Everybody gets their own cup and stops asking questions
Two cups of warm rice, two cups of shredded rotisserie chicken, a cup of corn, a third of a cup of ranch, and cheddar melted over the top. Fill four cups and hand them out.
The cup is doing real work here. The kid leaving at 5:00 eats theirs at the counter, and the one whose practice starts at 6:30 takes theirs from the fridge at 5:45 after seventy seconds in the microwave.
Ingredients
The recipe serves 4. Plan on about 20 minutes.
- 2 cups cooked rice (warm; a microwave pouch is fine)
- 2 cups cooked shredded or diced chicken (rotisserie works)
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1/3 cup ranch dressing
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons chopped green onion (optional)
How to Make It
- Microwave the corn with 1 tablespoon water for 2 minutes, then drain.
- In a bowl, stir the warm rice, chicken, corn, garlic powder, and salt together.
- Fold in the ranch dressing until everything is lightly coated.
- Divide into 4 cups or bowls and top each with cheddar.
- Microwave each cup 30 to 45 seconds to melt the cheese, then scatter green onion on top.
Timing Before Practice
Start about 25 minutes out; with cooked chicken and rice on hand this comes together fast.
- T-minus 25: warm the rice and thaw the corn
- T-minus 15: stir in chicken and ranch, fill cups
- T-minus 5: melt the cheese and serve
Make It Ahead or Save Leftovers
These hold up well chilled and reheat in under a minute.
- Assemble cups the night before and refrigerate
- Add the cheese just before reheating so it melts fresh
- Reheat one cup at a time, 60 to 75 seconds from cold
- Serve with: cucumber slices, cherry tomatoes, a glass of milk
Parent Tip
Cook a big batch of rice on the weekend so weeknight cups take ten minutes flat.
Make it fit tonight
Small changes that make this one fit your night
Cups assembled the night before
Build all four Sunday night and Monday is a microwave and a fork.
Cheese added right before reheating
Sprinkle the cheddar on at the last minute so it melts fresh instead of setting into a lid.
A big batch of rice on the weekend
Three cups cooked Sunday drops these to ten minutes flat on a Tuesday.
Ranch measured, not poured
A third of a cup coats everything; a free pour makes it greasy and hard to finish before running.
Cucumber and tomatoes in the lid
Cold vegetables ride along in a separate cup and give them something crunchy in the car.
Plan the next step
Find more rotisserie chicken dinners
Use the planner to build a week around one cooked chicken.