Chicken Pilau, the epitome of Southern comfort food, is a flavorful chicken and rice dish. Depending on where you are from, you may also know it as Chicken Bog, Chicken Perlo, or even Perlo Bog. Full of tender meat, sautéed vegetables, and white rice, it’s quick and easy to make.
Chicken Pilau which is pronounced “per-low” in our neck of the woods, has long been a fundraising staple for churches and other organizations in rural North Florida.
The most famous Chicken Pilau event in our area used to be held annually in Havana, Florida. Dozens of chickens and mountains of rice were cooked all day in huge black cast iron pots over an open flame by volunteers for the throngs of hungry folks that showed up every year for the popular fundraiser.
If you have been following my blog for any length of time, you know I’m not one to spend all day cooking a dish, unless it’s in a slow cooker or crockpot. And, true to that, I’ve taken this dish I so fondly remember enjoying and added a few shortcuts to come up with this quick and easy recipe for you.
It may not be authentic, but it is still delicious and I hope you like it as much as we do.
History:
Pilau comes from a word you are probably more familiar with, “pilaf,” which means rice dish. It is thought that pilau originated in Eastern Africa, and it is also a popular dish in Spain (paella), India, and Pakistan. Each area has its own version with the main differences in the spices and seasoning used.
How it became a popular dish in rural America is up for debate.
Here’s what you need:
This is a simple recipe with simple ingredients. You will need a rotisserie or cooked chicken, stock, uncooked long-grain rice, butter, kosher salt, and ground black pepper, celery, bell pepper, and an onion.
Here’s how to make it:
Place butter in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the celery, bell pepper, and onion. Cook for about four to five minutes or until the vegetables are soft.
Add the stock and the chicken and turn the heat to medium-high. When the stock comes to a boil, add the rice, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
Reduce the heat to a medium-low and bring the mixture to a simmer. Cover the pot and let the rice cook for 20 minutes.
Uncover and remove from the heat. Taste and add additional salt and pepper, if needed. Serve immediately.
If desired, garnish with fresh parsley before serving.
What to serve with it:
Because this dish contains a protein, starch, and vegetables, I usually serve it by itself and call it a day. However, if you like, a side salad or sliced tomatoes might be nice to pair with it. At the Havana Pilau, it was served with coleslaw and an assortment of yummy homemade desserts.
Leftovers and Storage:
Leftovers can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to four days. They are delicious when heated in the microwave. If it looks dry, add a small amount of stock or even water before heating. Pilau also freezes well and can be frozen for several months.
Sharon’s tips:
The consistency of this pilau is somewhat like a thick stew and is best served in a bowl.
Be sure to use long-grain rice in this recipe. Short-grain rice is sticky when cooked and best used to make sushi, and medium-grain is best to use in making risotto.
If you use unsalted or low-sodium stock, you may need to add more salt.
The salt measurements given are for kosher salt. If you use regular table salt, only use half as much.
Homemade stock is much more flavorful than purchased stock. Here is a link to my homemade chicken stock recipe, if you would like to make your own.
If you use a rotisserie chicken you already have the main ingredient (a carcass) to make the stock. If you don’t want to fool with it now, stash the carcass, skin, bones, etc, in a plastic storage bag in the freezer until you have time to make it. Then, add some veggies from your vegetable drawer, and you will be in business.
I often purchase eight or nine bone-in, skin-on breasts when they are on sale and roast them, so I always have it in my freezer for recipes like this. If you would like to cook it yourself, here is a link to my easy roasted chicken breast recipe.
Related recipes:
This recipe fairly screams cozy “comfort food.” If you like such recipes, I think you might also like these Southern favorites: Chicken Divan, Vegetable Lasagna, Creamy Shrimp Creole, Chicken and Dumplings with Biscuits, Make-Ahead Baked Ziti with Sausage and Ricotta, Stuffed Shells with Marinara Sauce, and Chicken Mushroom Marsala Pasta.
You can find all of my Southern-style recipes at this link.
★ If you make this recipe, please leave a comment and give this recipe a star rating. I would love to know how you liked it!
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Chicken Pilau Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked chicken or one rotisserie chicken that has been deboned and the skin removed, chopped
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 sticks celery chopped
- ½ cup onion chopped
- ½ green bell pepper seeded and chopped
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup long-grain rice uncooked
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Optional garnish: fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- Place butter in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the celery, bell pepper, and onion. Cook for about four to five minutes or until the vegetables are soft.
- Add the stock and the chicken and turn the heat to medium-high. When the stock comes to a boil, add the rice, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Reduce the heat to a medium-low and bring the mixture to a simmer. Cover the pot and let the rice cook for 20 minutes.
- Uncover and remove from the heat. Taste and add additional salt and pepper, if needed. Serve immediately.
- If desired, garnish with fresh parsley before serving.
Charles Patten, Jr.
Grew up in Lake City, FL, all my relatives in the Panhandle (Washington, Bay, Jackson, Holmes, Leon Counties). Have had this dish for many a dinner on the grounds and at home. Always heard it pronounced it “per-low” like you. I tried it with the bell peppers and it was good, but it is not something I’m used to seeing in Chicken Pilau so I will probably not add it next time (just me trying to recapture my youth). This dish is really good, and very much like I remember having it growing up! I saw a comment by another reviewer that said she had to add another 1/2 cup of rice so I did the same (total of 1 1/2 cups rice for 6 cups of chicken stock). It was a good move, but even then I had to let it simmer for another 5-6 minutes before I was satisfied with the thickness. Don’t be afraid to add the 3 teaspoons of pepper! I initially thought it might be too much, but it was perfect; I have two family members that don’t like spicy food and this met with their approval. I’ve tried the South Carolina/Low Country version with sausage and vegetables in it before and it is good, but this North Florida version took me back to my youth. Ms. Rigsby, you did a good job of capturing a Florida comfort food and making it easy to cook and enjoy.
Sharon Rigsby
Hi Charles, Thank you so much for your note. It’s nice to hear from a fellow North Floridian, and I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe. So many foods are associated with good and happy times and I’m glad I was able to bring those memories back for you.
All the best,
Sharon
Joy Sanders Hartsfield
Imagine my surprise when I started reading this that you listed the North Florida Town of Havana! I’m originally from a small town (Telogia) in Liberty County, just a short drive from there and I’m very familiar with Chicken Pilau’s held for fundraisers and family gatherings and have fond memories of the one’s held in Coon Bottom (Havana, Florida)! As a matter of fact, I’m helping my church in Wakulla County have one tomorrow for a fundraiser. It will be their first and I’m excited to have introduced them to it. We only use onions for the veggie, but it is delish just the same!
Sharon Rigsby
Hi Joy, we are practically neighbors! I’m so glad you reached out, and I hope your fundraiser is a success!
All the best,
Sharon
Aichonette
This is so yummy! My mom made it when we all had COVID, and it was so warm and comforting. I alter it just to use onions (I don’t like green peppers and rarely have celery on hand). I also use 1.5 cups of rice so that it comes out like a chicken abs rice dish rather than a soup. To get my three year old to eat it, I cut the pepper in half. She’s currently trying to drink the last little bit out of her bowl. 🙂
Eric Harmon
If you start with some chopped up bacon then add your butter to the fat to sauté your vegetables it makes a great base. We also add sausage in the SC lowcountry. Great dish, super easy.
Barbara Burkham
I’m a Yankee raised in Houston but my boys grandmother was from Dothan Alabama. She introduced me to southern cooking. I now can make biscuits, cornbread etc but could not recall her recipe for this dish. This is so close to it that it brings back wonderful memories of cooking with her and her mother. I have made this multiple times to the pleasure of my neighbors and church family. THANK YOU so much.
Sharon Rigsby
Hi Barbara, I am so glad that you like this chicken pilau recipe, and I really appreciate you taking the time to let me know.
All the best,
Sharon
Fran
Here’s another “neighbor” in Lake City. I’m trying to write a “Wash Pot Perlo” fiction/memories story of a family reunion. Gra’maw lives on the Suwannee R, Fifty members of her offspring are meeting for Perlo. We are butchering eight hens, using a 10-gallon wash pot to stew eight hens while making broth for the rice. How much water will that take? How much broth will result? How will Gra’maw measure the water/broth to estimate the liquid-to-rice ratio? My research comes up with 13 lbs. of raw rice for 50 servings of cooked rice, But I haven’t been able to figure the amount of broth we’ll have for cooking the rice. There are no capacity/gallon markings on the pot, and rice is dipped from a barrel and sold by the pound. All I can come up with is to pour the broth into buckets to measure it. I can’t see my ancestors doing that–I ‘m pretty sure my granny just eyeballed it! Any suggestions?
Sharon Rigsby
Hi Fran, I have attended plenty of pilaus and watched them cook it in large pots over an open fire, but I have never actually tried making that quantity myself. A normal ratio of rice to water is one cup of rice to two cups of water, but I think you would want it soupier than normal rice, so maybe two and a half cups of water to one cup of rice? You can always add more water if it looks like it needs it. I wish I could be more help. I’d love to know how it turns out for you and I’m sure I have plenty of readers who would love to know the quantities you end up using.
All the best,
Sharon
Tracey Bryant
I plan to make this soon! In my neck of the woods (just north of Tallahassee) we pronounce it “perloo”. 🙂
Tomiko
Thank you for sharing your recipe. I have fond memories of an annual chicken pilau fundraiser at Belleview Elementary (a small town between Ocala and Orlando). The dish was cooked in a giant vat and stirred with an oar! I look forward to trying this.