In this article, we will embark on a culinary journey to discover the delectable flavors of pesto chicken and rice bake, a dish that combines juicy chicken, aromatic pesto sauce, and fluffy rice in perfect harmony. Imagine tender chicken infused with the vibrant flavors of basil, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and pine nuts, all nestled amidst a bed of fluffy rice. The rich and creamy pesto sauce envelops every element, creating a symphony of textures and tastes that will tantalize your palate. Whether you're a seasoned home cook or just starting out, this step-by-step guide will lead you to create a mouthwatering pesto chicken and rice bake that will leave your family and friends asking for seconds.
Here are our top 9 tried and tested recipes!
LAZY PESTO CHICKEN AND RICE
I created this one night when I was looking for a lot of flavor, but wanted something really quick to put together. On my plate, I melt mozzarella cheese on it. I love cheese, but the rest of my family isn't into it.
Provided by StephPage
Categories Meat and Poultry Recipes Chicken Baked and Roasted
Time 1h20m
Yield 8
Number Of Ingredients 9
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
- Spread rice in the bottom of the baking pan. Layer chicken on top.
- Mix cream of chicken soup, milk, and cheese wedges together in a bowl until smooth. Stir in chicken broth and pesto. Pour over chicken and rice. Cover baking pan tightly with aluminum foil.
- Bake in the preheated oven until most of the liquid has been absorbed, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven carefully; stir. Replace aluminum foil cover. Continue baking until rice is tender, about 15 minutes more. Remove from oven; uncover and sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.
- Set oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler.
- Broil until Parmesan cheese is melted and browned, about 5 minutes.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 406 calories, Carbohydrate 46.2 g, Cholesterol 44.7 mg, Fat 15.5 g, Fiber 0.9 g, Protein 18.7 g, SaturatedFat 4.9 g, Sodium 892.1 mg, Sugar 3.6 g
CHEESY PESTO RICE 'N CHICKEN BAKE
Make and share this Cheesy Pesto Rice 'n Chicken Bake recipe from Food.com.
Provided by wicked cook 46
Categories Chicken Breast
Time 50m
Yield 4 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 13
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Toss Panko crumbs in the one tablespoon of melted butter, Set aside.
- In large saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Add Flour and whisk together until it starts to turn golden brown. Add milk and then sour cream.
- A little at a time, add shredded cheddar, making sure it gets completely incorporated. Add blue cheese, again making sure it gets stirred in and melted completely.
- Remove from heat and stir in Pesto, followed by remaining ingredients(except for bread crumbs and Romano cheese).
- Pour in to buttered Casserole dish. Top with Romano cheese and bread crumbs. Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 1134.6, Fat 53.1, SaturatedFat 31.2, Cholesterol 260.9, Sodium 1135.8, Carbohydrate 79.4, Fiber 5.3, Sugar 3.4, Protein 81.7
PESTO CHICKEN AND RICE
Provided by Elena Besser
Categories main-dish
Time 35m
Yield 4 to 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the fennel and cook, stirring frequently, until it begins to become translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the chicken and season with salt and pepper. Add the shallots and continue to cook until the chicken is browned on all sides, about 3 minutes.
- Add the rice and cook, stirring, until it is toasted, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in the broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat so the broth simmers; cover the skillet and simmer until the rice is tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Bring a medium saucepan of water to a roaring boil.
- Meanwhile, fill a small bowl with ice water. Set aside.
- Cook the pine nuts in a medium skillet over medium heat, shaking frequently, until lightly toasted, 3 to 5 minutes. Keep an eye on them, as they can burn quickly.
- When the water is boiling, add a handful of salt (you want the water as salty as the ocean), then add the basil leaves. Use a slotted spoon, small strainer or spider to press down the leaves, making sure they're fully submerged in the water. Count to five, remove the leaves with the slotted spoon and immediately plunge them into the ice water for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Remove the basil from the ice water and squeeze out excess water.
- Put the toasted pine nuts in a food processor. (If you don't have a food processor, a blender is fine.) Pulse to chop the nuts. Add the garlic and basil and pulse. Once a creamy, green paste forms, with the motor running, slowly pour in the remaining 1/2 cup of olive oil, processing until the oil is fully incorporated. Transfer the paste to a medium bowl and fold in 1 cup of the Parmesan with a rubber spatula. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the pesto and butter, if using. Serve the chicken and rice topped with fresh basil and the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan.
PESTO CHICKEN AND RICE BAKE
This is a comforting casserole which requires just a few ingredients and in less than an hour dinner will be ready. For little ones, it's best to chop the tenders into bite-sized pieces.
Provided by thedailygourmet
Categories Meat and Poultry Recipes Chicken Baked and Roasted Breasts
Time 50m
Yield 4
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Spray an 8-inch casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Mix 1 1/2 cups water together with rice, seasoning packets, and 2 tablespoons pesto. Pour mixture into the casserole dish.
- Toss chicken tenders with remaining pesto in a shallow dish. Place chicken on top of the rice.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.
- Mix remaining water with Alfredo sauce. Remove dish from the oven and pour Alfredo sauce over the chicken, stirring to combine. Top with Parmesan cheese and bake until cheese melts, about 15 minutes more. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 443.4 calories, Carbohydrate 40.4 g, Cholesterol 75.9 mg, Fat 16.3 g, Fiber 1.9 g, Protein 34.4 g, SaturatedFat 4.6 g, Sodium 1116.5 mg, Sugar 2.7 g
CHICKEN PESTO AND RICE
I don't really know what to call this because I made it up and it was great! I wanted to come on here and record it so I would remember the magic and hopefully you can to.
Provided by rusted_essence
Categories Chicken Breast
Time 40m
Yield 2 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 15
Steps:
- bring 2 c water 3 T butter garlic and onion powder salt and pepper to a boil.
- Add 1 c rice and half medium onion chopped
- Bring to boil cover and simmer 20 minutes.
- Steam carrots seasoning with salt and pepper and dotting with butter.
- Brown Chicken breasts in hot skillet with 3 T butter.
- Salt and Pepper both sides of chicken.
- add onions and cook til chicken is done and onions are transluscent.
- stir pesto with a knife and spread some on each side of the chicken cooking two minutes on each side.
- remove from heat and slice into strips.
- make a bed of rice on a plate position carrots in a pinwheel position chicken on top of the carrots.
- garnish the mound with onions and feta.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts : Calories 1175.8, Fat 60.9, SaturatedFat 33.3, Cholesterol 214.9, Sodium 2243.2, Carbohydrate 116.2, Fiber 9.6, Sugar 13.9, Protein 43.6
PESTO RICE-STUFFED CHICKEN
Juicy stuffed chicken is perfect for basil fans, but I've just as easily used shredded cheese in place of the pesto for my pickier eaters. -Rachel Dion, Port Charlotte, Florida
Provided by Taste of Home
Categories Dinner
Time 40m
Yield 8 servings.
Number Of Ingredients 6
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 375°. Cook rice according to package directions., In a small bowl, combine tomato, pesto, salt and rice. Cut a pocket horizontally in the thickest part of each chicken breast. Fill each with 3 tablespoons rice mixture; secure with toothpicks., In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. In batches, brown chicken breasts on each side, adding additional oil as needed. Transfer to a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan., Bake 18-22 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Discard toothpicks before serving.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 278 calories, Fat 10g fat (2g saturated fat), Cholesterol 94mg cholesterol, Sodium 210mg sodium, Carbohydrate 9g carbohydrate (1g sugars, Fiber 0 fiber), Protein 35g protein. Diabetic Exchanges
PESTO CHICKEN WITH RICE
minimal effort, good food.
Provided by burtonge96
Time 1h25m
Yield Serves 4
Number Of Ingredients 0
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 200C
- Fry the chicken in a pan with a small amount of oil or butter for 10mins
- Grease a shallow oven dish. Scatter the chopped onions, mushrooms and rice in the dish and nestle the chicken in the mix.
- Mix the pesto in the boiling chicken stock and pour into the dish
- Place the chicken and rice in the oven d remove in 1 hour
PESTO CHICKEN BAKE RECIPE BY TASTY
Here's what you need: chicken breasts, salt, pepper, basil pesto, roma tomato, mozzarella cheese
Provided by Robert Broadfoot
Categories Lunch
Yield 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 6
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 400˚F (200˚C).
- Place chicken breast in a baking dish. Season chicken with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Spread pesto on each chicken breast.
- Layer tomatoes on top of the chicken.
- Top with mozzarella cheese.
- Bake for 40 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts : Calories 357 calories, Carbohydrate 4 grams, Fat 16 grams, Fiber 0 grams, Protein 44 grams, Sugar 1 gram
30-MINUTE PESTO-PARMESAN CHICKEN & RICE SKILLET
This skillet dish is a family-pleaser, with chunks of tender chicken and rice in a creamy Parmesan-pesto sauce. Bonus: It's ready to serve in 30 minutes.
Provided by My Food and Family
Categories Home
Time 30m
Yield 8 servings
Number Of Ingredients 9
Steps:
- Melt butter in large skillet on medium heat. Add onions; cook and stir 3 to 5 min. or until crisp-tender. Add chicken, spinach and pesto; cook 5 min. or until heated through, stirring frequently.
- Add broth and milk; stir. Bring to boil. Stir in rice; simmer on medium-low heat 5 min.
- Remove from heat. Stir in cheese; cover. Let stand 5 min.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 230, Fat 7 g, SaturatedFat 3 g, TransFat 0 g, Cholesterol 40 mg, Sodium 340 mg, Carbohydrate 22 g, Fiber 1 g, Sugar 3 g, Protein 17 g
Tips:
- For the best flavor, use fresh basil in your pesto sauce. If you don't have fresh basil on hand, you can use a jarred pesto sauce, but be sure to choose a high-quality brand.
- If you don't have a food processor, you can make pesto sauce in a blender. Just be sure to use a high-speed blender and blend the ingredients until they are smooth.
- To make sure your chicken is cooked through, use a meat thermometer to check that the internal temperature has reached 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- If you don't have a baking dish, you can use a large skillet to make this recipe. Just be sure to use a skillet that is large enough to accommodate all of the ingredients.
- This recipe is a great way to use up leftover chicken. If you have some cooked chicken on hand, simply shred it and add it to the casserole.
Conclusion:
This pesto chicken and rice bake is a quick and easy meal that is perfect for a busy weeknight. The combination of pesto, chicken, and rice is flavorful and satisfying, and the dish is sure to be a hit with the whole family. Plus, it's a great way to use up leftover chicken or pesto sauce.
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