Lightening-Fast Cheesy Chicken with Broccoli Rice

Cheesy Chicken with Broccoli Rice

Shamelessly stolen Adapted from Gina at Skinnytaste, this recipe comes together almost instantly, uses only a handful of ingredients, and is ridiculously good.

You can make one serving in minutes, or multiply the recipe and store in individual containers in the freezer for easy meal prep.

If you don’t have cheddar cheese powder on hand, substitute shredded cheddar, or better yet, go buy some!  Sources are available in the Notes section below.

Serves:  1

Prep Time: 7 minutes

Cook Time: 3 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Notes

This recipe is incredibly adaptable.  Try substituting other proteins, riced veggies, or cheeses, or adding spices for a totally different dish!   (If you’d like me to post some variations, let me know in the comments.)  When I want more carbs, I mix in some cooked rice or wild rice.

Cheddar cheese powder is a miracle ingredient.  Besides being macro-friendly, it combines with the steam released as the riced veggies cook to create a smooth “sauce” without extra binding ingredients.  (Plus, it has that classic “blue box” mac & cheese flavor with much more “real” ingredients.)  See the notes below for sourcing ideas.

If you use fresh riced veggies instead of frozen, you may need to add a tablespoon or two of water before heating to create the “sauce”.

The prepped containers don’t really keep well in the fridge for more than several hours.  (If the veggies thaw fully, it will still taste great, but the sauce texture might suffer.)  It will do fine in your office fridge until lunchtime, but for multi-day storage, just pop it in the freezer.

I usually use poached chicken (which I cook directly from frozen with my Joule sous vide circulator*) because I find that the juiciest and I am very very lazy.  Leftover or supermarket rotisserie chicken work great too.

For the cheddar cheese powder, I used Anthony’s*, but I have also heard good things about Hoosier Hill Farm* and King Arthur* brands.
 
* All links marked with an asterisk are affiliate links, meaning I’ll get a commission if you use them to make a purchase.  See my affiliate and sponsored content policy for more details.

Ingredients

• 1 cups frozen riced broccoli or broccoli/cauliflower blend (If you’re using Green Giant, that’s about half a bag.)
• 2 Tbsp cheddar cheese powder (you can sub additional shredded cheddar cheese)
• Salt, to taste
• Freshly-ground pepper, to taste
• 4oz cooked chicken breast, roughly shredded
• 1oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Instructions

• Toss the broccoli and cheese powder together until evenly coated.
• Taste the mixture and add more salt if desired. (The cheese powder may make it salty enough for you. I am a salt fiend, so I do add more.)
• Place in a microwave-safe container.
• Top with chicken, and sprinkle with cheddar cheese.
• If you want to prep ahead, this will keep in the freezer for several weeks. (But this is so fast, I recommend making it to order.)
• Microwave on high until heated through and the cheese is melted, about 3 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before eating. (It may be very hot due to melty cheese or trapped steam.)