Southern Chicken Bog

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

5 from 1 vote

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