one pot cheesy broccoli cheddar rice casserole

A lil hug in a pot for your Tuesday.

Winter is slowly glazing its way out of our atmospheres, but a little tendril still holds on. Some places more than others, obviously. After a spell of summerlike conditions – 90s for highs and mid 70s for lows – we’re mellowing back into more seasonal temps. A perfect opportunity to share this easy, comfy dish.

My trend of simple, no-fuss recipes continues with our One Pot Cheesy Broccoli Cheddar Rice Casserole. Cheap, easy, feeds a host of folk, and freezes beautifully, all things I value currently in my cooking (though a “host of folk” around here is two hungry people and sometimes my mom).

I pump this casserole with a tiny bit of protein thanks to plain Greek yogurt, load it up with broccoli because green, and finish with a fuckton of cheese to completely cancel out any benefits we added from the aforementioned. Oh well. It’s called sticking it to the man, fellas.

I guess. I dunno. Or I just like cheese.

Broccin’ Round Town

Think of this like a heartier and less intense broccoli cheddar soup. Like this shit doesn’t skip leg day.

First, grab a large oven-safe skillet. If you don’t have one, no sweat, you’ll just have to transfer everything into a dish you can pop in the big bad burner.

Melt some butter with olive oil, then saute finely diced carrot with minced shallots and garlic, a couple minutes should do to soften things up. Stir in rice and orzo (classic pilaf mix), broccoli, and vegetable broth. I provide a range for the broccoli florets depending on how much you like broccoli. I usually go with the 3 cups cos I’m an edible tree fiend.

Simmer the mixture for 20-25 minutes, stirring often and monitoring the water level. Add broth 1/2 cup at a time if your liquids boil off too quickly – and, if this happens, lower your heat to maintain a nice steady bubbling.

For creaminess, we enlist Greek yogurt instead of heavy cream or milk. Reason being? A light tang and because I didn’t have any heavy cream so I improvised. Worked out pretty damn well, though. Before adding, you’ll want to temper the yogurt with a little bit of hot broth so it doesn’t dissolve into unsightly chunks once you stir it into the rice mixture.

To do this, remove some of the liquid from the pan and whisk in a small bowl with the yogurt. Then add to your casserole along with shredded cheese. Taste for salt and pepper as well and adjust as needed.

Slather some more cheese on top of the casserole and pop into the oven for 10-15 minutes at 425, until melty and bubbly and gooey.

Serve with whatever accompaniments you like! Pick a protein, mix up a house salad, or just eat as is if you’re starving and done with everyone’s shit. No judgement here!

The casserole keeps well for about 5 days in the fridge, and freezes beautifully in an airtight container, too. Don’t worry if the rice hardens a bit after chilling: a spell in the microwave should do the trick to soften crap up.

Crap. Great choice of words there.

Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!

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