Any Day Casserole–lemon chicken and rice with yogurt-cucumber sauce on top. Make it fast in the Instant Pot.
Any Day Casserole
This recipe is versatile enough for any day of the week…whether it’s a casual weeknight dinner, a comforting meal on a cold day, or a dish to impress guests with a hint of Mediterranean flair. You can also pair it with a simple cucumber tomato salad or pita bread to elevate it further. The warm spices like cumin, turmeric, and smoked paprika, paired with the zesty kick of lemon juice, make for a super flavorful combo. Skyler and I were all about the creamy yogurt sauce—it totally made the dish! I might double this next time so we can have leftovers. Enjoy!
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs–or you can use chicken breasts
- Lemon juice–fresh lemon juice is best
- Olive oil
- Dried parsley
- Dried oregano
- Dried thyme leaves
- Smoked paprika
- Seasoned salt
- Cumin
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder
- Black pepper
- Turmeric
- Cayenne pepper
- Chicken broth
- Converted rice–or long grain white, basmati, jasmine
- Plain yogurt–I use full fat yogurt
- Kosher salt
- Dried dill
- Cucumber
Steps
Add chicken into Instant Pot. Stir in the lemon juice, olive oil, parsley, oregano, thyme, smoked paprika, seasoned salt, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, turmeric and cayenne. Stir to coat the chicken in the oil and seasonings.
Pour in the broth and then sprinkle in the rice.
Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 5 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 10 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid. Fluff the rice with a fork.
In a bowl stir together the sauce ingredients. Taste test and add an extra pinch of salt, if needed.
Serve the rice and chicken with a big dollop of the sauce on top. Enjoy!
Notes/Tips
- Serve with sliced tomatoes and diced cucumbers. Another option is to make a cucumber tomato salad.
- This recipe is gluten-free.
- I used my 6 quart Instant Pot*. You can also make this in a 3 or 8 quart pot.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Other recipes you can make with plain yogurt are Zucchini Linguine and Okey Dokey Chicken.
Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for.
Any Day Casserole
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes (plus 10 minute NPR)
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Lemon chicken and rice with yogurt-cucumber sauce on top. Make it fast in the Instant Pot.
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat and cut into 1 inch pieces
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp dried parsley
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 3/4 tsp seasoned salt
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp turmeric
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup converted rice
Sauce:
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp dried dill
- 1 medium cucumber, peeled and finely chopped
Instructions
- Add chicken into Instant Pot. Stir in the lemon juice, olive oil, parsley, oregano, thyme, smoked paprika, seasoned salt, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, turmeric and cayenne. Stir to coat the chicken in the oil and seasonings.
- Pour in the broth and then sprinkle in the rice.
- Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 5 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 10 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid. Fluff the rice with a fork.
- In a bowl stir together the sauce ingredients. Taste test and add an extra pinch of salt, if needed.
- Serve the rice and chicken with a big dollop of the sauce on top. Enjoy!
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Instant Pot
More Instant Pot chicken and rice recipes…
Instant Pot Pollo Loco Mexican Chicken
Yellow spanish-style rice with tender bites of chicken, carrots and white queso.
Busy Wife Delight
Instant Pot cilantro lime rice with chicken and sweet corn. An easy dump and go recipe.
Hungry Boys Casserole
Yellow rice with chicken, tomatoes, peppers and peas made in your Instant Pot or Crockpot.
Suzie’s Casserole
An easy Instant Pot dump and go dinner with chicken, rice, Rotel, sour cream and cheese.
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
Very tasty and very easy to throw together. I had all the ingredients, so I just made it as directed and really enjoyed it. Thanks for a great, quick recipe!
I love when I have all the ingredients for a recipe! Thanks for the 5 stars!