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A spoonful of one-pan sun-dried tomato chicken and mushroom rice with lemon zest and parmesan

One-Pan Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken and Mushroom Rice

Paprika-seasoned chicken breast, shiitake mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes cooked with jasmine rice in a single pan. No rice cooker needed, and the rice simmers in just 9 minutes.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings: 2 servings
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Asian, Mediterranean
Ingredients Method Video Notes

Ingredients
  

Chicken
  • 250 g chicken breast cut into bite-size cubes
  • 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/4 tsp salt
Rice
  • 2 tbsp oil from the sun-dried tomato jar
  • 1 small onion about 80g, diced as small as possible
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 50 g sun-dried tomatoes in oil chopped small
  • 120 g shiitake mushrooms stems removed, sliced 5mm thick
  • 150 g jasmine rice or other long-grain rice
  • 375 ml water
  • 1/2 tsp chicken powder
To Finish
  • 25 g baby spinach roughly chopped
  • 1/2 lemon zest of 1/2, juice of 1/4 to start
  • 1 small handful coriander (cilantro) finely chopped, or parsley
  • 15 g parmesan grated, optional

Method
 

  1. Finely chop the coriander and roughly chop the spinach. Set both aside for the end.
    Chopping fresh coriander on a wooden board
  2. Cut the lemon in half. Slice the skin off one half, turning the lemon as you go, then scrape off the white pith and dice the peel into tiny bits. A zester works too. Keep the lemon for the juice.
    Slicing the skin off half a lemon to make the zest
  3. Slice the shiitake about 5mm thick, dice the onion as small as possible, mince the garlic and chop the sun-dried tomatoes small.
    Chopped sun-dried tomatoes on a wooden board
  4. Pat the chicken dry and cut it into even, bite-size cubes. Toss with the smoked paprika, dried oregano and salt until every piece is coated. Rinse the rice until the water runs mostly clear, then drain well.
    Cubed chicken breast with smoked paprika, dried oregano and salt in a glass bowl
  5. Heat the sun-dried tomato oil in a deep, lidded pan over medium-high heat for 1 to 2 minutes, until it shimmers but is not smoking. Add the chicken and stir or flip the pieces so every side gets seared, about 3 to 4 minutes. It does not need to cook through, because it finishes cooking with the rice.
  6. Add the onion and garlic together and stir for about 1 minute until fragrant. Keep them moving so the garlic does not burn.
  7. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and shiitake and cook for about 2 minutes, until the mushrooms are soft and slightly browned.
  8. Add the drained rice and stir for about 1 minute, until it turns orange and everything is spread evenly.
    Rinsed jasmine rice added to the pan with chicken, shiitake and sun-dried tomatoes
  9. Pour in the water, add the chicken powder and give it a good stir, scraping up the bits from the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, then cover tightly and cook on the lowest heat for 9 minutes. Do not lift the lid.
    Rice, chicken and shiitake simmering in the chicken powder water
  10. Turn off the heat. If the rice is still a little hard, add 2 to 3 tbsp hot water, cover and cook on low heat for 3 to 5 minutes.
  11. Fold in the spinach until wilted. Add the juice of 1/4 lemon slowly, tasting as you go.
    Baby spinach added to the cooked sun-dried tomato chicken rice
  12. Sprinkle over the coriander, the parmesan if using, and finally the lemon zest. Serve straight from the pan.

Video

Notes

What I tested: 150g jasmine rice with 375ml water and a 9-minute simmer on the lowest heat with the lid on, then served straight away. The rice came out just al dente.
Pan: I cook this in a 24 cm (9.5 inch) nonstick frying pan, 5.5 cm deep, with a glass lid. If your pan is much smaller or larger, the rice may cook unevenly, so keep an eye on it.
Salt: The sun-dried tomatoes and chicken powder are both salty, so this recipe uses only 1/4 tsp salt and no soy sauce. Taste before adding any more.
Lemon: I dice the zest by hand, so it is a little thicker and tastes stronger, with pops of lemon every few bites. Start with the juice of 1/4 lemon, because it turns sour quickly.
Coriander: Also called cilantro. Use parsley if you are not a fan, and chop more of either if you love herbs.
Mushrooms: Swiss brown mushrooms work too. Use the same weight, sliced 5mm thick.
Onion and garlic: Dice them as small as possible so they blend into the rice. Picky kids will hardly notice them.
Rice still hard? Add 2 to 3 tbsp hot water, cover and cook on low heat for 3 to 5 minutes.
Crispy rice: After the 9-minute simmer, turn the heat to medium for 3 to 4 minutes with the lid on, turning the pan every minute, until you hear a gentle crackle. Then serve as usual. A nonstick or cast iron pan works best.