Easy Arroz con Pollo made with chicken thighs, long-grain rice and Mexican seasonings! A classic chicken and rice dish you'll make over and over again!
Ingredients
For the chicken
6chicken thighs(either skin-on or skinless, whichever you prefer)
In a large freezer bag (or bowl), add chicken, 3 tablespoons olive oil, white wine vinegar, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, ground coriander, salt, oregano and cumin. Seal the bag and toss until everything is completely coated with the marinade. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, up to overnight.
Heat a large saute pan/deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the chicken thighs to the pan skin-side down and cook for about 6 minutes per side, until skin is is crispy and golden.
Transfer the chicken onto a plate and cook the remaining chicken the same way. The chicken won't be fully cooked yet - that's okay. It will continue cooking with the rice later.
In the same pan using the oil that's already in there, add the diced onions and bell peppers. Cook for 5 minutes until onions have softened and are translucent.
Add the garlic and rice. Saute for 1 minute until garlic is fragrant and rice begins to brown slightly.
Add the water, tomato paste and salt, Stir together to combine until the tomato paste has fully dissolved.
Add the browned chicken thighs to the pan skin-side up and bring the water to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20-25 minutes until the rice is fully cooked through and the chicken registers an internal temperature of 165°F.
Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the cooked chicken pieces to a clean plate. Add the frozen peas to the rice and fluff them in using a fork. The rice will be hot enough to thaw the peas out completely.
Serve the arroz con pollo immediately with a garnish of chopped cilantro and lime wedges.
Notes
Don't have white wine vinegar for the chicken marinade? You can use the juice of 1 lime instead.
You can use any cut of chicken that you want - drumsticks, breasts, wings, thighs, whatever you have!
I love the flavor of arroz con pollo when the skin is left on the chicken, but you can lighten it up by using boneless skinless thighs if you prefer.