Chicken and Chorizo Rice is a cozy and satisfying one-pan meal that everyone loves. Featuring tender chicken thighs, perfectly cooked rice, spinach, and smoky chorizo bits throughout, this easy-to-make dish is bursting with Spanish flavours.
Place the chicken on a plate and season generously season with salt and pepper on both sides. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Heat a large, ovenproof pan that has a lid over medium-high heat. Add the sliced chorizo coins and cook undisturbed on one side, for about 1 minute. Flip and cook until chorizo has released a lot of its oil, about 1-2 minutes more. Using tongs, transfer chorizo to a small plate, leaving behind the orange-red, flavourful oil.
Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the pan. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken skin side down and cook, undisturbed until fat renders and skin starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Flip over and cook for 3 minutes. Transfer back to the plate (it will finish cooking in the oven so it's okay to put it on the same plate).
Reserve 2-3 tablespoons of fat in the pan; discard the rest. Reduce heat to medium, add the onion, garlic and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring often, until onions are soft, about 4 minutes. Stir in the rice and smoked paprika, tossing to coat all the rice grains in oil (add 1 tablespoon more olive oil if necessary). Return the chorizo to the pan along with the chopped spinach, tossing gently to combine.
Pour in the broth and give everything a good stir, scraping up any browned bits that may be stuck to the bottom of the pan. Nestle in the chicken, skin side up, along with any juices that accumulated in the pan and bring to a boil. Top with lemon slices, cover the pan and transfer to the oven. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the rice and chicken are fully cooked and all the liquid has been absorbed.
Taste the rice. If it seems undercooked, drizzle with a 1/2 cup more broth, cover and cook for another 5 minutes.
Remove the pan from the oven and let it sit, covered, for about 5-7 minutes before uncovering. Use a fork to fluff and stir the rice and garnish with chopped parsley, if using. Serve warm, with more lemon wedges alongside.
Notes
Rinse the rice. Almost all varieties of long-grain will benefit from a good rinse to remove excess starch. Don't skip this step or your rice could turn out mushy.
Use an oven-proof skillet. Make sure to use a pan that can go from stovetop to oven. A cast iron or stainless steel skillet will work great here. In addition, your skillet should be at least 2 inches deep to accommodate the rice and chicken.
If you don't have an oven-proof skillet, simply cook the entire chicken with chorizo and rice dish on the stovetop from start to finish. Just cook it on very low, once covered, so the rice doesn't burn.The cooking time should remain almost the same.
Broil for a few minutes. If you would like to give the chicken a little more colour, remove the lid and place the dish 8 inches under the broiler for 2-3 minutes. You can do this after the dish haBroilers vary in heat so watch it closely.
Storage: Let the leftovers cool to room temperature before transferring to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Reheating: Thaw frozen leftovers overnight in the refrigerator. Heat a small amount of chicken broth or water in a skillet over medium heat. Add the desired amount of leftovers and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 5-7 minutes.