Spiced Chicken and Rice With Cardamom and Cinnamon

By Kay Chun

Published June 4, 2024

Spiced Chicken and Rice With Cardamom and Cinnamon — Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Maggie Ruggiero.

Total Time: 45 minutes
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Rating: 5(503)
Notes: Read community notes

Inspired by the combination of warm spices, nuts and sweet raisins used in Iranian dishes such as jeweled rice and various fragrant stews, this comforting and speedy one-pot chicken and rice gets a fragrant boost from turmeric and cardamom, plus roasted pistachios and golden raisins. Chicken thighs are browned in olive oil until golden, then the spices are bloomed in the same oil to release all of their aromas; the chicken and rice simmer in broth together. While saffron is often used to season rice and impart a golden hue, it is expensive. Dried ground turmeric is a great alternative that offers a similarly sunny hue and floral citrus notes. When all the liquid is absorbed by the rice, a prized layer of crispy socarrat forms on the bottom of the pot for anyone who enjoys the super toasty flavor. Stuff any leftovers with a dollop of yogurt or labneh into burritos for an easy desk lunch the next day.

or to save this recipe.
Subscriber benefit: give recipes to anyone
As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.
Subscribe
Share
Print Options
Include recipe photo

Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

2tablespoons unsalted butter
2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1½pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1½- to 2-inch pieces
Salt and pepper
1small red onion, thinly sliced (2 cups)
1garlic clove, minced
1(3-inch) cinnamon stick
½teaspoon ground cardamom
½teaspoon ground turmeric
⅛teaspoon ground allspice
1½cups/about 11 ounces basmati rice, rinsed until the water runs clear
3cups low-sodium chicken broth
¼cup golden raisins
¼cup roasted salted pistachios, coarsely chopped
¼cup sliced almonds (optional)
2tablespoons chopped dill

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
In a large Dutch oven or heavy lidded pot, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Working in two batches, cook chicken, turning halfway through, just until no longer pink, about 3 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate.
Step 2
Decrease heat to low and add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, oil and the sliced onion to the pot. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 minutes. Add garlic, cinnamon, cardamom, turmeric and allspice and stir until well incorporated and fragrant, about 1 minute. Add rice and stir until thoroughly combined.
Step 3
Add broth, raisins and pistachios, season well with salt and pepper and stir to lift up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Arrange chicken (with any accumulated juices) in an even layer on top and bring to a boil over high.
Step 4
Cover and decrease heat to low. Cook, undisturbed, until all of the liquid is absorbed, rice is tender and chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes. Turn off heat and let stand for 5 minutes.
Step 5
Meanwhile, if using almonds, toast them in a small skillet over low, stirring, until golden, 3 to 5 minutes.
Step 6
Discard cinnamon stick. Scatter dill over the chicken and rice, then divide among bowls. Top each with some of the toasted almonds (if using). Serve warm.

Ratings

5 out of 5

503 user ratings

Your rating

Have you cooked this?

Private Notes

Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.

Cooking Notes

Amanda2 weeks ago

Almonds, raisins, pistachios on the side. Spices doubled. 2.5 cups broth, basmati rice - perfect no mush. Next time double onion, maybe 1 tablespoon less oil.

Rach2 weeks ago

Really enjoyed this, doubled spices (thank you to commenters who suggested this!) and used brown basmati rice. For brown rice, increased liquid by 1/2 cup and did 30 min cooking time with brown rice so put chicken in 10 mins after adding stock.

CMN2 weeks ago

Increased spices, more chicken to rice ratio, needs some acid...add some wh wine, finish with lime.

Jean2 weeks ago

the proportions in the recipe seem skewed. it could be so much more pungent and exciting; I suggest using twice as much of the turmeric-cardamom-allspice mixture, cinnamon, garlic, pistachios, almonds, and dill... Or reduce the amount of rice.

Joseph2 weeks ago

I followed the recipe and was disappointed with how bland this turned out. "Salt and pepper to taste" is hardly helpful. There was something promising, however, and I'll try it again. Next time I'll add a table spoon of garam masala at the time the cardamom, cinnamon and turmeric are added to the onion. Also, instead of oil and butter I'd use ghee.

Keith Nii2 weeks ago

I made this dish yesterday and what a delicious meal. I did take advice of others and doubled the spices, double Santana’s and pistachios and used one cinnamon stick and 1/2 teaspoon powdered, table spoon fresh chopped ginger, pinch Hing, i/2 teaspoon ground cumin and served with fresh coriander. Took double the time to make. My grandkids loved it and had extra servings. Definitely make again.

nathan2 weeks ago

First thing I’ve cooked from NY Times and what a disappointment. Doubled the spices. Still had no flavor. Added several tbs of lemon juice to brighten it up,which helped but there’s only so much a person can do post facto. I could have done far better not bothering with this recipe.

TomH2 weeks ago

Delicious!! I didn't have ground cardamom so I used three green cardamon pods (a gentle bite to slightly open them). I also used saffron rather than the turmeric because, well, I had some on hand (found while searching for the ground cardamom). We left out the raisons as we don't really care for them much, but definitely used the toasted almonds. Next time I will add a bit more stock, however, as we found it a bit too dry. But all in all this is a great dish.

Cameroda4 days ago

For those who want some extra kick- I sprinkled the chicken with Berbere spice before sauteing it. The blend I have from Penzeys has all the spices in the recipe plus a few more and cayenne. It does not need a lot but we definitely like that addition.

Brad B.20 hours ago

Bland as written. I will definitely double the spices next time. This recipe is worth tinkering with. I like the ideas of Lime or Lemon, and other thoughts.

less is more22 hours ago

Skipped the nuts and raisins. Otherwise followed the recipe. Kids loved it.

Sherene1 day ago

I suggest doubling the raisins. The recipe needs a little more sweetness to have it taste closer to jewel rice.

Sarah2 days ago

Milk Street has a much better version of this called "curried chicken with rice and cranberries," which has more flavor and less mush. I enjoy the premise of this, but the balance isn't quite right. I do like the pistachios and almonds for crunch, great idea.

Connie2 days ago

Should have read reviews beforehand and would have doubled spices, as it was bland at first tasting. But the dish grew on me as I ate it. Having a dollop of yogurt on the side helped too. Will try again.

Nancy2 days ago

This is really great as a dish concept, but I've tried it twice now and it is very much on the bland side! On my second try I added a lot more spice and seasoning, per the excellent notes/suggestions, and yet at the table it still had me getting up to fetch Ponzu to sharpen/brighten the flavors. Also, the rice to meat factor seems well off, will either use less rice or add more meat on my third try.

TR3 days ago

Pretty tasteless despite doubling the spices and adding garam masala. We dumped salt on it and it was ok then.

Anita3 days ago

Rather mild but delicious. Next time I will double the spices as suggested. I put in some spinach for visual appeal. I also didn't have pistachios, so I used cashews. Didn't have golden raisins so used regular. Did not use almonds. Used cilantro instead of dill.

Hunter3 days ago

Subbed dates for the golden raisins and used more chicken. Thought it was delicious, but will try doubling the spices next time like most commenters seem to recommend.

Daniel P4 days ago

Agree with the Most Helpful comments: doubling spices, increasing onion, reducing broth to 2.5C. Maybe lemon or more salt next time. Might reduce EVOO, as it came out a bit oily.

Cameroda4 days ago

George5 days ago

Chicken needs some oomph. Marinate it maybe? Hard sear it? But was by far the weakest part of the dish

Maria5 days ago

This has potential.

R5 days ago

I doubled the spices as recommended and used jasmine rice because that's what I had. Enjoyed by all and easy enough for a weeknight! Next time I might increase the chicken to 1 3/4 -2 lbs.

kitty6 days ago

This was a hit with my family, but I did make a few adjustments. Thanks to the tips of others, I doubled the spices and deglazed the pan with white wine a little bit of lemon juice. I also used brown rice instead of white, which required adjusting the liquid and cooking longer. Still easy to make and very flavorful.

Private notes are only visible to you.