RECIPES / WEEKNIGHT
Chicken and White Rice Bowls
Seared chicken thighs in a honey soy glaze over long grain white rice, with broccoli and carrots in the same pan. Forty minutes, one skillet, one pot of rice.
BY FELICITY KENNEDY
CO-FOUNDER AT 4SISTERS / AUGUST 17, 2026
SERVES 4
ON THIS PAGE
Overview
Ingredients
Prep
Cooking
PREP
15 min
COOK
25 min
SERVES
4
RICE
Long grain
Why the Rice Goes in Its Own Pot
Serving
FAQ
RICE WE USED
Chicken and white rice is better as two pans than one. Cooking the rice separately means the grains stay fluffy and the glaze stays a glaze instead of being absorbed into a pot of starch.
Organic White Rice
32 oz (2 lb) bag
There is a whole category of one pot chicken and rice recipes, and they work, but they trade texture for a saved dish. The rice ends up soft and coated because it cooked in the sauce. If you want a bowl where the chicken is glossy and the rice underneath is light, use two vessels.
The glaze is four ingredients plus aromatics, and it thickens on the heat in about a minute. Chicken thighs are worth choosing over breasts here because the glaze is sweet and the extra fat in a thigh keeps things balanced. They also forgive an extra minute in the pan, which matters on a Tuesday.
Thighs over breasts. More forgiving, and they stand up to a sweet glaze.
Jasmine White Rice
32 oz (2 lb) bag
Get the rice started first. It needs 23 minutes start to finish and everything else takes less.
SEE OUR RICE
Dry the chicken before it hits the pan. Wet chicken steams instead of browning.
Add the cornstarch slurry at the very end, off the boil, or the glaze turns gluey.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups 4Sisters Organic White Rice
3 cups water
1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut in 1 inch pieces
2 tbsp neutral oil
1 large head broccoli, cut in small florets
2 medium carrots, sliced on the bias
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp rice vinegar
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1 tbsp cold water
2 green onions and toasted sesame seeds, to finish
1/4 cup soy sauce
Prep
1
Start the rice
Combine the rice and water in a saucepan, bring to a boil, cover, and simmer on the lowest heat for 18 minutes. Pull it off and let it rest, still covered, while you cook everything else. Full detail on the method is in our guide to cooking long grain white rice.
2
Mix the glaze and dry the chicken
Whisk the soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, garlic, and ginger in a small bowl. Keep the cornstarch slurry separate for now.
Pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towel and season them lightly. Salt is optional given how much is in the soy sauce.
One pot chicken and rice saves a dish and costs you the texture. Two pans is the better trade.
Cooking
3
Sear the chicken
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high until it shimmers. Add the chicken in a single layer and leave it alone for 3 minutes so it browns, then turn and cook another 4 to 5 minutes until cooked through. Work in two batches if your pan is crowded, because crowded chicken steams. Move it to a plate.
4
Cook the vegetables
Add the carrots to the same pan with a splash of water and cook 3 minutes, then add the broccoli and cook 3 to 4 minutes more until both are crisp-tender and picking up color from the fond the chicken left behind.
5
Glaze and combine
Pour the soy and honey mixture into the pan and let it bubble for a minute. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the cornstarch slurry, and put it back on low for 30 seconds until it turns glossy and coats a spoon. Return the chicken, toss everything to coat, and cut the heat.
The glaze should cling rather than pool. If it looks thin, another 20 seconds on low will take it there. If it goes too far and turns tacky, a tablespoon of water loosens it back out.
Fluff the rested rice with a fork and divide it between four bowls, then spoon the chicken and vegetables over the top with whatever glaze is left in the pan. Finish with green onions and sesame seeds.
Rice first, then the chicken and whatever glaze is left in the pan.
TIP FROM THE FARM
Swap in our aromatic Jasmine White if you want the bowl to smell like a restaurant. Jasmine carries a natural floral note that suits a soy and honey glaze, and it cooks on the same timing as our Organic White. It is the variety our operations manager Matt Fowler names as his favorite.
How We Serve It
We serve these as bowls on weeknights and as a platter when there are more people. A cucumber salad with rice vinegar on the side cuts the sweetness well.
Leftovers hold three days and reheat best in a skillet with a splash of water. Cold leftover rice is also the right starting point for fried rice the next night, since the grains dry out and firm up in the refrigerator.
All of our white rice is grown, dried, milled, and packaged on our own farm in northeast Louisiana, and it carries Non-GMO Project verification. You can read what that certification requires at the Non-GMO Project, and the rest of what we cook is in our recipe collection.
Questions We Get
â–¾ Can I cook the chicken and rice in one pot?
You can, but the texture changes. Add the raw rice and 3 cups of liquid to the skillet after searing the chicken, cover, and simmer 20 minutes. The rice absorbs the glaze, so you get a soft, seasoned pilaf rather than fluffy grains under a glossy sauce. We prefer two pans for this particular dish, and one pot for something like a jambalaya where the rice is supposed to take on the liquid.
â–¾ What rice is best for chicken and rice bowls?
Extra long grain white rice. It stays separate under a sauce, which is exactly what a bowl needs. Our Organic White is the neutral choice and our Jasmine White adds aroma. Avoid short and medium grain varieties like Arborio or Japonica here, because they release more starch and go creamy.
â–¾ Can I use chicken breast instead?
Yes, cut it into 1 inch pieces and reduce the searing time to about 5 minutes total. Breast meat dries out fast once it passes 165 degrees, so pull it the moment it turns opaque. Thighs are the safer choice if you are cooking while helping with homework.
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