A good pan sauce is so simple to make and squeezes every last drop of flavor out of your meat. This week I made a creamy garlic pan sauce for some chicken thighs that I had stashed in the freezer, and added mushrooms to bulk out the meal a bit. You can serve this Creamy Garlic Mushroom Chicken over pasta or rice, or if you’re trying to curb the carbs, make a big ol’ beautiful salad to compliment these creamy flavors. Keep dinner simple, keep dinner delicious!
Goes great with: Focaccia Rolls, Homemade Garlic Bread, Summer Vegetable Tian, Oven Roasted (frozen) Broccoli
Creamy Garlic Mushroom Chicken
Servings 4Ingredients
- 8 oz mushrooms ($1.99)
- 4 cloves garlic ($0.32)
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs ($3.94)
- Salt and pepper to taste ($0.05)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 1/2 cup chicken broth* ($0.07)
- 1 cup half and half ($0.85)
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan ($0.41)
- Parsley for garnish (optional) ($0.10)
Instructions
- Wash and slice the mushrooms. Mince the garlic. Season both sides of the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
- Heat a large skillet over medium, then add a tablespoon of cooking oil. Swirl the oil to coat the bottom of the skillet. Add the chicken thighs to the skillet and cook until golden brown on each side and cooked through (about 5 minutes per side). Remove the chicken to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
- Add the minced garlic to the skillet and sauté for one minute, or just until the garlic softens. Add the mushrooms and sauté for about 5-7 minutes more, or until the mushrooms have wilted. Add the chicken broth to the skillet and stir to dissolve all the browned bits off the bottom.
- Add the half and half to the skillet and bring it up to a simmer. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer the liquid, stirring often, for about five minutes. Stir in the Parmesan until it has melted in.
- Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper if needed. Add the chicken back to the skillet, drench with sauce, and heat over low until warmed through. Top with fresh parsley for garnish, if desired.
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!That creamy sauce, though! 🤤
I am using a 10″ Lodge Cast Iron Skillet (affiliate link).
How to Make Creamy Garlic Mushroom Chicken – Step by Step Photos
Begin by washing and slicing 8oz. mushrooms and mincing four cloves of garlic.
Season both sides of four boneless, skinless chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
Heat a skillet over medium, then add a tablespoon of cooking oil, swirling to coat the bottom of the skillet. Add the chicken thighs and cook until golden brown on each side and cooked through (about 5 minutes on each side). Remove the chicken thighs to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
Add the minced garlic and sauté for one minute, then add the sliced mushrooms and continue to sauté until they have softened.
Add 1/2 cup chicken broth to the skillet and stir to dissolve the browned bits off the bottom, then pour in 1 cup half and half. Bring the liquid up to a simmer, then turn down to medium-low and let simmer, stirring often, for about five minutes.
Add 1/4 cup grated Parmesan and stir in until melted into the sauce. Taste the sauce and season with salt and freshly cracked pepper to your liking.
Add the chicken thighs back to the skillet, spoon the sauce over top, and allow to heat through (just a few minutes).
Garnish with chopped parsley, if desired! (It sure does make it look pretty, huh?)
Tender, creamy, and delicious!
This sauce was too runny for me but I thickened it with Italian breadcrumbs. Other than that, this was awesome! This is going to be a regular on my menu list!
Loving your recipes, however what is (1cup of half and half)?
I think it might be a cream/dairy based product.
Yes, it’s a common product here in the U.S. that is about 10-12% dairy fat (around half milk, half cream). Here is more info: What is Half and Half?
I have now made this twice, and holy moly! We love it. I used chicken breasts instead of thighs, and served it over mashed potatoes. Thanks for the great recipe! It’s permanently in our rotation now.
Looks really good. I feel like it would taste great with barley. Any tips on incorporating barley? Would prefer keeping this to one-pan, but I guess I could cook it separately and add it at the end into the sauce.
Hmm, yeah, I think this one would work best if you cooked the barley separately because the long simmer needed for the barley would probably break down the creamy sauce.
Made this tonight and the only change I made was chicken breasts over chicken thighs. Served it up over egg noodles. Husband said it was “Very good”!!
You are awesome!! Every recipe is amazing!! Stay encourage and God bless you!
I made this recipe with frozen spinach and canned artichokes instead of the mushrooms and it came out great! Thanks for another great recipe!
This chicken was so good! I’ve gone back for seconds and thirds today. My sauce never thickened as much as I expected it to, but I was fine with that.
made this last night and it turned out great! My only difficulty was getting the cream to thicken – any advice?
Mine only thickened slightly during the simmer, but once the Parmesan melted in it thickened up quite a bit.
I used heavy cream instead of half and half. Served it over egg noodles. Delicious!
This was delicious! I made as written but used chicken breast tenderloins instead. Next time I will increase the sauce because it was so yummy. We ate it over rice. Thanks for another winner Beth!
Would there be enough sauce for 6-8 small chicken thighs?
Hmm, I’d double the sauce.
I love your recipes! Thank you for sharing.
Is it possible for you to add a calorie/nutrition breakdown with your recipes? I usually do it on my own, but I’m trying to eat better and it helps to know in advance if I can fit this into my plan.
Just made this tonight, fantastic! I only used two thighs but they ended up good anyhow, and canned mushrooms instead of fresh. Served over linguine.
Made this for my brother and roommate, served over rotini.
Fantastic recipe, and will definitely be repeating it.
This was great. I added a fistful of frozen peas at the end just because. I made it again the next morning and took it over to a sick neighbor and she loved it, too. Thanks for the nice recipe.