Chicken Pittas with Spicy Rice

Homemade Chicken-pittas-with-spicy-rice

Chicken pittas with halloumi and spicy rice on the side – what’s not to like? It’s a quick and tasty weeknight meal that the whole family will enjoy.

When I asked my husband what he would like to eat recently, I was given this very specific request: “Chicken Pittas with Spicy Rice please”. This is what he eats whenever we visit a particular popular Portuguese chicken restaurant (UK readers will know which cheeky restaurant I mean!)

The chicken and halloumi pitta is something I love to order there too – the chicken and cheese work really well together in this dish, especially with a spicy sauce (I haven’t used one here, but if you happened to have a bottle of Nando’s piri piri sauce at home, that might work particularly well). The spicy rice can be ‘spiced up’ as much as you like too – simply add chilli powder to get some heat.

This is a great recipe to try when you want a healthier (and cheaper) version of this particular restaurant’s menu!

Ingredients, Substitutions and Variations

  • Pittas – you could also use wraps or ciabatta rolls.
  • Olive oil – or vegetable oil
  • Chicken breast – dice your chicken breast into bite size chunks. You could also use skinless, boneless chicken thigh.
  • Smoked paprika– adds smokiness and depth. Don’t switch for ordinary paprika.
  • Halloumi – if you don’t fancy halloumi, you could use slices of cheddar instead.
  • Cooked white rice – the microwavable pouches work well here.
  • Tomato puree – adds richness and colour to the rice.
  • Spring onions and red pepper – the veg for the spicy rice. You could add peas instead (or as well as).

Top Tips

  1. Cook the chicken all the way through

    The bigger your chicken chunks, the longer they will take to cook. If you’re in any doubt about whether they’ve cooked, cut them in half. The centre should be white not pink if they have cooked through.

  2. Make ahead

    You can prep the spicy rice ahead of serving. Make it then take it off the heat. Heat thoroughly before serving.

  3. Tasty additions

    As mentioned above, some Nando’s piri piri sauce would work well here. A slice of pineapple would also be delicious in the pitta!

Homemade Chicken-pittas-with-spicy-rice

Chicken Pittas with Spicy Rice

Harriet Young
April 18, 2024
Delicious chicken and halloumi pittas with a veg packed spicy rice, with spring onions and red pepper.
5
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mediterranean
Servings 4 people

Ingredients
  

For the pittas:

  • 4 pittas
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 250 g diced chicken breast
  • 1 tbsp smoked paprika
  • 100 g halloumi
  • Lettuce to serve

For the spicy rice:

  • 500 g cooked white rice
  • 3 tbsps tomato puree
  • 1 tbsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 spring onions
  • 1 red pepper

Instructions
 

  • For the spicy rice, heat the olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the sliced spring onions and chopped red peppers and soften for 2-3 minutes. Add the tomato puree, cook for a further minute then add the rice and enough water to loosen it – 200ml should do. Stir in the smoked paprika and cook until heated through – around 7-9 minutes (stir often so that the bottom doesn’t catch).
  • For the chicken pittas, sprinkle the smoked paprika over the chicken along with some salt and pepper. Heat a griddle pan over a high heat, then add the olive oil. When hot, add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes, stirring often, until cooked through.
  • To serve, slice the pittas and stuff with chicken, finely sliced halloumi and salad. Serve with the rice on the side. Amazing!
Keyword chicken, rice
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Get the cook book:

Dinner in 15 Minutes (or less)

16 delicious dinner recipes, all ready in less than 15 minutes! Perfect for weeknights, and clearly presented in this PDF ebook.

£2.99


Discover more from What To Have For Dinner Tonight

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

16 responses to “Chicken Pittas with Spicy Rice”

  1. 5 stars
    my favorite chicken pitas recipe, so tender and juicy!

  2. 5 stars
    The chicken and spicy rice were a perfect combo! Thank you so much for this awesome recipe!

  3. 5 stars
    What to Have for Dinner Tonight’s Chicken Pittas with Spicy Rice is a weeknight dinner dream come true! With juicy chicken, savory halloumi, and flavorful spicy rice, it’s a mouthwatering delight that the whole family will love. Quick, easy, and bursting with deliciousness, this recipe is a definite winner for busy weeknights!

  4. 5 stars
    I absolutely loved this as a quick and easy dinner for one, and the smoked paprika gave it just the right amount of smoky flavor! I’ll be making this one again, thanks so much for sharing!

  5. Yum! Looking forward to trying this!

  6. Halloumi you say? I shall try that!!

  7. I like your cooking but also the way you present your dish…. lovely!

  8. This looks sooo good!!!

  9. Hey there! I am looking for bloggers to try out a groundbreaking idea called The World Cooking Project. Basically, it connects people from around the world through live, interactive cooking classes right in your own kitchen via Skype. It’s truly groundbreaking! However, it’s very new, so we we’re hoping to get your help in spreading the news.

    If you want to know how it works: http://www.theworldcookingproject.com/#!how-it-works/cnl8

    We’re offering interested bloggers a free cooking session in exchange for a blog post about your experience. I’m quite confident that your readers would love it and you can always come back and take future classes when you need additional content.

    Please let me know if you would like me to arrange a cooking session.

    Thanks!

  10. This looks so awesome!! I love me some rice 🙂

    1. Thanks Mila! I’ll be publishing the recipe I’ve cooked from your blog for the blog hop tomorrow 🙂

5 from 4 votes

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Hi there!

I’m Harriet, writer and cook, and I’m so pleased to have you here! I love nothing more than cooking delicious food and sharing it with the world. You can find out more about me here.