One-pot broccoli cheese brown rice

Name: One-pot broccoli cheese brown rice
Prep time: 2018-07-18T00:10:00+00:00
Total time: 2018-07-18T00:45:00+00:00
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon unsalted butter (or you can sub olive oil); 1/2 cup onion, finely diced; 1 clove garlic, minced; 1 cup brown rice; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 2 cups water; 1 medium head of broccoli, florets only, finely chopped; 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, plus extra for serving; Salt and black pepper, to taste

February 23, 2016 By Kathryn

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A warm and gooey one-pot broccoli cheese brown rice side dish that’s easy to make and a perfect pairing for chicken or pork!

Update: I made a VIDEO for this post! Check it out:

I’m a brown rice gal, through and through. Sure, it takes a little bit longer to cook, but it’s just as easy as white rice. (See this post on perfect brown rice if you’re scared of it like many friends I know.)

Brown rice just has so much more robust flavor. And, also, give me whole grains any day. Maybe that’s the health and nutrition editor in me talking.

If you’re unsure, this broccoli cheese brown rice really kicks things up a notch. You’ve got the classic broccoli cheese combination, folded into some fluffy brown rice until everything is completely combined and melted together in delicious harmony.

Warm, gooey, completely wholesome and absolutely irresistible. 💚

And my kids recently, they need a little tempting when it comes to rice. J used to eat it plain, shoveling it down. My little carb lover. But he’s gotten more selective in his ripe old age of 2 1/2. M (4 1/2) comes and goes with rice, too. Sometimes she loves it, sometimes not so much.

But this broccoli cheese brown rice? I have two happy campers on my hands when this is for dinner!

And it’s an easy one-pot side dish that I can whip up while I’ve got some chicken or pork going and voila, dinner is done.

A few notes on this broccoli cheese brown rice:

I like having the sautéed onions mixed into this, but you could skip that part if you are onion averse. Same goes for the garlic really, but I think it adds good flavor.
To make this all in one pot, you cook the brown rice most of the way, add in some finely chopped broccoli (just plop it down right on top of the rice; no mixing needed), then finish cooking the rice for the last 5 minutes. The broccoli steams up on top.
Stir the broccoli in after the rice is done cooking, then turn off the heat and let it sit, covered, for a few minutes.
Then just stir in the shredded cheddar cheese until it’s melted and you’re set!

This broccoli cheese rice goes well with so many dishes, but we’ve enjoyed it with paprika chicken, lemon pepper chicken and maple mustard pork tenderloin. All good options!

If you’re in a rice funk like my little ones, give this cheesy green rice a try. 👍

Enjoy!

P.S. The oven saga continued yesterday. The new one was to be installed but there was concern about the electrical support. So I was going to need to have an electrician come look at it. I just knew this was going to be another serious delay and was super bummed. But, miracles can happen and the electrician came out at 3:30 p.m. He was able to do a quick fix. And then, the oven installer came back over at 4:30 and stayed until the job was done. #peopleareawesome #faithinhumanitytotallyrestored

So I’m going to be back to baking up all sorts of yummy foods for you. Stay tuned!