This One-Pot Stovetop Nashville Hot Chicken recipe is an easy and satisfying weeknight meal baked with pickle rice and topped with a sweet heat spice glaze! Grab your Le Creuset and let’s make dinner!
If you’ve ever had a plate of Nashville’s original hot chicken, you know what it means to cry at the lunch table. We’re talking tears of joy, and tears of spice. The original Nashville Hot Chicken recipe is an ample piece of fried chicken glazed with a fire spice sauce served on a slice of white bread with a few pickle chips, done most famously at Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack. Legend has it that Thorton Prince might have stayed out too late with questionable company and the next morning, his girlfriend doused his favorite fried chicken is an a firey spice sauce to teach him a lesson. Turns out – it was delicious and quickly became Nashville’s most infamous chicken.
I’ve had a plate of Prince’s chicken and boyhowdy – SPICY! Zippy enough to inspire my own version made for dinner. This One-Pot Stovetop Nashville Hot Chicken is made with a sweet heat and pickle rice. A little bit cooling and a lotta bit comforting and a very simple weeknight meal. Let me show ya how!
This post in partnership with my friends at Le Creuset. Le Creuset has expanded their Sea Salt collection and this beautiful 3.5qt Braiser is one of my most used stovetop pans in the kitchen. It’s perfect for one-pot meals whether they cook on the stovetop or simmer in a low oven and the shape is elegant enough for serving. The Sea Salt collection is a gorgeous blend of blue, green, and grey.
Find out more about the new Le Creuset Braiser in Sea Salt and get your own here! Step-by-step instructions for your next chicken dinner are below or scroll all the way down for the recipe.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make this simple One-Pot Stovetop Nashville Hot Chicken recipe:
• boneless skinless chicken thighs are my favorite cut of chicken to sneak into a one-pot dish. You could substitute bone-in skin-on chicken pieces if you prefer!
• olive oil
• flaky sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper
• white rice
• pickle juice
• chili powder, cayenne pepper, brown sugar, garlic powder and smoked paprika
• butter
• fresh dill and sliced bread
Let’s start by seasoning our chicken pieces. No need to marinate this chicken – cooking the chicken nestled in rice in the Le Creuset braiser will make a incredibly fork-tender chicken dinner.
On a small sheet pan, season both sides of each chicken piece with flaky sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper.
Pour a few tablespoons of olive oil into the Le Creuset braiser and heat over medium heat on the stovetop.
Sear the chicken pieces until golden brown on both sides. Here’s the trick, you’ll know the chicken is deeply golden brown because the chicken piece will loosen itself from the bottom of the pan. There’s no need to fuss over chicken as it sears to color. Give each piece at least 4 to 5 minutes before you sneak a peek at the sear.
Place the seared chicken pieces in a bowl and set aside. The chicken pieces may not be cooked through, but that’s ok! It’s going to have a nice long simmer with rice to bake to tender on the stovetop.
In the Sea Salt Le Crueset Braiser that seared the chicken, add the rice to the hot chicken oil that has gathered in the bottom of the pan. Push the rice around the pan set over medium heat to toast the rice slightly before adding water.
The whole pan will sizzle, I love that part.
The secret to good rice is adding flavor to each piece. We’ve toasted the rice to enhance the flavor and along with the water we’ll add pickle brine! Straight from the pickle jar! Bonus points if your pickle juice has chunks of garlic and whole spices in it! The pickle rice will play with the flavors of traditional hot chicken – a starch to soak up some of the spice heat of the chicken!
Tuck the seared chicken pieces into the brothy rice.
In a small saucepan, melt butter and whisk in spices and brown sugar. It’ll be a thick, buttery spicy glaze. Dab the top of each chicken piece with the spice mixture to bake in that sweet heat flavor!
Place the Le Creuset braiser lid over the pan and let simmer over medium heat to cook both the rice and chicken to tender.
After about 20 minutes the rice will be fluffy and the chicken cooked through. Pulling the lid of the braiser is like opening an unexpected gift (except you put all the pieces together). The gift is dinner and it’s all yours!
Serve topped with fresh dill, with a slice of bread, a briney pickle and a dollop of ranch sauce if you have it. This hits all the spots.
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One-Pot Stovetop Nashville Hot Chicken
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
- Category: dinner
Description
An easy weeknight, one-pot dinner inspired by Nashville’s famous hot chicken. This version is a spicy sweet version and you can amp the spice up or down according to your taste.
Ingredients
- 1 – 1.5 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoky paprika
- 2 cups long grain white rice
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups pickle juice
- fresh dill
- sliced pickles
- white bread
- ranch dip, optional
Instructions
- Season each piece of chicken on both sides with sea salt and black pepper.
- In a large Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat until hot and ready. Add seasoned chicken topside down to sear to golden brown. Allow the chicken to sear, undisturbed for 5 minutes before flipping to brown on the other side.
- While the chicken sears, melt butter in a small saucepan. Whisk in spices until smooth, divide into two small bowls and set aside.
- Once chicken is browned on both sides, transfer to a bowl and set aside.Take a look at the oil left in the pan. If it feels like more than 1/4 cup, use a spoon to transfer a few spoonfuls of the fat out of the pan and discard.
- With the Dutch oven over medium heat, add the rice and stir around the pan to toast, about 3 minutes.
- Slowly stream in the water and pickle juice and gently scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to bring up any browned flavorful bits.
- Tuck chicken pieces into the brothy rice and pour any juices that have accumulated in the bowl over the chicken.
- Brush the top of each chicken piece generously with the butter and spice mixture. Discard that spice bowl. Place the lid on the pot and place over medium or medium-low heat to simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes before uncovering the pan to see if the rice is cooked. You may want to push the rice around the pan a bit before replacing the lid and cooking for a few minutes more.
- Before serving, clean the pastry brush and brush the cooked chicken with a bit more spice mixture from the second bowl. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
- Top with fresh dill, sliced pickles, and a dollop of ranch if you’d like. Leftovers will last for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
Keywords: chicken, nashville, hot, weeknight dinner, one-pot, le creuset
Erin
This was so juicy, tender and flavorful! I think I could’ve taken more of the oil out before toasting the rice, but that’s on me for not being a great at eyeballing.
Thank you so much for arming me with a super easy and delicious meal to make for the week!
★★★★★
Vicki
Made this for dinner last night and it was delicious! Very spicy and flavoursome – we especially loved the rice! Pickle rice = a revelation! I served it with a quick cucumber/tomato/onion/lemon juice/flaky salt side dish & it was perfect for cutting through the heat!
★★★★★
Jen
Made this for dinner and wow!! So so good!!
★★★★★
Dottie
I’ve had Nashville’s hot chicken at Prince’s and loved it! Your version sounds amazing. I don’t have that beautiful braiser (but I’d like one). I’ll try it with Le Creuset’s dutch oven on a cool evening (they’re on their way).
Monica
Wow! We are fans of Nashville hot chicken and will make it on occasion (I do hate frying). This is a wonderful alternative. The pickle rice was the star in my opinion. I will make this again with more chicken.. I used 1.5 lbs but still had a lot more rice leftover. Also not sure what the white bread in the ingredient list is for.. I see no mention of it in the directions. Great recipe!
★★★★★
J-Mom
Tasty!!! Pickles are one of my favorite food groups and this was great!
★★★★★
Suzy Parker
Wow, I made this for dinner, and what a hit! All of the adults and children loved this dish! The rice was excellent, and the glaze was fanmail! This is our new Chicken and rice dish; there was even talk of using pork instead of Chicken; who knew? Many thanks, Joy! BTW, I used my La Creuset Doufeu dutch oven, but I am getting the brasier for my Birthday!!!!
Sabrina
yum, a nice new chicken recipe, love these ingredients too, pickle juice, always great with chicken skin, so thank you!
KP
This sounds delicious and I can’t wait to try it! ALSO…I love the top you’re wearing! Any chance you’d be willing to share where you got it? :) Thanks!
Jenna
I think you had my husband at pickle…and then added rice…pickle rice – mind blown! And then added Nashville Hot Chicken (we may be changing our long weekend menu pronto). We always have a container of pickles in the fridge and what an amazing way to use it (my hubby drinks the juice ?????). And I love my Le Crueset cookware – can’t wait to make this spicy chicken recipe!
Jenn
Pickle. Rice. Pickle rice. OMG. My mind is blown. I’m so excited to try this. I mean…the chicken looks good too, but did you hear that there is pickle rice?!
Brianna
Glad you’re back, Joy! Hope the time away was just the breather you needed.
PS This looks incredible and is now immediately on my to-make list