Citrus Chicken Thighs & Accompaniments

Chicken, rice, and beans. Sounds simple, right? Lucky for you, these foods can be as simple or complex as you’d like! I think this recipe is a happy medium.

Here’s how to prepare my citrus chicken thighs, kidney beans, and cilantro lime rice.

Start with about a pound of chicken thighs (I used three large, boneless, skinless thighs) and season on both sides with the following:

• Salt & pepper
• Onion powder
• Garlic powder
• Cumin
• Paprika
• Chili powder
• Oregano

Next, add lime and orange juice until the fluid just covers the chicken. I’m guessing I used about 1/4 cup of lime juice and 1/2 cup of orange juice. You can use fresh squeezed, but I used bottled.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 1.5 hours.

As you can see, I like to keep my weekday meals as quick and easy as possible…so I used canned kidney beans. To kick them up a notch, here’s how to layer in some flavor.

Melt a tablespoon of bacon drippings (I keep some in my refrigerator) into a pot, then add the drained can of beans. Pour just enough chicken broth over the beans to cover them, then season with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Looking back, I should have added cumin…so do that too! Stir, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

So, about this rice. I’m pretty sure my sister-in-law makes cilantro lime rice from scratch, but I did NOT. Once again, I kept it simple but didn’t skip the flavor.

Prepare the rice according to the directions on the package. The end.

If you time things right, the rice and beans can be finishing up around the same time as the chicken. After an hour, take the foil off and bake the chicken uncovered for the last 30 minutes.

These chicken thighs came out tender, juicy, and flavorful! I was able to cut them with a spoon! Why was I using a spoon? Because I was spooning that delicious liquid all over that chicken!

This is one of those meals that can come together pretty easily while you take care of other chores…or simply relax with a cool beverage. 😉