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Parsley Chicken & Rice

The lackluster title here doesn’t do the finished dish justice. But growing up in
New England, if the weather was cold enough and my mom had extra time to cook
a nice meal, she would make this incredible dish that our family called, “parsley
chicken.”
Chicken thighs are salted the night before, and then braised until they are fork-
tender in chicken stock. The chicken stock used to braise the chicken thighs is
then used to cook the white rice. The braised chicken thighs and rice are covered
with a creamy, velouté-style white gravy. And both the gravy and rice are packed
full of freshly-chopped parsley. Note that you will need at least one full bunch of
fresh parsley to make the original recipe as it is written below.
This dish stands out as a unique food memory from my childhood because the
quantity of parsley used was enormous, compared to what we were used to. If I
was creating this recipe from scratch, I might brown the chicken thighs before
braising them. But staying true to my mother’s original recipe, the chicken is not
browned at any point in the process. It’s just easier that way, and it still tastes
great.

Ingredients

  • 10 boneless (skinless chicken thighs)
  • 1.5 tsp Kosher salt
  • 3 cups chicken stock
  • 5 Tbsp unsalted butter
  • 5 Tbsp all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cup whole milk
  • ½ tsp freshly-ground black pepper
  • 1 cup basmati or long-grain rice (rinsed and drained under cold water)
  • ½ tsp Kosher salt
  • 1.5 cups fresh parsley leaves (roughly 1 full bunch, finely chopped)

Instructions 

  • The evening before you plan to cook dinner, salt the boneless, skinless chicken thighs with Kosher salt.
  • Arrange the salted chicken thighs on a wire rack on an aluminum-foil-lined sheet tray, and store the chicken in the fridge for 12-24 hours.
  • *Resting the salted chicken in the fridge overnight will give the salt time to penetrate the meat. The aluminum foil is just there to catch any liquids and to make cleaning your sheet tray easier.
  • The following day, when you are ready to start cooking your chicken and preparing dinner, separate the parsley leaves from the stems, and store the parsley leaves in a piece of paper towel in a covered container in the fridge.
  • Add the parsley stems to the chicken stock, and bring the stock to a very low simmer in a stock pot or Dutch oven on the stove.
  • Cut the chicken into large, bite-sized pieces.
  • Add the chopped chicken to the hot chicken stock, and wait for the mixture to reach a low simmer again.
  • Reduce the heat to the lowest setting on your stove, and allow the chicken to braise for roughly two hours, or until the chicken is completely fork tender and nearly falling apart when you try to remove it from the liquid.
  • While the chicken is cooking, prepare the velouté-style gravy.
  • For the gravy, melt 5 Tablespoons of butter in a medium-sized soup pot on the stove.
  • When the butter is melted, add the 5 Tablespoons of all-purpose flour.
  • Stir with a rubber spatula while the butter and flour (roux) mixture cooks over medium heat for roughly 6-7 minutes.
  • Slowly whisk in the whole milk, adding small amounts in stages.
  • When the milk is fully incorporated with the butter and flour mixture, whisk in some of the hot chicken stock from your chicken braise until your sauce reaches your desired consistency.
  • *I aim for a consistency in the sauce similar to Thanksgiving gravy. Thick, but not too thick.
  • Taste the sauce, and add Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper.
  • Remove the chicken from the stock, and set the braised chicken thighs aside for later.
  • *Save the chicken stock to cook your rice.
  • Rinse the long-grained rice under cold water, and drain.
  • Add the drained rice to a rice-cooking pot with 1.5 cups of the chicken stock that you used to cook the chicken earlier.
  • Add ½ teaspoon of Kosher salt to the liquid, and increase the heat to high.
  • When the liquid in the rice pot is starting to simmer, cover tightly with a lid or aluminum foil, and reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting.
  • Cook the rice covered for 15 minutes.
  • While the rice is cooking, finely chop the parsley leaves that you separated from the stems earlier.
  • When the rice has cooked for 15 minutes, remove the lid, and add ½ of the chopped parsley leaves.
  • Fluff the rice gently with a fork to distribute the parsley among the grains of cooked rice, and cover again with a lid.
  • Mix the remaining fresh parsley into the gravy that you prepared earlier.
  • Add the cooked chicken to the gravy mixture, and stir to coat the chicken in the sauce.
  • Prepare warm serving bowls with a large scoop of herb rice in the bottom of each bowl.
  • Top with the chicken and gravy and parsley mixture.
  • Serve hot.

Notes

Parsley stems are often discarded in home kitchens. However, in a recipe like this which features a large quantity of fresh parsley leaves, try adding the parsley stems to your chicken broth that you use to cook the chicken and rice. The same principle applies to celery leaves, which are often discarded but are highly concentrated in terms of flavor—try adding them both to your homemade stock!