Cheesy Sausage, Rice, and Spinach Skillet — An Easy One Pan Meal!

It’s a one-pan comfort food weeknight dinner recipe today, but this naturally gluten free cheesy sausage, rice, and spinach skillet is also great for meal prep — just package it out in lunch-sized portions for reheating throughout the week!

We’re firmly into summer food season here, having been under an excessive heat warning here in Chicago for the past few days — but there are only so many salads and sandwiches you can eat, right? Sometimes you just want comfort food, even on a warm summer’s day. So when it’s too hot to turn on the oven, or even to stand outside and grill, it’s your stove top to the rescue with an easy one pan recipe like this Cheesy Sausage, Rice, and Spinach Skillet!

As a nod to the season, though, I did serve today’s one pan skillet dinner alongside a batch of smoky pan roasted corn on the cob, which was the perfect complement to the cheesy, creamy rice. Together or separately, though, both of these easy recipes are a great addition to your simple weeknight meal rotation.

Cheesy Sausage, Rice, and Spinach Skillet — An Easy One Pan Meal!

Ingredients

1 Tbsp olive oil
12 oz spinach feta chicken sausage, sliced lengthwise, then into bite-sized pieces
1/4 of a medium onion, diced
2 tsp minced garlic
1 cup long grain white rice
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1.5 cups shredded sharp cheddar, divided
8 oz fresh spinach

Directions

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat for about two minutes, until shimmering. Add sausage and cook over medium heat until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Add onion and saute for another two minutes, or until onion is tender.

Add garlic and continue sauteing for another 30 seconds. Stir in rice and continue cooking over medium heat for two minutes, stirring occasionally, or until rice is slightly toasted.

Pour in the broth and bring to a boil, stirring to incorporate any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer covered over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, or until rice is fully cooked and has absorbed most of the liquid.

Fluff the rice, then stir in one cup of the cheese. Keep the skillet over medium-low heat as you add in the spinach a handful at a time, stirring it in bit by bit until the cheese is melted and spinach is wilted.

Turn off the heat under the pan and top the sausage rice mixture evenly with half a cup of shredded cheddar. Replace the lid, and let everything sit undisturbed for another two minutes to melt the cheese on top. Serve immediately.

Note: Slightly toasting the rice in the skillet before adding liquid gives you some yummy crunchier bits at the end.

An Easy Gluten Free One Pot Meal

Comfort food, check! Gluten free, check! One pot recipe, check! This easy cheesy sausage, rice, and spinach skillet just ticks all the boxes, and you have yourself a simple 40 minute weeknight dinner here. Pack your protein, veggie, dairy, and carbs all together in one pan, and you get so much flavor from the spinach feta sausage, fresh spinach, and sharp cheddar that you don’t even need to add much seasoning — just a little garlic and onion round out the dish.

This cheesy sausage, rice, and spinach skillet is also great for meal prep: Just package it out in lunch-sized portions for reheating throughout the week.

Cheesy Sausage, Rice, and Spinach Skillet, printable recipe

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This cheesy sausage, rice, and spinach skillet is also great for meal prep: Just package it out in lunch-sized portions for reheating throughout the week.

Course dinner

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 5

Author Rachel Singer

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 12 oz spinach feta chicken sausage sliced lengthwise, then into bite-sized pieces
• 1/4 of a medium onion diced
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 cup long grain white rice
• 2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1.5 cups shredded sharp cheddar divided
• 8 oz fresh spinach

Instructions

• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat for about two minutes, until shimmering. Add sausage and cook over medium heat until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. 
• Add onion and saute for another two minutes, or until onion is tender.
  
• Add garlic and continue sauteing for another 30 seconds. Stir in rice and continue cooking over medium heat for two minutes, stirring occasionally, or until rice is slightly toasted.
• Pour in the broth and bring to a boil, stirring to incorporate any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.
• Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer covered over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, or until rice is fully cooked and has absorbed most of the liquid.
  
• Fluff the rice, then stir in one cup of the cheese. Keep the skillet over medium-low heat as you add in the spinach a handful at a time, stirring it in bit by bit until the cheese is melted and spinach is wilted.
• Turn off the heat under the pan and top the sausage rice mixture evenly with half a cup of shredded cheddar.
• Replace the lid, and let everything sit undisturbed for another two minutes to melt the cheese on top. Serve immediately.

Notes

Slightly toasting the rice in the skillet before adding liquid gives you some yummy crunchier bits at the end.

More chicken sausage recipe ideas?

These Never Any chicken sausages from ALDI are the perfect base for all sorts of recipes. Although today I went with spinach feta, we’re also quite partial to their chicken apple sausage. Try it in other easy chicken sausage recipes, such as:

• 30 Minute Chopped Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Chicken Sausage
• Sausage, Peppers, and Onions Frittata with Garlic Herb Goat Cheese
• Smashed Potatoes with Sausage, Peppers, and Onions

What are some of your own favorite ways to use these?

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And don’t miss the free weekly ALDI meal plans that show you how to use these recipes to meal plan affordably and realistically for your family!