Life is too short for time wasted in the kitchen. I get that. Since the last popular rice cooker Hainanese chicken rice recipe, here is another EASY one-pot rice cooker chicken recipe brought to you by the Belated kitchen!

If you have been following our stories on Instagram, you might find out that we LOVE our rice cooker in this house. In particular, we love to make a whole meal with grain, protein and vegetables in one pot with it!

Hainanese Chicken rice in rice cooker top view — Hainanese Chicken Rice

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My humble rice cooker, along with my old-fashioned slowcooker has been lifesaving while I was working a full time job. As baby G arrived into our family, it turns out rice cooker meals and slowcooker batch cooking are perfect for my postpartum cooking!

What do I need to make the one-pot rice cooker chicken meal?

There is nothing fancy in terms of gadgets here. All you need is a basic rice cooker with even only one button: press to cook and releases when switches to warm. However if you are lucky to own an instant pot, feel free to adapt the recipe. I am sure it will still turn out juicy tender and delicious! ⁠

For the protein to work well in rice cooker with promising results and easy serving, I found chicken thigh works best here.⁠ It cooks evenly as it is all red meat and it retains juices better with higher fat content!

Regarding the choice of vegetables to go in the rice cooker, I would recommend any non leafy greens. Leafy greens tend to turn yellow and dull when steamed with closed lid. Instead, go for other options like green beans, halved cherry tomatoes, thinly sliced carrots and even broccoli florets!

Don’t forget the garnish! Green onions and chopped parsley are great options.

What are the tips and tricks in cooking a full meal in a rice cooker?

Flavor and timing!

For the best flavor, I recommend seasoning the meat at least half-an-hour in advance. You can use salt, and any spices or herbs you want. Here I just kept it simple with ground Himalayan pink salt only.

Then it is timing, timing, timing. To ensure chicken is well-cooked, it is best to put it in the rice cooker together with cold water and rice at the beginning. If your chicken is boneless, sliced thin and/or using white meat instead of red, you may adjust cooking time by placing it in when rice begins to bubble.

For the vegetables, I would recommend placing them over the rice when rice finish or almost finish bubbling. At this timing, there should be less than 10 minutes of cooking time left. This is enough to steam the vegetables without overcooking them.

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One-pot rice cooker chicken rice with veggies top view

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5 from 5 votes