Hot Honey Chicken with Baked Rice
August feels like the finish line of a slightly out of control and very sweaty race. We don’t want summer to end, but also, yes, maybe we are very ready for it to end? My point is that a dinner you can dump and bake is very welcome this time of year. This chicken and rice combo is as old as the suburbs, but I see why moms of yore relied heavily on it. Most everyone likes chicken and rice and the flavor variations are just expansive enough that you can never tire of it! I like to use boneless, skinless chicken thighs here because they are hard to dry out, but are still easy for little ones to eat. If you have bone in, skin on thighs that will work as well, you may just need to add a bit more time to cook them through. A word on the hot honey: I love it and think it adds a pop to the dish, but if you think their is no way your kiddos will eat it, just put it on your plate at the table! You could just as easily put a bit of BBQ sauce on top for the kids :)
Ingredients:
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1/4 teaspoon chipotle powder (totally optional!)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, finely chopped
1 3/4 cups basmati rice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup butter
hot honey:
1/2 cup honey
salt to taste
3 tablespoons your favorite hot sauce (taste to determine amount added!)
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl toss the chicken thighs with the chipotle powder, olive oil, paprika, and garlic powder. Set it aside for a minute.
Get a 9x13 baking dish and mix the rice, salt and stock together in it. Place the seasoned chicken thighs on top of the rice and put 6-8 small slices of the butter around the dish. Sprinkle the thyme over top and pop it in the oven. Bake for about 40 minutes. The rice should have absorbed the liquid and the chicken should be nice and browned on top. Take a quick minute to mix the hot honey together and drizzle over the top of the chicken pieces. Enjoy!
