This chicken and leek risotto is healthy comfort food at its best! Creamy, flavorful and easy to make as a one pan meal, it's perfect for a fun family dinner.
Risotto always feel like a big hug in a bowl don't you think? Creamy, indulgent and the best comfort food on a cold winter day. This chicken and leek risotto combines diced chicken thighs, lots of herbs and leek for that delicious onion flavor. It's a one pan risotto made without wine that all the family will love!
This chicken leek risotto joins my very popular pesto risotto with chicken and delicious baked asparagus risotto for you to try next time!
And if you're looking for a flavorful skillet recipe, do check out my Italian herb chicken thighs!
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⭐ Why this recipe is so good
Cozy comfort food. Ladle this tasty chicken leek risotto into your bowls and curl up on the couch to enjoy!
Gluten free and dairy free. While many risotto recipes use butter and sometimes cream, I've kept this dairy free by using olive oil as a swap.
Chicken risotto without wine. Although white wine is a more traditional ingredient, I've kept this recipe to using chicken stock and lots of herbs for flavor.
🐓 Ingredients
All the ingredients and their quantities are set out in the recipe card below.
Some notes on a few of them:
- Chicken thighs - I use thighs in this recipe as they give a lovely rich flavor. I suggest using boneless skinless chicken thighs and dicing into small pieces.
- Rice - it's important to use a rice suitable for making risotto such as arborio rice (which I use) or carnaroli rice.
📖 Swaps and variations
Swap chicken thighs for chicken breast. You can also dice chicken breast and fry in your skillet to use in this risotto recipe.
Add leafy greens. I like to stir in some kale at the end of cook time (as set out in the recipe card below), but you can also use other greens that work for you.
🔪 Step by step instructions
Making this chicken and leek risotto is quite simple and it all comes together as a one pan meal!
The full instructions are in the recipe card below, but these photos should help guide you.
Step 1
Cook the chicken pieces. Drizzle olive oil in your skillet and tip in the diced chicken thighs (image 1). Season with salt and black pepper, and fry for 5-6 minutes or until they are cooked through to 165F at their deepest point. Cook time will vary slightly depending upon the size of the chicken pieces.
Remove the chicken pieces from the skillet and set aside on a plate.
Step 2
Prepare the chicken stock. Pour the stock into a pan and bring to a light simmer. Reduce the heat to low, and keep it warm on the stove top throughout the cooking process (image 2).
Step 3
Cook the leeks. If the skillet seems dry add a touch more olive oil. Then add the garlic, leeks and herbs. Cook until the leeks have softened, then tip in the arborio rice and toast for a few minutes (image 3).
Step 4
Ladle in the chicken stock. Add the stock about ¼ cup at a time, adding more once the rice has absorbed the liquid (image 4). Stir frequently, and cook until the rice has softened, about 20-25 minutes.
You may not need to use all 4 cups of the chicken stock.
Step 5
Add the chicken pieces. Tip in the cooked diced chicken, pour in the apple cider vinegar and add the kale (or other greens, if using). Stir through and cook until the chicken is heated through (image 5).
If needed, add more stock to get the consistency you like for your chicken leek risotto. Serve immediately.
💭 Recipe tips and notes
- Dice the chicken into small bite-size pieces. Alternatively, you can cook the chicken in larger pieces and then use two forks to shred the chicken.
- Don't add the chicken stock all at once! For risotto you need to add a ladle of chicken stock at a time, only adding more once the rice has absorbed the liquid in the pan.
- Stir the risotto very frequently. This helps the arborio rice to become creamy as it releases starch.
- Serve immediately. The chicken risotto will solidify fairly quickly and get a bit too thick.
- Check the temperature. Always ensure that your chicken has cooked to an internal temperature of 165F at its deepest point by using a meat thermometer.
📋 Frequently asked questions
If it works for you (likely not my low histamine readers), then you can add pre-cooked shredded chicken to the risotto towards the end of cook time.
Yes, some broccoli or asparagus would be nice! You may need to add a little more chicken stock during the cook time.
You can freeze risotto, but personally I don't tend to find it reheats too well. It can be overly thick and stodgy as the stock has been absorbed by the rice.
Yes, it's gluten free (and dairy free and low histamine too).
🍽 How to serve chicken leek risotto
I suggest that either some healthy vegetables or side salad would be lovely with this chicken risotto. Some ideas:
- For hot vegetable sides, a simple dish of steamed broccoli, asparagus or zucchini would be nice, or perhaps my air fryer bok choy or air fryer broccoli and cauliflower - no need to turn the oven on for either!
- A simple green salad is always a good choice. Or for something a little more fancy, my turmeric cauliflower salad and my apple radish salad are both light and refreshing.
🥣 More chicken recipes
Choose from so many tasty chicken recipes here, including my easy air fryer chicken thighs and my pan fried panko chicken recipe. Some recent recipes to enjoy:
I'm always in the kitchen, so come join me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to be the first to hear of new recipes! And I love to hear from you - so if you loved the recipe please do leave a 5 star rating ⭐⭐⭐!
📖 Recipe
Chicken and Leek Risotto
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 skinless boneless chicken thighs* diced into small pieces
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1.5 cups leeks diced
- 1 garlic clove minced or finely diced
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 cup arborio rice
- ¼ cup kale shredded, optional
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- pinch salt
- pinch black pepper
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in your skillet and add the diced chicken thighs. Season with salt and black pepper, and fry for 4-5 minutes until they are cooked through (to 165F at their deepest point). Use tongs to remove from the skillet and set aside on a plate.
- Pour the chicken stock into a pan and heat to a low simmer. Reduce the heat but keep warm throughout the cooking process.
- If your skillet seems dry, add a touch more olive oil. Tip in the leeks, garlic and herbs. Cook on a low heat for 4-5 minutes until the leek has softened. Stir in the arborio rice and fry for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid sticking.
- Ladle in the chicken stock, about ¼ cup at a time. Stir frequently at a low to medium heat, and continue to add a ladle of stock once it has been absorbed by the rice for 20-25 minutes, or until the rice has cooked through.
- Add the chicken pieces, apple cider vinegar (if using) and kale (if using) to the skillet. Stir to combine, and heat for a few minutes. If needed, add more stock to the skillet to the consistency you prefer.
- Season with salt and black pepper, and ladle into your serving bowls. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Dice the chicken into small bite-size pieces. Alternatively, you can cook the chicken in larger pieces and then use two forks to shred the chicken.
- Add a ladle of chicken stock at a time, only adding more once the rice has absorbed the liquid in the pan.
- Stir the risotto very frequently to help the risotto become creamy.
- Serve immediately, as the chicken risotto will thicken fairly quickly.
- Always ensure that your chicken has cooked to an internal temperature of 165F at its deepest point by using a meat thermometer.
- Nutritional information is given as a courtesy. It is auto-generated and should be considered to be an estimate.
- garlic and apple cider vinegar score 1.
- chicken stock will depend upon ingredients used.
- kale is not rated.
- leek scores 1 with a ? as a liberator. There is a note, 'In small amounts usually well tolerated'.
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