Name: Homemade Rice-A-Roni
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 cup long-grain white rice; ½ cup broken thin spaghetti; 2 tbsp butter; 2¼ cups water; 1½ tbsp Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base; 1 tsp garlic powder; ½ tsp onion powder — assuming you dislike the pieces of onion rather than onion flavor; ½ tsp paprika; ½ tsp dried parsley; ¼ tsp black pepper; salt only if needed

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Homemade Rice-A-Roni with Italian Roasted Chicken

I don’t know what it is about Rice-A-Roni, but that little box has a chokehold on me. 😂 It is one of those nostalgic side dishes that just makes dinner feel more like dinner.

So naturally, I had to figure out how to make it at home.

And honestly, homemade Rice-A-Roni is SO good. You get the buttery, toasted noodles, fluffy rice and all that savory chicken flavor, but you can make the whole thing right in a skillet.

And since Rice-A-Roni is basically rice + pasta cooked together, the secret is really in that first step: toast the spaghetti.

The trick to really good homemade Rice-A-Roni

Start by breaking up thin spaghetti into little pieces and cooking it in butter until it’s deep golden brown.

Don’t rush this part. That toasted pasta is where a lot of that nostalgic, almost nutty flavor comes from. Then add the rice and let that toast for another minute or two before adding the seasonings.

Once you add the water and Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base, everything simmers together until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed.

Then let it sit covered before fluffing it. And if you’re feeling a little extra, stir in another little bit of butter at the end. I mean… we’re already here.

Italian Roasted Chicken

While the homemade Rice-A-Roni is doing its thing, the chicken is ridiculously simple.

The chicken gets marinated in Italian dressing and soy sauce, which is one of those combinations that sounds almost too easy until you taste it.

Then everything goes into a baking dish with sliced red bell pepper, yellow onion and chopped garlic and gets roasted until the chicken is cooked through and golden on top.

The Italian dressing brings all the seasoning and acidity, while the soy sauce adds that savory, salty flavor that makes the chicken taste like you did way more than you actually did.

The easiest little dinner

This is one of those meals where the individual recipes are simple, but together they feel like a whole actual dinner.

You’ve got juicy Italian roasted chicken, those buttery toasted noodles and rice, plus the roasted peppers, onion and garlic.

And if you’re someone who grew up eating Rice-A-Roni from the box, making it from scratch is such a fun little throwback. The basic idea of combining rice and pasta isn’t complicated at all, and versions of homemade Rice-A-Roni have been around forever. The toasted pasta is really what gives it that signature flavor.

Basically, this is my excuse to bring Rice-A-Roni back into my life… but make it dinner.

Prep Time:5

Cook Time:20

Total Time:25

Ingredients

1 cup long-grain white rice
½ cup broken thin spaghetti
2 tbsp butter
2¼ cups water
1½ tbsp Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base
1 tsp garlic powder
½ tsp onion powder — assuming you dislike the pieces of onion rather than onion flavor
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp dried parsley
¼ tsp black pepper
salt only if needed

Instructions

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the broken spaghetti and cook, stirring frequently, until deep golden brown.
Add the dry rice and toast another 1–2 minutes, until some grains look slightly translucent/toasted.
Stir in garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, parsley and pepper for about 20–30 seconds.
Add water and Better Than Bouillon and stir well. Bring to a boil.
Cover, reduce to low and cook about 13 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed and rice is tender.
Remove from heat and let stand covered 10 minutes. Fluff and taste before adding any salt.

Servings: 4

Prep Time:5

Cook Time:1

Marinading Time:2

Total Time:3 5