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Say hello to your new favorite one skillet chicken dinner that’s topped with a lemon garlic butter cream sauce. I used thin chicken breasts, but this recipe would be delicious with boneless chicken thighs too!
Hello, hello to my new favorite creamy, garlicky, lemony, delicious skillet chicken!
You guys, I’ve gone completely head over heels for today’s meal.
As many of you have probably guessed, I love white meat chicken. It’s no dark meat for me. But the good news is that today’s chicken dinner is customizable to your chicken needs. Boneless skinless chicken thighs, sure, why not! *Applause* you’ve only just waited half of FOREVER for me to bring you something that could be made with something other than boneless skinless chicken breast.
This one skillet chicken recipe is my go-to chicken dinner of the week decade. Obvi, this recipe requires just one pan. This means we make the lemon garlic chicken and the sauce all from start to finish in one skillet. We’re talking tender chicken covered in a lemon garlic butter sauce that’s creamier than anything you’ve had before.
And if you love capers, don’t be afraid to throw some into the sauce right before you turn the knob to off and serve up this delicious lemon garlic chicken.
Should I just stop here? Are you on your way to the kitchen, cuz ya should be!
This was PHENOMENAL. I have 4 boys and they devoured it!!! Going on the regular rotation. Easy too!
One Skillet Lemon Garlic Chicken Video:
This recipe is somewhat, kinda sorta adapted and inspired by my Garlic Butter Salmon in Foil. Today’s Lemon Garlic Chicken recipe is inspired by the same sauce, only we add a splash of cream at the end and deck the whole thing out in an abundance of chopped fresh parsley.
Why you’ll love this family favorite recipe!
What makes this chicken dinner to the next level is chicken broth and a big splash of heavy cream. The sauce has a nice creamy consistency that would taste AMAZING tossed in some angel hair pasta. The pasta-abilities are ENDLESS. Seriously. Serve with buttered noodles and some air fryer broccoli for a delicious dinner.
How to make one skillet chicken with lemon garlic cream sauce
Not that you’ll actually have any leftovers because that sauce is actual dynamite. But if you do, you can store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat, toss in the microwave, and you’ve got a weeknight-friendly, protein-packed dinner on the table in no time!
Leftovers can also be kept in the freezer; I would just reheat them in the microwave slowly, stopping and stirring often so that the sauce doesn’t break!
If you like this recipe, you might also like:
- One Skillet Chicken with Fiesta Cream Sauce
- One Skillet Chicken with Garlicky Mushroom Cream Sauce
- One Skillet Chicken with Tomato Basil Cream Sauce
- Cheesy Baked BBQ Chicken
- Garlic Butter Tomato Baked Chicken with Mozzarella
One Skillet Chicken with Lemon Garlic Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes or more to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ⅓ cup finely diced shallots or red onions
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley or basil
- Prepared broccolini for serving
Instructions
- Using a mallet, pound down the chicken breasts/thighs into ½ inch thickness. Sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper on both sides of the chicken.
- In a 2 cup measuring cup or a small bowl, combine the chicken broth, lemon juice, garlic, and red pepper flakes.
- Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 375ºF.
- Heat the olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and allow it to brown on both sides for 2-3 minutes per side. Don't worry if the chicken isn't cooked thoroughly; we'll finish it in the oven. Remove the chicken to a plate.
- Reduce the flame to medium, and add the shallots to the skillet along with the chicken broth mixture. Using a whisk, scrape the bottom of the pan so all the brown bits are loosened. Kick the heat back up to medium-high and let sauce come to a simmer. Continue to cook the sauce for 10-15 minutes or until about ⅓ cup of the sauce remains.
- When the sauce has thickened, remove from the flame, add the butter and whisk until it melts completely. With the skillet off the flame, add the heavy cream, whisk to combine. Place the skillet back over the flame for just 30 seconds, DO NOT allow the sauce to boil.
- Remove from heat, add the chicken back into the pan and drizzle the sauce over the chicken.
- Place the skillet in the oven for 5-8 minutes or until the chicken is completely cooked through.
- Top with chopped parsley or basil and serve warm with additional lemon slices. Serve with prepared rice, pasta, or sauteed veggies on the side.
Notes
- Use boneless skinless chicken breasts/thighs that about the same thickness. I pounded mine down to about ½ inch.
- After a few comments from readers, I’ve adjusted the amount of time it takes to reduce the sauce (step #5). Keep in mind, the key is to reduce it to ⅓ cup and that I can only provide an estimate. It may take you more or less time than what is actually listed.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like This? Leave a comment & rating below!
All I have are bone-in thighs with skin, will those still work? I’m assuming I would just need to cook the chicken a little longer before making the sauce, right?
My best guess is that it would work. You’ll definitely need to cook the chicken longer either in the oven (in which case, you wouldn’t reduce the sauce as much) or on the stove. You’ll also need to drip off excess grease from the chicken before continuing to make the sauce.
Made this tonight and it’s amazing! We paired it with roasted Brussels sprouts and red potatoes. This will be on the menu again next week. YUM! Looking forward to trying your other recipes.
OMG! Just made this with my husband and it is so delicious. My husband poured the sauce from his plate into a scoops tortilla chip because he didn’t want to waste it.
Would limes work ok instead of lemon? I’ve got a bunch!
Limes would work! They’d obvious change the taste a bit but they’ll work just fine.
My family loved the chicken and lemon garlic cream sauce. My picky 9 year old son said it was the best chicken he has ever had. We can’t wait to try your other recipes.
Nice recipe. I made this last week and loved it. I made some sauteed broccoli and rice pilaf to go with it. Had the left overs for lunch too 🙂
OMG!!! I made this dish tonight with a side of Bowie pasta and it’s so amazing and full of flavor. My 8 year olds eyes lit up and said this was def a keeper! Can’t wait to make it for my inlaws… They r gonna love it too!!!!
I8 am going to try this recipe tonight IMG can’t wait to see how it turns out
Would regular white onion work instead of shallots? Or should I just omit them? Don’t feel like running to the store in the pouring rain! Haha.
Yup! White onions will work!
What exactly is (heavy cream) ☺️ Really don’t want to mess this recipe up lol but not sure if this was my choice or something specific??
Hi Alexius! Heavy cream (or whipping cream) is the thick part of milk that’s rich in fat that rises to the top, is skimmed, and packaged as heavy cream. You want to use either of these two for this recipe because the fat in the cream keeps the sauce stable. If you were to use, let’s say, milk (even if it’s whole milk), it will cause the sauce to separate. The large amount of fat in the heavy cream stops this from occurring. Heavy cream/whipping cream is usually found in the grocery store next to regular milk. Hope this clarifies things! 🙂
Thank u 🙂 What about cream cheese? ????
I just made this tonight and it’s REALLY good! I love anything lemon, so this was right up my alley. The red pepper flakes add a nice kick to it. I’ve already started thinking of other spices to substitute for the red pepper flakes (not because I don’t love it as is, but I’ll be able to switch it up a little bit each time.
Great to hear you enjoyed it Allison! What would you swap for the red pepper flakes? I’d love to hear! 🙂
I sometimes swap for smoked paprika so my kids don’t complain about the spice.
I made this the other night for my parents and I – and it was FANTASTIC! Even my mom couldn’t stop talking about it, and she is a really tough critic! I served with rice and some green beans cooked with shallots and walnuts. Perfect!
yay! I’m so happy to hear that Brenna! And btw, your green beans sound super yummy 🙂
Thank you for this wonderful recipe!! I cooked it 2 nights ago and my husband and I loved it!! It was very easy but very tasty!! I served it with noodles, roasted asparagus and garlic bread ; )
Does anyone know if coconut milk (full fat in the the can) would work as a substitute for the cream? Can’t have dairy. 🙁
I’ve made this many times using canned full fat coconut milk with great success. We love it.
I love this dish! Restaurant quality taste. The chicken was more moist and tender than I have ever had any where, any time. It is now my new “go to” chicken dish, especially for company. I doubled the recipe so I could have leftovers. The extra sauce I served on rice. I cannot say enough about this dish.
I don’t currently have an oven safe pan….can I just cook the chicken through on the stove?
You can, i’d suggest cooking the chicken all the way through first, then making the sauce and allowing the chicken to sit in the sauce for just an additional minute or two. You may need to cook the sauce for a couple of extra minutes (before adding the chicken) so that it’s thickens the way it would in the oven!
That’s exactly what I did. I used an iron skillet and didn’t feel like using the oven. I cooked for five fire fighters who are finicky. They flat out loved this recipie. I did add some lemon pepper to the chicken as they were cooking. I did rice and corn as sides. This one is a keeper! Thanks, Mike, Capt Rescue 31.
Glad to hear it, Mike! 🙂
I made this tonight and it was so yummy! Btw where are you from? I have an aunt named Marzia
Very yummy. The sauce was but runny. So i added a 1/8 c cold water w 1 tbsp corn starch after I pulled it out of the oven. It thickend very nicely. This will be added to our usual dinner rotation for sure. Thanks for posts.
Glad you enjoyed it Heather! For next time, i’d suggest cooking the sauce (on the stove) for an additional minute or two. This will help thicken it naturally and you won’t need the corn starch mix at all 🙂
Same thing here, thanks for the tip!!
I’m a big sauce fan and I found this sauce extremely subtle! If you’re like me, I would recommend increasing the lemon and red pepper flakes, and adding salt to the sauce.
Is there a way to substitute the heavy cream? I am watching my calories…
You could use half and half Mary Ann. I don’t recommend anything lighter though as it won’t give it that creamy flavor.
Ok. Half and half it is! Fat free ok?
Fat free might work. But be careful. The reason the heavy cream doesn’t curdle is because of the high fat content. If using fat free you may want to omit the lemon juice until serving and then just squeeze some lemon on it when you plate.
Cornstarch. We use it as a thickener for our kids who are gluten allergic and dairy intolerant.
I made this for dinner and it was very tasty! I served it over pasta with a little olive oil. Very yummy!
Great idea!
I make this chicken almost every week now. I used to hate cooking and but I love making this recipe. I serve it with asparagus and roasted potatoes.