The BEST easy baked chicken with raisins & rice

This delicious, nutritious baked chicken with raisins and yellow rice recipe will hit the spot! An easy homemade dinner recipe packed with protein and the right amount of yellow rice and sweet dried fruits- raisins and dates. The chicken has a light sweet fruity aromatic taste, which complements the fluffy soft yellow rice. You will make this baked chicken dish regularly!

I could not wait any longer, so I took the first bite hot right out of the oven while my kids were staring at me and waiting impatiently for their food! The sweet aroma and flavor of this baked chicken with raisins and yellow rice are incredible you guys!!

When it comes to making a variety of baked chicken dishes with sweet-sour, creamy, buttery taste, this skinny-taste sweet baked chicken with raisins and yellow rice got to be one of my favorite baked chicken recipes and your favorite pretty soon too!

You may serve this baked chicken with raisins and yellow rice with your favorite side vegetables dishes. However, fermented vegetables with their tangy flavor or fresh garden salads complement the dish better. I served it with sauerkrauts.

This sweet baked chicken recipe is an excellent recipe to make this mother's day!

If this baked chicken recipe inspired you, check out the other popular chicken recipes:

• Best baked chicken in walnut marinara
• Baked chicken in simple lime orange marinara
• Best grilled chicken in the oven

Jump to:

• Tips
• Variations
• Substitutes
• Why bake chicken at 400 °F
• Why cover the skillet while baking it
• How to prepare the yellow rice
• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Notes
• Pin it for later
• Recipe

Tips

• Learn how to prepare the yellow rice for this dish in the section below in the post.
• Feel free to use more rice if needed.
• Use bone-in chicken cuts to add more flavor to the dish. Bone-in chicken cuts take longer to cook.
• Make chicken cuts small, so they cook faster.
• Saluting onion and chicken adds more flavor to the dish.
• If you have extra time in hand, sauté dried fruits.
• Toss in your favorite finely chopped vegetables: broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, peas... to make it a complete dish.
• Serve it with your favorite side dishes. I served it with sauerkraut.
• Add a dash of your favorite spices or herbs.

Variations

• Add sour cream to it and make a creamy baked chicken casserole with raisins and yellow rice.
  • Plain whole milk yogurt, greek yogurt, hard cheese, cottage cheese, cream cheese, or heavy cream are other great alternatives to sour cream.
• Cook it in a slow cooker, instant pot, or stovetop instead of baking this dish in the oven.
• Add some sauteed aromatics herbs such as parsley, cilantro, and chives to the dish.
• Use some of your favorite spices.

Substitutes

• Substitute chicken with beef or fish. Make it vegan and substitute chicken with beans, chickpeas, lentils, or soaked chopped nuts such as walnut, cashew, or peanut.
• Replace white rice with brown rice, quinoa, pasta, oats, orzo, and other small pasta. Or couscous. Make it keto-friendly and substitute rice with cauliflower or broccoli rice, shredded cabbage, or zucchini.
• Instead of raisins or dates, use other dried fruits: apricots, cranberries, cherries, figs, plums, mangos, and pineapples are great options.
  • Or use sweet vegetables such as shredded sweet potatoes, carrots., or winter squash. Fresh fruits such as apples, pears, peaches... are great options.
• Replace onion with leeks, chives, garlic, or shallots.
• Use butter, ghee, coconut oil, avocado oil, or olive oil.
• Add your favorite spices and herbs. This is an easy way to boost the dish's flavor without adding more calories.
  • Spices: cumin, ginger, cayenne pepper, cinnamon...
  • Herbs: cilantro, chives, oregano, mint, dill, parsley, basil, and rosemary…

Why bake chicken at 400 °F

The high heated oven helps to sear and cook the chicken fast without drying it out. So that chicken stays moist and juicy.

Why cover the skillet while baking it

Chicken and rice need steam to cook through. When you cover the skillet while baking the chicken dish in the oven, the steam created by the ingredients in the skillet gets trapped inside, which helps to cook the al-dente rice and chicken without drying it out otherwise. This way, the chicken cooks thoroughly, and the rice stays soft, fluffy, and moist; no need to add additional liquid.

How to prepare the yellow rice

1. Rinse one cup of dry rice with water before cooking (optional).
2. Let the rice soak in 2 cups of water for 10 -30 minutes (optional). Otherwise, go to the next step.
3. Next, add 2 cups of water to the rinsed rice in a pot, and season it with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Bring it to a boil and reduce the heat.
5. Let the rice boil for about 5 minutes or until you can break the rice grains easily between your fingers, but not thoroughly cooked through, another word al-dente rice.
6. Then, drain the rice and add turmeric and oil to the al-dente rice and mix them to make yellow rice.
7. Set it aside. Yellow rice will finish cooking in the oven.

Ingredients

• 3 lb whole chicken cut into small pieces. Bone-in, skin, and fat removed.
• ½ cup of raisins
• ½ cup of dates for extra sweetness. (optional)
• One cup of uncooked rice. Find instructions above on how to prepare it.
• One large onion chopped.
• One teaspoon of turmeric
• One tablespoon of garlic powder and one tablespoon of onion powder for more flavor. (optional)
• Salt & pepper as needed
• Oil as needed to sauté onion and sear the chicken. I used avocado oil.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven at 400 °F
2. Add turmeric and oil to the al-dente rice and mix them all to make yellow rice.
3. In a hot skillet, add oil and sauté onion until soft and golden.
4. Then, add the chicken to the sauteed onion and sear it.
5. Season the chicken with salt and pepper as needed.
6. Next, add garlic and onion powder.
7. Let the chicken sauté until most of the liquid is absorbed.
8. Next, spread the yellow rice over the chicken.
9. Add raisins and dates over the yellow rice.
10. Cover the skillet with foil and let it cook for 45 minutes on the middle rack of the oven.
11. ENJOY!

Notes

• I used a 10-inch cast-iron skillet to bake the dish.
• Customize the amount of the ingredients to your liking and check out the section above in the post for baked chicken substitutes and more.
• Read more in the post about the yellow rice.
• I use bone-in chicken cuts, which take longer to cook. If otherwise, adjust for cooking time.

What did you substitute? How did your family and kids like it? Let me know in the comment below your favorite combination.

Find more simple delicious nutritious chicken recipes:

• Best baked chicken in walnut marinara
• Baked chicken in simple lime orange marinara
• Best grilled chicken in the oven

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