Every now and then you come across one of those recipes that just leaves you speechless. Well, today I’m introducing you to one of those recipes. This Creamy Garlic Chicken is so delicious, so flavorful, and so easy to make for a quick weeknight meal! It starts with tender, pan-seared chicken breasts that are then covered with a creamy, garlic-infused sauce. The moment my family tried this recipe, they instantly loved it! It honestly took everyone’s breath away. If you love simple recipes that are packed with flavor and made with a luscious cream sauce, then make sure to add this one to your weekly rotation!
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I made this tonight and it was delish!!! One of the best chicken recipe by far! Thank you we loved it and the flavors of the sauce was awesome!!
Charissa Woods
Ingredients For Creamy Garlic Chicken
Here’s everything you need to make this creamy garlic chicken recipe:
- Chicken: If you’ve seen a couple of my recipes, then by now you probably know I love using chicken breasts. So I opted for two boneless, skinless chicken breasts that I cut in half. But you can certainly use boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead.
- All-purpose flour: A little bit of flour adds a light breading to the chicken breasts and the perfect compliment to the creamy garlic sauce.
- Garlic: Garlic is the star of the show for this dish, so we’re using lots of it. One whole head of garlic to be exact. The garlic cooks down and infuses the sauce without overpowering the dish. If you’re feeling lazy, I recommend 2.5 Tbsp of pre-minced garlic.
- Olive Oil and Butter: Both are used to cook the chicken breasts and a little more butter is used to sauté the garlic cloves.
- Chicken Broth and Heavy Cream: The rich garlic sauce is made with a combination of chicken broth and heavy cream. Both of them simmer together, along with the garlic cloves, until a creamy, flavorful sauce is formed.
- Seasoning: The chicken breasts are seasoned with a little salt, pepper and Italian seasoning; and the sauce is seasoned with garlic powder plus a little salt & pepper to taste.
Can you eat the garlic cloves?
You may be curious if you can eat the whole garlic cloves with your chicken. The answer is YES! Sautéing the garlic cloves in the butter, then simmering them in the sauce, removes any overpowering, strong garlic taste and leaves a very subtle, delicious flavor. I love to spoon the garlic over the chicken along with the creamy sauce right before serving.
Recipe Tips!
- After all the garlic cloves are peeled, I like to carefully smash them with the side of a large chef’s knife by pressing down on the side of the knife with the heel of my hand. Smashing the cloves releases more of their flavorful oils and gives the sauce a stronger garlic flavor.
- Make sure you stir the garlic cloves frequently when sautéing them in the skillet with the butter. You don’t want the garlic to burn. As soon as it starts to turn a light brown color, add in the liquids and stir.
- A great budget-saving hack we love is to use Better Than Bouillon paste. It has a long shelf life, which is great for when you’re using just 1 cup at a time. I recommend the roasted chicken base, but several readers loved the roasted garlic base in this recipe, too!
- For a lower-fat option, try swapping out the heavy cream for half-and-half.
- For a thicker sauce, add a roux of 2 Tbsp flour and 1 Tbsp melted butter or a slurry of 1 Tbsp cornstarch and 1-2 Tbsp cold water.
- Some great additions our readers have loved include sautéed or caramelized onions, cooked crumbled bacon, spinach, sautéed mushrooms, a squeeze of lemon juice, and Parmesan cheese.
What To Serve With Creamy Garlic Chicken?
Creamy sauce recipes like this creamy garlic chicken are perfect to serve with Mashed Potatoes, so the potatoes can soak up all of that extra sauce. You can also serve the chicken and sauce over a bed of pasta or rice, or serve it with a simple side salad or in our case a Caesar Salad. You really can’t go wrong with any side that you choose!
Creamy Garlic Chicken
Servings 4Ingredients
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1.3 lbs. total) ($6.49)
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper ($0.02)
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour ($0.06)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 2 Tbsp butter, divided ($0.27)
- 1 whole garlic bulb (about 8-9 garlic cloves) ($0.64)
- 1 cup chicken broth ($0.17)
- 3/4 cup heavy cream ($1.08)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder ($0.05)
- Salt and Pepper to taste ($0.04)
Instructions
- Using a sharp knife, carefully fillet each chicken breast into two thinner cutlets (or use thin-cut chicken breasts).
- Season each breast with Italian seasoning, salt, and black pepper. Then sprinkle the flour over both sides of the chicken breasts and rub it in until the chicken is evenly coated.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil and 1 Tbsp of butter. Once the skillet is hot, add the chicken and cook on each side until golden brown and cooked through (about 4 minutes per side). Remove the cooked chicken to a clean plate and cover to keep warm.
- While the chicken is cooking, peel the garlic cloves and then carefully smash them with the side of a large chef's knife by pressing down on the side of the knife with the heel of your hand.
- Once the chicken is removed, to the same skillet add the remaining 1 Tbsp of butter, then add the garlic cloves. Turn the heat down to medium-low and sauté the garlic for 3 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant. Make sure to stir the garlic frequently to prevent it from burning.
- Next pour the chicken broth and heavy cream into the skillet, then add the garlic powder. Stir and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Allow the sauce to simmer in the skillet for 8-10 minutes, or until it has reduced and thickened by about 50%. Taste the sauce at this point and add salt and pepper if needed (I added about ⅛ tsp of salt and ⅛ tsp of black pepper).
- Finally, return the cooked chicken breasts to the skillet and spoon the creamy sauce over top. Allow the chicken to heat through. Serve with fresh chopped parsley (optional), and enjoy!
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Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Creamy Garlic Chicken – Step by Step Photos
Using a sharp knife, carefully fillet 2 chicken breast into two thinner cutlets (or use thin-cut chicken breasts). Season each breast with 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper. Then sprinkle 1/4 cup all-purpose flour over both sides of the chicken breasts and rub it in until the chicken is evenly coated.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add 2 Tbsp olive oil and 1 Tbsp of butter. Once the skillet is hot, add the chicken and cook on each side until golden brown and cooked through (about 4 minutes per side). Remove the cooked chicken to a clean plate and cover to keep warm.
While the chicken is cooking, peel the garlic cloves from 1 whole head of garlic. Then carefully smash them with the side of a large chef’s knife by pressing down on the side of the knife with the heel of your hand.
Once the chicken is removed, to the same skillet add the remaining 1 Tbsp of butter, then add the garlic cloves. Turn the heat down to medium-low and sauté the garlic for 3 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant. Make sure to stir the garlic frequently to prevent it from burning.
Next pour 1 cup chicken broth and 3/4 cup heavy cream into the skillet, then add 1/2 tsp garlic powder. Stir and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Allow the sauce to simmer in the skillet for 8-10 minutes, or until it has reduced and thickened by about 50%.
Taste the sauce at this point and add salt and pepper if needed (I added about ⅛ tsp of salt and ⅛ tsp of black pepper). Return the cooked chicken breasts to the skillet and spoon the creamy sauce over top. Allow the chicken to heat through.
Serve with fresh chopped parsley (optional) and enjoy this creamy, flavorful sauce with mashed potatoes, pasta, or any of your favorite sides.
I just made this tonight. The sauce was amazing, my wife loved it, definitely keeping the recipe as a main staple! Thank you so very much for sharing it. 5 out of 5 hands down.
Ooh, Marsha…You put your FOOT in this recipe! I made this for my family last night and my husband said it was one of the best meals he had ever eaten. We all loved it! I doubled up on the sauce and added some pastina with it. It was so decadent and unbelievably easy. Thank you, ma’am & keep ’em coming, please! <3
Haha!! This made me laugh! Thank you so much Crystal for your review. I’m glad you and your family loved the recipe! :)
Is this good with mushrooms added to the sauce?
That would be great!
Wow, this is a restaurant quality dish my family loved! It was so simple to put together and the taste was outstanding. I was asked to keep this recipe and make it again! I served it with some garlic angel hair pasta and green beans.
My whole family loved this. I seemed it with mashed potatoes and a green salad
Hi is it fine if you dont use the broth
Unfortunately you really do need the broth! I think using just water would be too bland and well, watery. You could dissolve a bouillon cube in water or use better than bouillon (which we love) to make the broth if you like!
Just tried this recipe and it was absolutely delicious!! I used half and half instead of heavy cream, so it took a bit longer to thicken, but it was very tasty and got rave reviews from my family! Thanks!!
Is this good with mushrooms added to the sauce?
I’ve also had to use half and half at times. If you add butter to the half and half it gives it the extra fat that heavy cream has, so it makes it more like the heavy cream. Just an FYI :)
This was a fan favorite! My pickiest child ate this and asked for seconds! 10/10 Recommend! Thanks!
Excellent and simply delicious. Thanks for sharing this great comfort food dish. I made mashed potatoes and fresh green beans to complete the meal.
Thanks for the recipe! It’s delicious!! I had a bit more than a pound of chicken but I followed the recipe exactly and now I know next time to make more sauce because that sauce is the boss 😍
Haha! The sauce is definitely the boss!😄 Thanks for sharing your feedback!
Looks amazing!! What kind of side dishes would you make with this?
Hi Alexis! There is a paragraph in the post with links to a few recipes you could serve it with!
Absolutely amazing! My family loved this recipe.
Made this tonight for my family of 10 and every single one of them enjoyed it.
As always great recipes to follow! Easy and love the step by steps. The family loved this chicken. Best place for recipes! Thank you
I love this recipe as my daughter made this when I visited. However, when I went to print it there was a problem. It printed all the comments from other cooks. I didn’t need this as it was so tasty.
Can you correct this as I am sure I will want to print other recipes of yours.
Thank you
That’s so weird! I just tried it and it worked fine for me! Did you use the print recipe button on the recipe card? When you click that it should open up this printer friendly page. https://www.budgetbytes.com/wprm_print/creamy-garlic-chicken