One Pot Spinach, Bacon and Chicken Risotto

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One Pot Spinach, Bacon and Chicken Risotto is a labor of love that screams comfort in every bite!

I totally crush on risotto. It’s this creamy, luscious rice that you can add just about anything to and it will taste amazing! If you’re one of the bacon freaks like me, bacon is totally the perfect add-in. This dish is one of those comfort foods you have to spend some time on, but the results are always worth the effort. If you’ve never made risotto before, fear not. The trick here is to not rush things. Once your rice is slightly running, but to oozing all over the place, you’ve done good kid!

For anyone having a “Julie, your rice it’s runny at all” moment, these pictures are from the next day. A storm came in, I lost my light, and blah blah blah. I promise it was more runny the night before. But on the bright side, this dish reheats fabulously! The rice is a little thicker after a night in the fridge, but everything tasted yummy. While I called this a one pot meal, I prefer to use hot broth to add to the rice (making it a two pot dinner – which doesn’t sound as cool), but room temperature broth will be fine. The cooking takes a little longer. We’ll live. Cold broth is not advised. It back tracks the cooking process with each addition. Basically if your broth is cold, pop it in a measuring cup and heat it up in the microwave a little. Then you’ll be eating risotto in no time!

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One Pot Spinach, Bacon & Chicken Risotto

One Pot Spinach, Bacon and Chicken Risotto is a labor of love that screams comfort in every bite!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

• 5 strips bacon diced
• 1 large boneless about 1/2-inch each, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1/4 yellow onion peeled and diced
• 1 3/4 cups arborio rice
• 32 ounces low-sodium chicken broth room temperature
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese freshly grated
• 1 cup fresh spinach you can add more if you like, cleaned and torn into small pieces
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Heat a large pot or dutch oven of medium-high heat. Add bacon once the pan is hot and cook until crispy, about 5 to 8 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate to drain; set aside.
2. Add the chicken to the hot bacon grease in the pot. Cook the chicken until it is browned and no longer pink in the center, about 6 to 9 minutes. Remove the chicken to a bowl; set aside.
3. Add the onions to the pot and saute until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the rice to the onions and cook for 2 to 3 minutes to toast the rice.
4. Add 1/2 cup of stock to the rice. Stir often until the rice has completely soaked up the liquid. Repeat. Once the second liquid addition is absorbed, reduce the heat to medium. Continue adding 1/2 cup of broth at a time and stirring until the rice absorbs the liquid until the rice is al dente and slightly runnier than mashed potatoes. (You may not use all of the broth.) Each time you add liquid to the pot, it will take longer for the rice to soak up the broth. This is part of the cooking process. Don't crank up the heat to try to expedite things or your rice won't cook properly.
5. Add the Parmesan cheese and butter to the pot; stir until melted into the rice. Add the bacon and chicken back into the pot (including any juices in the chicken bowl), and season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Add in the spinach and stir until the leaves have just wilted. Serve warm, topped with Parmesan if desired.

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