When you need the ultimate Southern comfort food that warms the soul and the tummy, this chicken bog is the move to make boos. It’s legit like a hug from your big mama in a bowl. Tender chicken, smoky sausage, savory broth, fluffy rice and aromatic veggies come together in one pot with flavors and textures that hit every single time. When I just want to curl up on the couch with a meal and chill, I pull out this Southern chicken bog recipe no lie.
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If you’ve never had chicken bog, we are gonna correct that right away. It’s basically a traditional Southern one-pot recipe from South Carolina that has chicken, sausage, rice, and aromatics cooked in a bomb broth. It’s super hearty and comforting. You can serve it up during the week after school gets out or you can get it on the table for Sunday supper. Once you try it, I know you will become as obsessed with it as I am.
The Lowdown of This Chicken Bog
Cuisine Inspiration: Lowcountry Southern cuisine
Primary Cooking Method: One-pot simmer
Dietary Info: Not for my vegan boos but cool for my gluten-free crew
Key Flavor: Savory, smoky, hearty comfort food
Skill Level: Pretty Easy (Ain’t no thang boos)
One Pot Fix
No need to pull out a ton of pots to get this dish on the dinner table. We keeping it convenient but still getting all the big flavor in the mix.
Super Comforting
This is such a great dish for when that weather starts to turn a little cool. It’s also a great meal to get on the table for the kids after school. You are basically giving everyone a warm hug when they bite into this!
So Easy
This chicken bog recipe is about as straightforward as it gets. All you need is simple ingredients to pull this together.
Ingredients you’ll need to make chicken bog
- Chicken: We get down on bone-in, skin-on chicken as our juicy tender base.
- Veggies: We are going for classic vibes with chopped carrots, celery and onion cooked up in olive oil. It adds a wonderful tender aromatic foundation for our flavor building.
- Aromatics and Herbs: Garlic or herbs like parsley and thyme add some depth and freshness to the pot boos.
- Chicken Stock: Our broth base along with water will flavor up that rice and chicken like none other.
- Sausage: We adding in some smoky rich flavor in every single bite.
- Rice: I can’t even explain how delish this is when it soaks up that amazing broth and gets all fluffy y’all.
- Flavor enhancers: Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper get the flavors kicked up a ton. That flavor will be poppin!
- Finishers: Just a little parmesan cheese adds a nice salty richness and creamy vibe to the finished dish. I also serve along with lemon wedges. A squeeze over your bowl will brighten up the flavors so much.
How to make chicken bog
What to serve with this chicken bog recipe
- Sop it Up: Ain’t nothing like serving this old school style over some drop biscuits or flaky biscuits to sop up that bomb broth.
- Sunday Supper: This chicken bog recipe is just perfect on a plate along with collard greens or turnip greens, candied sweet potatoes and Southern cornbread.
- Potluck: Bring a big ole pot of this to the next potluck, book club meeting or to a neighbor that might be under the weather.
Recipe Substitutions
- Chicken: While this ain’t totally my jam, I do understand wanting to use boneless skinless chicken instead to lean down the recipe. You can do you but just know that some of the juiciness and flavor will be missing in action. Turkey is also an option to use here as well.
- Veggies: If you wanna go against the classics, try adding in some bell peppers or some peas y’all.
- Rice: Brown rice or even wild rice can be used however brown rice takes longer to cook so keep that in mind. You will probably need to add more liquid for the longer cooking period.
- Sausage: Andouille or chorizo are bomb super flavorful substitutions. You can also keep out the pork by using a chicken sausage or turkey sausage option instead.
- Herbs: If fresh parsley and thyme ain’t around, go for dried herbs boos.
Recipe Variations and Additions
- Get Cajun with It: Adding andouille as your sausage replacement along with some cajun seasoning kicks up the flavors NOLA style.
- Add Seafood: Just a few minutes before you finish up your bog, throw in some shrimp since it cooks quickly.
- Mushroom it Up: Toss in some cremini or even oyster mushrooms for earthy notes and more texture.
- Get Creamy: Just a splash of heavy cream or some added butter can really turn the broth into a super luscious silky sauce.
Expert Tips and Tricks for making the best chicken bog recipe
- Chicken MVPs: I know I’ve mentioned it before but bone-in, skin-on is the move. The bones bring depth and that skin keeps that chicken beyond juicy boos.
- Brown it Up: I love to crisp up that chicken skin until golden brown before getting on with the rest of the recipe. It adds flavor and seals in that juiciness boos.
- Taste Along the Way: Give your bog a taste as it cooks and before you serve it up. Adjust with salt and pepper to make it just how you like it.
- Check Your Liquid: If your bog starts looking a lil’ dry, splash in more stock or water so the rice cooks up right.
- Just Chill: Give your chicken bog a bit of time to rest after you finish cooking it. That will help those flavors come together and will allow the rice to absorb that broth perfectly boos.
How to store & reheat chicken bog
Chicken bog leftovers are beyond easy to store. Make sure to cool it down to room temp then toss in an airtight container or zip-top bag.
When you want to serve it up again, add to a pot along with a little chicken stock or water and warm back up over medium heat. Stir until it’s heated through. You can also heat back up in the microwave in 1 minute intervals, giving a little stir in between until its nice and hot y’all.
How long will chicken bog last in the fridge?
It should be all good in the fridge for about 3-4 days.
Can I freeze easy chicken bog recipe?
Absolutely boos! Pop the leftovers in a freezer zip-top bag removing all the air then label with the date. It should last for about 2-3 months. When you want to serve it up again, thaw in the fridge overnight then reheat using the instructions above.
Frequently asked questions
You sure can boos. In fact, it will taste even better because those flavors will develop even more. You can make it a day or two before you want to serve it. Just store in the fridge and use my reheating instructions above when you want to serve it up.
Definitely long-grain white rice. It cooks up super fluffy and is a bomb option for soaking up that wonderful broth. You can play around with other rices but the cooking time will need to be adjusted.
The chicken should be super tender when it is shredded. The rice should be nice and tender too!
Yep you sure can boos, and it will be a huge time saver. Just shred it and add right on in the pot, let it warm through and serve it up. However, since you will be missing some of the initial flavor action with chicken grease, you may need to toss in a bit more flavor.
Yep! I would still do an initial browning of my veggies and chicken then add everything to the pot. Cook on high for about 4-6 hours or on low up to 8 hours.
This chicken bog recipe is legit one of my fave recipes to pull out when I just need a hearty stick to your bones type of meal, ya know? It just hits the spot. I love the versatility of it, the ease of it and the convenience (hello one pot!) of it. Get at it, and let me know what you think below.
More comforting chicken recipes
- Chicken pot pie
- Brown stew chicken
- French onion chicken
- Smothered chicken
- Lemon chicken and rice casserole
Chicken Bog
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Ingredients
- 2 1/2-3 lbs chicken pieces bone-in, skin-on
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped
- 2 carrots peeled and chopped
- 2 celery ribs chopped
- 3 garlic cloves roughly chopped
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 4 stems fresh Italian parsley leaves and stems separated, leaves finely chopped, stems reserved
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 8 oz smoked sausage cut into 1/2 slices
- 1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- lemon wedges for serving
Instructions
- Pat chicken dry with paper towels, then season chicken with salt and black pepper.
- In a large Dutch oven, add olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Once hot, carefully add chicken pieces, skin side down. Cook for about 6-7 minutes until the skin is golden brown. Flip over and cook for an additional 3 minutes. Remove the chicken and place on paper towel-lined plate. Remove skin and discard or see note.*
- Pour off all but one tablespoon of chicken fat and discard. Add onion, carrots, and celery to the pan and cook until vegetables just begin to get translucent around the edges, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add in garlic, thyme, and parsley stems, and cook for one minute. Pour in water, stock, and Worcestershire sauce.
- Return chicken to pot and bring to boil, then reduce heat and cook for about 15 minutes until liquid reduces by one quarter. Remove chicken onto a large plate or bowl.
- Add sausage and rice. Cover and cook until rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, remove bones and shred chicken. Stir in shredded chicken and parsley leaves.
- Divide into bowls and sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top and serve with a lemon wedge.