Cheesy Chicken Broccoli and Rice combines savory Italian-seasoned chicken sausage with roasted broccoli and onions, tender rice, and lots of melty Cheddar cheese! This entire dish uses minimal ingredients, cooks on ONE sheet pan, and is sure to be a household hit!
Pair this family-friendly meal with a quick and simple salad like this Cucumber salad or Fruit salad recipe.
Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice
It doesn’t get much easier than this recipe and it’s a total hit with the whole family! And that’s a combination that makes everybody smile.
I know broccoli isn’t typically associated with being popular among kids, but have they tried Roasted Broccoli? My kids actually request it! So combining that roasted broccoli with rice, lots of melty Cheddar, and chicken sausage? Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice is a huge dinner-time win!
And after enjoying a delicious meal, everyone’s even happier to find out there is just one pan to clean!
Can You Cook Rice On A Sheet Pan?
Yes! With a store-bought shortcut, we can have beautifully cooked rice in a matter of minutes!
In order for this recipe to work, we need Ready Rice or Microwaveable Packaged Rice. Ready rice is a type of rice that is already cooked and just needs to be heated to warm it through. Instead of heating it in the microwave, we add it on the sheet pan with the veggies and sausage and roast it — so easy and convenient! This type of packaged rice is typically found among other packets of rice and grains in the grocery store.
The only “prep” required for this type of rice is kneading the rice in the packet before opening it. This helps break apart the clumps of rice so it comes out in individual grains. If you prefer, you can use 2 cups of leftover cooked rice in place of the Ready Rice.
Quick Tip
Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice won’t work with regular white rice or any other variety of uncooked rice. That said, if you have leftover cooked white rice, it will warm up nicely on the sheet pan just like the microwaveable rice.
Sheet Pan Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice Ingredients
Beyond the rice, here are a few other ingredient notes:
- Sausage. Any smoked sausage works here, and we like smoked chicken sausage best (Aidell’s® Italian Style with Mozzarella is our fave; not sponsored). It keeps things nice and healthy, plus tastes great — the flavors pair well with all the other ingredients in this recipe. Turkey sausage is another favorite in this recipe!
- Broccoli. We want fresh, firm broccoli for this recipe to work well, so avoid frozen broccoli; it will water the other ingredients down and not caramelize nicely.
- Yellow onion. We love the longer strips of onion (delicious if you love onions and easy to pick out if you don’t!). If you prefer, you can cut the onion in 1-inch chunks instead.
- Seasonings. The seasoning line-up is simple, but packs a punch of flavor! Chicken bouillon, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper are all you’ll need. Don’t leave out the chicken bouillon; it adds an amazing depth of flavor!
- Olive oil. Not only does the oil add flavor, but it’s also great insurance against burnt veggies.
- Cheddar cheese. I recommend sharp or extra-sharp Cheddar cheese; both have a much more robust flavor than regular Cheddar — they’ve been aged longer. For a more robust flavor on Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice, combine two types of cheeses for the topping! Parmesan would make another great topping.
Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice Tips
- Wait for the oven to fully preheat. It might be tempting to slide everything in a little early, but the cooking time will be off and roasting will be inconsistent on the veggies. Position the tray in the center of the oven for even roasting.
- Season to taste. Before adding the cheese, give the dish a quick taste for seasoning — it might need a pinch more of salt and/or pepper to make the flavors come alive.
- Use freshly grated cheese. Pre-grated cheese has a cellulose coating. That can result in a greasier/clumpier cheese that becomes grainy and doesn’t melt as nicely.
- Serve quickly! Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice is truly best right out of the oven — the Cheddar is nicely melted on everything, veggies are crisp, and rice is tender. Before you melt the cheese at the last minute, get your family to the table and ready to eat! 🙂
My top tip for this recipe
Use a LARGE sheet pan. The more space the vegetables and sausage have to cook (and the less crowded they are), the better they roast.
When vegetables overlap or crowd onto a sheet pan, they end up steaming instead of roasting, which greatly affects the end taste and texture; it also takes longer for everything to cook when there is less space.
I recommend this 15×21-inch sheet pan or using two pans to cook this meal.
More Easy One-Pan Meals
- One Pan Italian Sausage and Veggies with an Italian-inspired seasoning blend
- Mini Meatloaf with green beans and mashed potatoes
- Baked Fish and Chips with a simple tartar sauce
- Creamy Pesto Orzo prepared in 30 minutes in one pot!
- One-Skillet Sweet Potato Burrito Bowl with black beans and veggies
Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice
Equipment
- Sheet pan 15 x 21-inch
Ingredients
- 5-1/2 cups chopped broccoli
- 1 large yellow onion thinly sliced
- 1 (12-ounce) package smoked Italian chicken sausage see note 1
- 2 (8.5-ounce) packages Ready Rice or 2 cups cooked white rice
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder
- 1 (3-ounce) cup sharp Cheddar cheese or extra-sharp
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- Fresh parsley optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425℉. Set out a 15 x 21-inch sheet pan or 2 smaller sheet pans. Cut the broccoli into bite-sized pieces, thinly slice the onion, and coin the chicken sausage. Combine the garlic powder, Italian seasoning, onion powder, chicken bouillon powder, salt, and pepper to taste. Stir the seasonings together and then remove 2 teaspoons of the seasoning and set aside.
- Add the broccoli, onion, and chicken sausage to the sheet pan. Drizzle on olive oil and add all the seasonings except the 2 teaspoons you set aside. With your hands, toss to generously coat everything and then spread in an even layer, leaving plenty of space for the veggies to roast. If they're overlapping, they will steam instead of roast and take a lot longer to cook. Add the tray to the fully heated oven and roast for 13–15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, without opening the 2 rice packets, knead and break up the rice with your hands to remove any clumps. No need to microwave or prepare the rice in any other way! Alternatively, use 2 cups cooked rice. Remove sheet pan from the oven and add the rice and reserved 2 teaspoons seasoning mix right on top. Toss everything together with a large spatula, spread in 1 even layer, and return to the oven for 2 minutes. Shred the cheese.
- Remove from oven, toss everything once more and taste for any additional seasoning, adding extra salt and pepper if desired. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over everything. Return to the oven for 2 minutes or until cheese is melted.
- Remove from the oven, garnish with fresh parsley if desired, and serve.
Video
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This is one of my go to recipes when I want something healthy AND delicious! It’s in my regular meal rotation. Thanks for a great recipe!
So thrilled to hear this! Thanks Jenna! 🙂
Great dish! First time trying chicken sausage and ready rice. Love them both. Also enjoyed the seasoning mix of this recipe. This meal stays on rotation!!
I am so happy to hear this! Thank you Amber! 🙂
Super easy and delicious!! Made this for work lunches. I look forward to my lunches! Nothing like knowing you have something ready to eat also!! So glad I was introduced to meal prepping. Thank you for sharing!
Excellent dish as always. My kiddo wouldn’t dig the sausage so I used a rotisserie chicken cubed, and added after 10 minutes of the broccoli roasting. Had some left over cherry tomatoes from the garden, which I roasted with the broccoli. Enjoyed by all, quick prep and easy cleanup!
What great ideas! Thanks for sharing Jim! Appreciate the comment 🙂