I’m a huge fan of feeding my friends but it’s not all the time I’m up for preparing an intricate dish. Chicken Bog is the easiest to cook for a big group of friends. This is a complete, hearty, delicious, and filling dish on its own. It is basically a chicken pilaf but more moist and stew-like. You could compare it to Chicken Perloo or Jambalaya rice but this is way easier to make. Fuss-free and kind to the cook!
Where does Chicken Bog come from?
If the south of South Carolina declared a state food dish, it would be Chicken Bog. Chicken Bog is native to South Carolina, specifically in Horry County. In Loris town, they even dedicate a whole day to celebrate Chicken Bog called the Loris Bog-Off Festival. Now that is dedication.
Some people say that Chicken Bog got its name because the chicken gets bogged down with the rice while cooking but some say that the dish originated in South Carolina where the land conditions were boggy.
How to make Chicken Bog
This is quite easy to make. The main tool you will need is a Dutch oven or a casserole pot. I personally prefer using a Dutch oven because it houses all of the flavors and aromas altogether.
In this dish, you will basically be making stock and cooking the rice in it but with extra players in the game.
Place Dutch oven over medium heat and melt the butter. Sear the chicken until browned. It doesn’t have to be cooked through. You just want the nice color and the browning to happen so that the chicken umami is released from the skin. Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.
Add a little bit more butter to the pot and sauté the carrot, onion, smoked sausage and fennel until tender and nice in color. Add the garlic and sauté just until it browns. Pour in the chicken broth and add the chicken, paprika, salt, white pepper, garlic powder, bay leaves and Italian seasoning (if you wish to use it). Turn the heat down to low and let simmer for 20 minutes.
Turning the heat down to low is a key step because you don’t want your ingredients boiling vigorously for 20 minutes. You want a slow simmer as not to overcook the chicken and marry the flavors of the ingredients altogether.
After the 20 minutes is up, remove the chicken and bay leaves from the pot and add in the rice to the stock. Under low heat still, cover the pot and let the rice cook for 20 more minutes. While waiting for the rice to cook, shred the chicken and add it back to the rice once it’s cooked.
Once the rice is cooked, let it rest for 5 minutes and then give it a quick stir. You don’t want the dish setting in its pot form! Important.
Can you make Chicken Bog with Yellow Rice?
Yellow rice is white rice cooked in saffron and turmeric. Rice is yellowed in cuisines like Spanish, Cuban, Indian and Indonesian.
So can we make Chicken Bog with yellow rice? My take in this is “Never say never!” because we can always try.
What will happen though if you want the rice to be yellow in your chicken bog is that you will need to add turmeric and saffron into the stock, which will alter the overall flavor of the dish. Chicken Bog purists will not approve of this.
Chicken Bog Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs
- 14 oz smoked sausage cut into circles
- 1 onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 carrot diced
- 1 stalk fennel cut in half and sliced
- 2 tbsp butter
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 tsp paprika powder smoked or not smoked
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp white pepper
- ½ tsp italian seasoning optional
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cups white rice
Instructions
- Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat and cook the chicken thighs until they're brown.(They don't need to be fully cooked) Transfer them to a plate to make room in your pot.
- Add more butter if needed, then add carrot, onion, sausage and fennel and cook until they have a nice color.
- Add the garlic and cook for about half a minute before adding the chicken broth, chicken thighs, paprika, salt, white pepper, garlic powder, bay leaves and italian seasoning.
- Turn up the heat to medium-high and bring your delicious pot to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly and allow it to simmer for 20 min.
- Transfer the chicken thighs to a plate along with the bay leaves. Then add the rice and cover the pot for 20 min or the rice is done.
- Shred the chicken and add it back to the pot and stir combine all ingredients.
- Remove it from the stove and allow it to sit a few minutes before serving.
- Enjoy!
