Crockpot Chicken and Rice is so easy to make in your slow cooker – no soup can is required! Just add frozen veggies, sour cream and cheese. Â
How to make easy crockpot chicken and rice
Because this recipe is made in the crock pot, you just dump in all your ingredients then press start!
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- Spray the pot with cooking spray
- Add all the ingredients, except for sour cream, cheese and parsley.
- Cook on high for four hours or low for eight.
- Stir in sour cream and cheese just before serving.
- Enjoy!
Can you put raw chicken in rice cooker with rice?
Yes you can! As long as there is liquid, the rice and chicken will cook either on high or on low for the time designated in the recipe card at the end of this post.
Raw chicken is totally safe to cook in the slow cooker. Just make sure it's not frozen raw chicken as it takes too long for the chicken to reach a safe temperature and increases the risk of harmful bacteria in the food.
It is safe to put frozen chicken breast in an Instant Pot. The chicken heats and cooks so quickly, it does not have time for bacteria to develop. Check out my instructions for making this recipe in the Instant Pot!
Making this recipe in the Instant Pot
You can easily make this recipe in the Instant Pot! Here are the step-by-step instructions:
- Add 1-2 tbsp canola or vegetable oil to the bottom of the Instant Pot, then add all ingredients except for sour cream, cheese and parsley in the order in which they are listed below (onions and frozen veggies first, followed by chicken, rice and broth).
- Make sure to push the rice down underneath the liquid as much as possible.
- Cook on high pressure for 5 minutes, then do a quick release of the pressure.
- Stir in sour cream and cheese, then garnish with parsley. Serve and enjoy!
Ingredients and substitutionsÂ
There are several ingredients you can swap to make this recipe different each time you make it.
- Cooking spray – feel free to use butter or a neutral oil to grease your crockpot instead
- yellow onion – shallots or red onion will also work
- frozen vegetables – choose different blends of frozen vegetables, or use fresh vegetables
- long grain white rice – use Basmati or Jasmine rice instead. If you want to use brown rice, you may need to add another cup of broth. I haven't tested this recipe using brown rice, so you may need to test this yourself.
- dried thyme – you can leave this out, or use fresh thyme or Italian seasoning instead
- garlic – the fresh stuff is best, but the jarred kind will work. 1 tsp garlic powder will also work in a pinch.
- Dijon mustard – there isn't a great sub for this. You can try leaving it out or using 2 tsp dry mustard.
- chicken breasts – chicken thighs can be used instead, and may give you more flavour!
- chicken broth – add cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup to the rice instead of or in addition to the broth
- sour cream – Greek yogurt will work here but the flavour won't be as good in my opinion
- cheddar cheese – any type of cheese will work here, but I find cheddar gives the most kick
- parsley – try some fresh herbs/seasonings at the end such as parsley, cilantro or lemon zest
Adding more vegetables
An easy way to change up this crock pot chicken and rice recipe so you can use it in your regular rotation is to choose different veggies. Try some of these ideas:
- Choose a different frozen veggie blend – stir fry blends are great for this!
- Bell peppers
- Broccoli
- Tomatoes
- Green beans
- Jalapenos
- Carrots
- Peas
Storing and reheating
You can keep this chicken and rice in the refrigerator for five days. It makes great leftovers for lunches. Reheat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes, sprinkling some water overtop before reheating to help your rice avoid drying out.
Freezing crock pot chicken and rice
You can freeze this whole meal together. It will keep for about a month. Combined with the other ingredients, the rice will lose some of its texture but it's a good option to reduce food waste and save any leftovers that you can't eat after five days. Freeze in individual portions in glass bowls with lids, then sprinkle some water overtop before reheating in the microwave for 6-7 minutes, stirring halfway through the cook time.
Another way to turn this into a freezer meal is to cook the chicken and vegetables and freeze them separately from the rice. Rice freezes well independently and reheats to the right consistency.
You could also make a fresh pot of rice in your Instant Pot the day you want to make this meal and combine it all just before eating.
More easy crockpot recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on storing individual portions of the leftovers
- Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months
- Here's the Crock pot I use
- Here's the Instant Pot I use
Creamiest Crockpot Chicken and Rice {Healthy Dump Dinner}
Ingredients
- cooking spray
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 cups frozen vegetables
- 1 cup long grain white rice dry, not cooked
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 lb chicken breasts, diced
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- Parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Spray crockpot with cooking spray, then add all ingredients except for sour cream, cheese and parsley in the order in which they are listed. Make sure to push rice down underneath liquid as much as possible.
- Cook on high for 4 hours, or on low for 8 hours, stirring 1-2 times midway through cooking time.
- Stir in sour cream and cheese at the end of cook time, stirring well to combine.
- Serve garnished with fresh parsley, and enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
 
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Valerie Rasmussen says
What is the serving size?
Taylor Stinson says
There are six servings – divide the recipe into 6 portions, and each one is a serving 🙂
Em says
Can we use instant brown rice?
Taylor Stinson says
You could try, but I haven’t tried it myself! I know brown rice takes longer to cook so you may want to try cooking for an extra hour or two. Hopefully that works!
Jill says
Made this tonight, it was very good. Couple of notes:
I used long grain brown rice. At 4.5 hours on high it was probably a little long, I think 4 would have been ok.
I wish I’d seen the note about paprika/chili powder sooner as it would definitely benefit from additional seasoning.
Katy says
Just made this tonight and it was incredible! Reminded me of risotto. I’ll definitely make it again, and I’m glad I have leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
I made it in the Instant Pot and did make a couple of tweaks: I used instant jasmine rice, nonfat Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, reduced fat cheese, cilantro instead of parsley (that was just for my boyfriend’s preference), and then a little squeeze of fresh lemon juice really made it just perfect at the end.
Thank you for sharing! I just came across your website last night and I can’t wait to try more of your recipes. I’ve been an avid food prepper for years and I’m always looking for new things to add into my rotation!
Taylor Stinson says
So happy you enjoyed Katy, and I’m glad those substitutions worked! Thanks for reporting back 🙂
Mita says
Can I substitute sour cream with yogurt?
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Mita – you can but the taste will be a bit different!
Loa says
Can you do cream cheese instead of sour cream?
Taylor Stinson says
You definitely could! It would change the taste but it can be used instead.
Dina says
Can you use frozen chicken?
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Dina – unfortunately you can’t use frozen chicken in crockpot recipes as it will put the chicken in a danger zone temperature wise.
Beth Sampson-Tell says
This was simple, flavorful and exactly what I was looking for. I did brown the chicken ahead of time and added a little more broth to make sure the rice was covered but other than that…winner winner crock pot chicken and rice dinner.
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed, Beth 🙂
Samantha Stewart says
Followed exactly and cooked on low 6 hours – rice turned completely to mush. I wanted to love this and I’m hoping after I add the sour cream and cheese it will be better but texturally, this is disappointing.
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Samantha – I’m wondering if you used instant rice? The rice in this recipe is not meant to be completely al dente as some people may be used to, as it does cook for quite some time. A slightly mushier texture does, in combination with the sour cream and cheese, add to the creaminess but I understand this may be off putting to some people. However, the rice shouldn’t be super mushy so just trying to troubleshoot what went wrong here. I’m sorry it didn’t work for you!
Sarah Lenhard says
I just had the same issue and came to see if it was just me! I didn’t use instant rice. I’ll add the sour cream and see how it tastes 🙂 it just got done