepper but just be a little careful not to over-season it as you will be adding salt twice separately.
How to make One pot Greek lemon chicken and rice?
This one is really a very easy recipe without much of a hassle and even if you are not Greek, you can still churn out a very delicious Greek lemon chicken and rice! Check out its step by step recipe.
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 180 C / 360 F and place the oven rack at the center of the oven.
Step 2: Wash and pat dry the chicken drumsticks. Take them in a bowl and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of freshly crushed black pepper. Massage the oil and seasonings thoroughly into the chicken.
Step 3: Heat a large skillet, big enough to hold all the chicken drumsticks in a single layer (or you can sear them in batches). Add another 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan.
Step 4: Once the pan is hot, place the chicken drumsticks on the pan and arrange in a single layer; this is important as otherwise the drumsticks will not sear properly and will not develop the golden brown color.
Step 5: Let the chicken sear on medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes and meanwhile prepare the rice.
Step 6: Wash the rice in running water for 3 to 4 times until the water runs clear. This will ensure extra starch is washed off and your rice comes out fluffy.
Step 7: Take a large cast iron skillet or a large baking pan, which is big enough to hold rice, chicken and stock. Add washed rice, lemon peels, bay leaves, minced garlic, rosemary sprigs, dried oregano, 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, ¼ cup of lemon juice and salt & pepper to taste. Give a good mix using a spoon.
Step 8: Now pour half of the chicken stock into the rice and give another mix; reserve the other half. Rice is ready. Let’s check on the chicken.
Step 9: The chicken drumsticks would have developed a nice golden brown color by now; you can flip them over and give a couple of minutes more to the other side.
Step 10: Switch off the flame and add the last ¼ cup of lemon juice to the chicken to deglaze the pan. Give a quick shake to the pan.
Step 11: Now take one drumstick at a time and place it carefully over the rice. Make sure you arrange the drumsticks in a single layer.
Step 12: Once all the drumsticks are placed, pour the remaining chicken stock and ensure the liquid does not overflow.
Pro tip: I recommend not to add all the chicken stock at the very beginning because when you place the drumsticks over the rice, liquid may overflow. If your skillet cannot hold all the liquid stock, then just start baking with half of the stock and add the remaining stock after halfway through baking; the first half of liquid will get absorbed by then.
Step 13: Now cover the skillet with aluminum foil and bake the Greek lemon chicken and rice in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes. Then remove the aluminum foil and bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes until the rice turns golden and sizzling and all the liquid is absorbed.
Step 14: Your one pot baked greek lemon chicken and rice is ready to serve. Serve it up with some extra drizzle of olive oil with 2 drumsticks per portion. Enjoy!
More delicious one pot recipes from Flavor Quotient
- Mediterranean One Pot Chicken and Rice
- One Pot Mexican Chicken & Rice Casserole
- One Pot Roasted Chicken and Potatoes with Rosemary
- Chicken drumstick - 6, skin-on
- Extra Virgin olive oil - 4 tbsp
- Salt - 1 tsp
- Freshly crushed black pepper - ½ tsp
- Lemon juice - ¼ cup (please use freshly squeezed lemon juice for best results)
- Uncooked rice - 1 & ½ cups
- Lemon juice - ¼ cup
- Lemon peel - 1 (from 1 large lemon)
- Bay leaf - 2
- Garlic - 8 to 10 cloves, minced
- Fresh rosemary - 2 sprigs
- Dried oregano - 1 tsp
- Chicken stock - 6 cups
- Extra Virgin olive oil - 4 tbsp
- Preheat your oven to 180 C / 360 F and place the oven rack at the center of the oven.
- Wash and pat dry the chicken drumsticks. Take them in a bowl and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of freshly crushed black pepper. Massage the oil and seasonings thoroughly into the chicken.
- Heat a large skillet, big enough to hold all the chicken drumsticks in a single layer (or you can sear them in batches). Add another 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan.
- Once the pan is hot, place the chicken drumsticks in the pan and arrange in a single layer; this is important as otherwise the drumsticks will not sear properly and will not develop the golden brown color.
- Let the chicken sear on medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes and meanwhile prepare the rice.
- Wash the rice in running water for 3 to 4 times until the water runs clear. This will ensure extra starch is washed off and your rice comes out fluffy.
- Take a large cast iron skillet or a large baking pan. Add washed rice, lemon peels, bay leaves, minced garlic, rosemary sprigs, dried oregano, 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, ¼ cup of lemon juice and salt & pepper to taste. Give a good mix using a spoon.
- Now pour half of the chicken stock into the rice and give another mix; reserve the other half. Rice is ready. Let’s check on the chicken.
- The chicken drumsticks would have developed a nice golden brown color by now; you can flip them over and give a couple of minutes to the other side.
- Switch off the flame and add the last ¼ cup of lemon juice to the chicken to deglaze the pan. Give a quick shake to the pan.
- Now take one drumstick at a time and place it carefully over the rice. Make sure you arrange the drumsticks in a single layer.
- Once all the drumsticks are placed, pour the remaining chicken stock and ensure the liquid does not overflow.
- Now cover the skillet with aluminum foil and bake the Greek lemon chicken and rice in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes. Then remove the aluminum foil and bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes until the rice turns golden and sizzling and all the liquid is absorbed.
- Your one pot baked Greek lemon chicken and rice is ready to serve. Serve it up with some extra drizzle of olive oil with 2 drumsticks per portion. Enjoy!
What happens to the lemon deglaze from the pan after the drumsticks are browned? Do you add it to the rice mix?
Hi Liz! Yes! You should add the lemon deglaze from the pan into the rice before baking as it has all the flavors! Thank you for pointing it out, I had missed to mention it!