Dump Ranch Chicken and Potatoes
When you’re tired, this is dinner you can dump, bake, and eat without thinking.
Cook this on a night when you are too tired to juggle three pans or read a long recipe. It turns a few familiar ingredients into a full dinner: tender chicken, soft potatoes, and enough ranch-seasoned flavor to feel like real effort happened. You do need to give the potatoes a head start so everything finishes at the same time, but after that it’s mostly hands-off. Expect cozy, simple food, not a crispy roast with lots of browning. It’s the kind of meal that solves dinner fast and leaves you with one baking dish to wash.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts — cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1.5 lb baby potatoes — halved if larger than a golf ball
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp ranch seasoning mix — store-bought dry mix
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 0.5 tsp black pepper
- 0.5 tsp salt — adjust if your ranch mix is salty
- 0.5 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 tbsp chopped chives — optional, for serving
Method
- 1 Heat the oven to 425°F. Toss the potatoes with 1 tbsp olive oil, half the ranch seasoning, half the garlic powder, half the black pepper, and half the salt. Spread them in a baking dish and roast for 15 minutes.
- 2 While the potatoes start, toss the chicken with the remaining olive oil, ranch seasoning, garlic powder, black pepper, and salt. Pull the dish from the oven, add the chicken and chicken broth, and stir to combine.
- 3 Return to the oven and bake 15 to 18 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the potatoes are tender.
- 4 Sprinkle the cheddar over the top and bake 2 to 3 minutes more, just until melted. Finish with chives if you want.
Variations
- Vegetarian swap — Replace the chicken with 2 cans of drained chickpeas and add them with the broth for the last 10 minutes of baking.
- Faster swap — Use microwave-steam baby potatoes, then bake only the chicken and cheese for a shorter total time.
- Substitutions — Swap cheddar for Monterey Jack, or use Yukon Gold potatoes if that is what you have.
Notes
If your potatoes are very small, check them a few minutes early. Leftovers reheat well, though the potatoes soften a bit more the next day.
Equipment that helps
- 9x13-inch baking dish — It gives the potatoes and chicken enough room to roast instead of steam.
- Large bowl — Tossing everything separately helps the seasoning coat quickly and evenly.
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