Creamy Mustard Chicken Thighs with Basmati Rice
One-pan chicken thighs braised in a tangy Dijon mustard and heavy cream sauce with garlic, shallots, and thyme, finished with fluffy wholegrain basmati rice. Quick weeknight dinner combining protein and starch in a single skillet.
Ingredients
Instructions
- 1
Season chicken thighs with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika.
- 2
Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat and brown chicken thighs about 3 minutes per side. Set aside.
- 3
In the same pan, cook minced garlic and shallots until fragrant and slightly soft.
- 4
Add chicken stock and scrape up brown bits from the pan. Reduce by half.
- 5
Stir in butter, mustard, heavy cream, and thyme. Mix well.
- 6
Simmer sauce on medium-low heat for 3-4 minutes until flavors blend.
- 7
Return chicken to pan and cook 6-8 minutes.
- 8
Stir in cooked rice and cook 2 minutes until rice is coated with sauce.
Tips
Don't skip the fond scraping step—those browned bits add deep savory flavor to the sauce.
Use boneless chicken thighs for faster cooking; bone-in will require longer cooking time.
If sauce seems too thick after simmering, thin with additional stock or cream.
Good to Know
Refrigerate in airtight container up to 3 days. Reheat gently on stovetop with splash of stock to restore sauce consistency.
Prepare through step 6 (sauce reduction) up to 1 day ahead. Refrigerate covered. Return to medium-low heat, add chicken and rice, finish cooking.
Garnish with reserved 1 tsp fresh thyme. Serve directly from pan or plated with extra sauce spooned over rice.
Common Mistakes
Overcook chicken thighs to avoid dry meat—remove from pan early and return at the end.
Skip reducing stock by half to avoid watery sauce that won't coat the rice.
Add rice before sauce fully comes together to avoid starchy, gummy texture.