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Cinnamon Chicken and Rice~Gluten and Dairy Free!

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This Cinnamon Chicken and Rice~Gluten and Dairy Free recipe has been  recently revamped to make it even easier to make. I hope you enjoy the changes.

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Cinnamon Chicken and Rice

When it comes to feeding a crowd this recipe is it! Whether you are feeding the family, or having a dinner party you just can’t  beat this Cinnamon Chicken with Rice.
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Cinnamon Chicken and Rice~Gluten and Dairy Free garnished with parsley on white platter

 

 

 

 

Cinnamon Chicken and Rice~Gluten and Dairy Free!:

Cinnamon Chicken is an amazingly flavorful Lebanese dish. Savory chicken cooked in a sauce of olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, cumin seeds, paprika, Kamalata olives, and of course, cinnamon! The prep time for this chicken is about 20 minutes, then you pop it in the oven covered for 45 minutes, and then 15 minutes uncovered at a slightly lower temperature. This gives you plenty of time to clean up and start the rice. 

Let’s Talk Chicken my Peeps…

See what I did there? Chicken, peeps…funny. Traditionally, Cinnamon Chicken and Rice it is made with a whole chicken cut into eight pieces: two breasts, two thighs, two wings and two legs. It’s terrific served this way. But if you need a little more meat, I recommend using eight chicken thighs or four bone in skin on thighs and four bone bone in skin on breasts.

Cinnamon Chicken and Rice~Gluten and Dairy Free! with carrots on white platter

 

So delicious and easy clean up!

I love this meal so much because you can pop the chicken in the oven, and while it bakes you can clean up, set the table, and cook the rice. After dinner you just have two pans to clean. That’s pretty great.

Getting That Crispy Skin!

This chicken has a golden crispy skin because we place it close to the heating element and it’s incredibly tender because it literally steams from underneath as the sauce comes to a boil. I hope you love this recipe as much as we do.

Cinnamon Chicken and Rice~Gluten and Dairy Free! on white platter with red dish towel above

 

Love Middle Eastern and Mediterranean Food and Need More Recipes? 

Take a look at this post: How to Throw a Mediterranean Dinner Party!

A collage of four Mediterranean inspired recipes to serve at a dinner party

 

 

The Recipe: Cinnamon Chicken and Rice~Gluten and Dairy Free!

What you need: a large casserole dish and a good knife.

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4.84 from 12 votes

Cinnamon Chicken and Rice~Gluten and Dairy Free!

Serve this flavorful Lebanese chicken over rice, couscous, or quinoa! This recipe is gluten and dairy free.
 
 
Course Main Course
Cuisine lebanese
Keyword dairy-free recipe, easy dinner recipe, Lebanese
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings 6 servings
Author Linda Spiker

Ingredients

  • 1 yellow onion, peeled and chopped
  • 4 carrots, thinly sliced
  • ½ cup Kamalata olives, pits removed
  • 1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces -or- eight bone in skin on chicken thighs. (see notes below)
  • ¼ cup good quality olive oil
  • 6 large cloves garlic, peeled and chopped, minced or grated
  • ½ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about three lemons)
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (depending on how spicy you want your meal, you can also omit if you are sensitive to heat)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • salt and pepper to taste

Rice:

  • 2 cups white rice, cooked to package instructions. Start the rice when chicken has 20 minutes left to cook.

Garnish:

  • ¼ cup chopped parsley
  • ¼ cup roasted pine nuts

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees and place oven rack in upper third position
  • Place onions, thinly sliced carrots, and olives in a large baking dish. Place chicken, skin side up on top of onions, in one layer. Set aside..
  • In a bowl, mix olive oil, garlic, two generous pinches of sea salt and pepper, lemon juice, paprika, cumin seeds, cinnamon and desired amount of cayenne pepper. Mix well.
  • Pour evenly over chicken and vegetables. Season chicken generously with salt and pepper bake at 425 for 45 minutes. Then lower temperature to 375. bake for 15 more minutes.
  • Remove from oven, allow to cool for ten minutes. Serve over rice and be sure to spoon that sauce over the rice for more flavor! Garnish with parsley and pine nuts.

Notes

Traditionally Cinnamon Chicken and Rice is made with a whole chicken cut into eight pieces: two breasts, two thighs, two wings and two legs. But if you need a little more meat, I recommend using eight chicken thighs. You can also use four bone-in skin on thighs and four small bone-in skin on breasts. 

 

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Comments

  10. 5 stars
    I love happy accidents too! So many good recipes come from them. I love cinnamon in savoury cooking and I really think its underutilized – great recipe.

  14. 3 stars
    Ok, unlike most of posts I actually made this recipe.
    I followed the recipe as given except I used chicken breasts that I brined for 4 hrs and coated heavily with olive oil to try to comp for oily chicken skin. Chicken was moist and tender. I used 1/4 t. cayenne, and plums. This has heat. My family likes heat. Would cut pepper and cayenne if your ppl are bland lovers.
    Served with basmati rice cooked in chicken broth w/pinch of tumeric, rough cut salad w/feta and medjool dates and I stir fried some julienned zucchini for my keto diet son. Will keep this recipe, may use again.

  15. To make this dish without onions, what do you suggest as a substitute? Radishes, celery, or maybe something else?

    • Hi Rachel,

      I would lean toward the celery option, although it will definitely lose the sweetness the onions provide. But in a pinch we do what we have to do right? Let me know what you ended up using and how it worked out:)

  16. I really want to try this recipe but only have boneless, skinless chicken breasts. What would you do differently when it comes to cooking time?

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