Name: Yellow Rice Copycat Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 40 min
Ingredients: 3 cups brown or white rice; 8 cups chicken bone broth; 1 onion, diced ((onion powder is fine)); 2 tbsp ground coriander; 3 tsp salt; 2 tsp turmeric powder; 1 tsp garlic powder ((fresh garlic is fine)); 1 tsp saffron threads

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I grew up on chicken and yellow rice and it’s still one of my favorite meals. But this copycat recipe is a HEALTHY version of what’s available in packages in the grocery store.

Pre-prepared foods and processed foods cost a lot more than making food homemade. In the current inflationary time, saving money where we can is a good idea. Even more important than the cost savings, though, cooking healthy, nutrient-dense food is always a top priority for me. I want to encourage you to give this copycat recipe a try if you love the flavor of those packages of yellow rice!

Yellow rice and chicken on a white plate with a silver fork, sitting on a white napkin with blue stripes on the sides.

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We had some brown rice that needed to be used up and the kids and Derek were getting a little tired of eating plain rice with every meal. So I changed it up! Adding a few extra ingredients made all the difference. I’ve made this copycat yellow rice recipe three times over the last week and the kids are still getting second helpings! The flavor is just like what you’d expect from yellow rice with saffron.

Brown rice is a healthier option than white rice, but using homemade chicken bone broth really bumps up the nutrition. So if white rice is all you have it’ll still be a nutrient-dense dish if you use your bone broth!

How to Make Yellow Rice

I make a large batch of rice for my family of six but you can cut the recipe in half if you want to make less.

Ingredients

You’ll need 3 cups of rice, 8 cups of chicken bone broth, 1 diced onion (or 1 teaspoon of onion powder), 2 tablespoons of ground coriander, 3 teaspoons of fine sea salt, 2 teaspoons of ground turmeric, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder (or freshly minced garlic), and 1 teaspoon of saffron threads.

A glass jar of brown rice, a half-gallon mason jar of chicken bone broth, an onion, ground coriander, golden saffron, salt, garlic powder, and ground turmeric on a wooden cutting board on the counter.

Directions

First, get out a large dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot. Add 3 cups of brown (or white) rice and 8 cups of chicken bone broth. (Check out this post to learn how to make chicken bone broth.) I do not remove the fat from my bone broth but if that’s something that you do, consider adding a couple tablespoons of butter or other fat to this recipe. (The chicken fat adds a lot of good flavor to this rice dish, though.)

Bring your rice and bone broth to a boil over medium heat and boil for 1 minute. Then reduce heat to a low simmer.

Add 1 diced onion, 2 teaspoons of turmeric, 1 teaspoon of saffron threads that you grind or crush, 3 teaspoons of sea salt (see note below), 2 tablespoons of coriander, and 1 teaspoon of garlic powder (or freshly minced garlic).

Note: I don’t add salt to my bone broth, so even though 3 teaspoons is a lot of salt, keep in mind that it goes into 8 cups of bone broth and 3 cups of rice. If you’re using broth that’s already had salt added to it, reduce the additional salt you add.

Spices on a white plate including turmeric, saffron, salt, coriander, and garlic powder.

Stir the spices in well, cover, and simmer on low heat for 40 minutes. Sir occasionally to make sure the rice isn’t sticking to the bottom of your pot.

When the timer goes off, take the rice off the heat and let it rest for 10 more minutes. The longer the rice sits, the more broth will be absorbed.

It’ll be a delicious and nutrient-dense dish!!

A turquoise dutch oven on a stove with yellow rice inside.

Chicken always goes well with this yellow rice. If you don’t want to roast a whole chicken, try adding canned chicken directly into the rice as it simmers. (Check out this post to learn how to can raw chicken.)

Yellow Rice Copycat Recipe

Yellow rice and chicken on a white plate with a silver fork, sitting on a white napkin with blue stripes on the side. The title is "Yellow Rice Copycat Recipe."

Yellow Rice Copycat Recipe

This copycat recipe is a HEALTHY version of what’s available in packages in the grocery store.

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 40