Chicken Bog – This is home-cooked chicken and rice at its finest. Smokey, savory, and filling, it’s the perfect way to gather the family around the dinner table. Enjoy a meal that calls for long chats while indulging in seconds and maybe even thirds. 🥰

Pure comfort food from the Carolinas in the form of chicken bog

Chicken Bog? What’s With the Name?

Admittedly, eating something called a bog might not sound appetizing, but some folks argue it has nothing to do with the food itself. Instead, it may have earned that name thanks to coming from the Carolinas, which are covered in bogs.

If you want to fancify it, you can always use one of its aliases. Some people prefer to call it chicken perlo or chicken pilau.

Recipe Ingredients

Chicken – Thighs are my preferred cut, but any cut will do.
Smoked Sausage – Sliced smoked sausage adds a winning smokey flavor to this dish. Use your variety of choice.
Rice – Basmati is my top pick, but any long-grain rice will work to soak up all that chicken and sausage goodness.
Seasonings – As I said, the beauty of this dish is its simplicity. All you need is some onion, garlic, thyme, paprika, and celery, which flavor the homemade chicken stock at the heart of this dish. 🫶

How to Make Chicken Bog

Cook the poultry and make the broth, shred, and saute the smoked sausage and veggies

Chicken – Add chicken, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper to a large pot. Next, add enough water to cover the chicken. Cook over medium-high for 30 minutes or until the chicken is done.
Shred – Remove chicken from the pot and let it cool. Reserve the chicken stock to cook the rice. Then, shred the chicken and set aside.
Saute – Next, in a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter. Add the chopped onion and sauté for 4-5 minutes, followed by the garlic and celery. Sauté for 2 more minutes.

Assembly – Add the sausage and shredded chicken and stir for about a minute. Then, add the rice, chicken stock, salt, pepper, thyme, and paprika. Stir until well combined.
Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the rice is done.
Serve hot with your favorite veggies.

Serving up chicken bog hot from the stove

Recipe Variations

Feed a crowd on a budget. Buy a good-sized whole chicken and cut it up to double this recipe without breaking the bank.
Use your rice of choice. I like the texture of this dish with white rice, but brown or wild rice would also work.
Add more vegetables. Sneaking in peas, carrots, or any other veggie is easy and delicious. 😋
Crock-pot chicken bog. Debone and chop the chicken into bite-sized pieces (yes, I know, it’s not shredded), and add all the ingredients to the slow cooker. Simmer on low for 4-5 hours or high for 2-3 hours. Check for doneness and enjoy your easy, peasy chicken and rice dish.

Insanely good chicken bog hot of the stove

Tips and Tricks

A heavy-bottomed pan will keep the rice from burning as it cooks.
Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs make the best homemade broth, IMO. You could use boneless, skinless, but the resulting broth won’t be quite as flavorful.
You can make this rice as sticky or as dry as you like. Just adjust the amount of broth and the cooking time.
To save a little time, cook the chicken and broth a day ahead. Store both in the refrigerator in an airtight container until ready to proceed with the rest of the recipe.
Refrigerate leftover chicken bog for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 3 months.
Add a couple of tablespoons of chicken stock to the pan when reheating to keep it from drying out.

What Goes With Chicken Bog

Honey butter biscuits and smothered green beans are a must. Sometimes, I add a side of collard greens for pure soul food. And, of course, no Southern meal is complete without sweet tea!

More Chicken Recipes to Rave About

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5 from 1 vote

Southern Chicken Bog

This is home-cooked chicken and rice at its finest. Smokey, savory, and filling, it's the perfect way to gather the family around the dinner table. Enjoy a meal that calls for long chats while indulging in seconds and maybe even thirds.

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 20

Servings

Calories 390kcal

Author Imma

Ingredients

Shredded Chicken

4-5 chicken thighs, 8-10 chicken legs, or half a chicken cut up
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons (10g) salt
1 teaspoon (2-3g) black pepper, coarsely ground
5-6 cups (1-1.5l) water (to cover the chicken)

Chicken Bog

1-2 tablespoons (15-30g) unsalted butter
1 medium onion, chopped
½ tablespoon (7-8g) minced garlic
2 ribs celery, sliced
½ pound (230g) smoked sausage, sliced (Southern smoked sausage, kielbasa, Polish sausage, etc.)
2 cups (400g) long-grain white rice (basmati stays together the best)
1 quart (950ml) chicken stock reserved from cooking chicken
1 teaspoon (5-6g) salt
1 teaspoon (2g) thyme
¾ teaspoon (2g) black pepper, freshly ground
1 teaspoon (2g) smoked paprika
2 spring onions, sliced

Instructions

The Chicken

Cover the chicken, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper with water in a large pot.
Simmer on medium-high for 30 minutes or until the chicken is done.
Remove it from the pot and let it cool. As soon as it's cool enough to handle, shred it and set it aside.

Chicken Bog

Melt butter in a large pot or Dutch oven. Saute the chopped onion for 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and celery and sauté for 2 minutes.
Add your choice of sausage and the shredded chicken and stir for about a minute.
Stir in the rice, chicken stock, salt, thyme, pepper, and paprika until well combined.
Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the rice is done.
Sprinkle with sliced spring onions and serve hot with your favorite sides.

Notes

A heavy-bottomed pan will keep the rice from burning as it cooks.
Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs make the best homemade broth, IMO. You could use boneless, skinless, but the resulting broth won’t be quite as flavorful.
You can make this rice as sticky or as dry as you like. Just adjust the amount of broth and the cooking time.
To save a little time, cook the chicken and broth a day ahead. Store both in the refrigerator in an airtight container until ready to proceed with the rest of the recipe.
Refrigerate leftover chicken bog for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 3 months.
Add a couple of tablespoons of chicken stock to the pan when reheating to keep it from drying out.
Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.

Nutrition