This 30-Minute Chicken and Rice Tastes Like It's Been Simmering All Day

Bingo! I finally found the best recipe to use up leftover chicken breasts.

Welcome to Ready. Set. Cookbook!, a column where we share the cookbook recipes we earmark and turn to on the busiest weeknights. These highly craveable recipes will help you get dinner on the table in under an hour.

I make roasted chicken at least a couple of times a month, but here’s my confession: on the journey of roasting hundreds of chickens over many years, I’ve come to cherish the dark meat, while the chicken breasts often languish as uneaten leftovers. To me, white meat doesn’t have the deep chicken flavor like the rest of the bird, and it can seem sort of blah

That is until I discovered Yasmin Fahr’s Tomato Rice with Chicken and Green Beans from her cookbook, Keeping it Simple. Although the recipe calls for chicken thighs, Fahr provides a tip—the cookbook is filled with time-saving tips—to use shredded leftover or rotisserie chicken. Bingo! When those chicken breasts await in the fridge, I know just what to make.

Using pre-cooked chicken, the one-pot dish is ready in 30 minutes, but it tastes like it simmered all day on the stove. (Psst! A quick tip: remove the chicken from the refrigerator so that it comes to room temperature and the meat accepts flavor more easily.)

2 Ingredient Swaps I Recommend

Passata: A 28-ounce can of peeled Italian tomatoes—a common pantry staple—drained and lightly crushed with a potato masher works well for the passata. For a more stew-like consistency, don’t drain and just crush—the dish will remain moist once it becomes leftovers.

Long-grain Rice: Choose a different long-grain rice. I use Carolina Gold rice from South Carolina since it’s grown in my area.

How To Make Yasmin Fahr's Tomato Rice with Chicken and Green Beans

Recipe Note: To save time, use shredded leftover or rotisserie chicken. Add the shredded chicken to the tomato rice at the same point the pulled chicken is added to the recipe (Step 4). Make sure to use the correct amount of passata as too little will undercook the rice.

For four servings, you'll need:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 large yellow onion, diced

• salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric

• 450 g (1 lb) skinless, boneless chicken thighs (see Recipe Note)

• 500 g (1 lb 2 oz/2 cups) passata (strained tomatoes) (see Recipe Note)

• 500 ml (17 fl oz/2 cups) water

• 200 g (7 oz/1 cup) basmati rice or other long-grain rice, rinsed

• 150 g (5¼ oz/1 cup) frozen cut green beans, sliced into 5-cm (2-in) pieces

• Greek yoghurt or labneh, for serving

1. Cook the onions: Heat the oil in a flameproof casserole dish (Dutch oven) or large frying pan (skillet) with a tight-fitting lid over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in the turmeric, cooking until fragrant, about 1 minute.

2. Cook the chicken: Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper. Add to the pan along with the passata and water, adjust heat to maintain an active simmer (avoid bringing it to a boil). Simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, turning it over if not completely submerged. Use tongs to remove the chicken, holding it over the pot to drain any liquid, then place in a shallow bowl or plate.

3. Add the rice: Add the rice and salt then raise the heat to maintain an active simmer. Cover and cook until the rice is soft and most of the liquid has been absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom. Keep the heat low to avoid burning and try to open the lid as little as possible. Add more water, if necessary, in 125 ml (1/2 cup) increments.

4. Meanwhile, shred the chicken: Use this time to shred the chicken with a fork and knife.

5. Assemble and serve: When the rice is ready, stir in the green beans, chicken, and any liquid, until the beans are soft and the chicken warm, about 3 minutes. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes off the heat. Adjust seasoning as needed then serve with the yoghurt.

Recipe excerpted with permission from "Keeping It Simple" by Yasmin Fahr, published by Hardie Grant Books, February 2020.

Read the original article on Simply Recipes.