This creamy garlic chicken is rich, flavorful, and perfect for busy weeknights. Tender cutlets simmer in a velvety garlic sauce with caramelized cloves that create a comforting, one-skillet meal everyone loves.
One-Pan Creamy Garlic Chicken for Busy Weeknights
When I make this creamy garlic chicken breast recipe, it always feels like the kind of creamy garlic chicken dinner that brings everyone to the table fast. There's something so comforting about a creamy garlic skillet chicken that comes together easily after a long day, especially when the sauce is silky and full of flavor. This chicken breast in creamy garlic sauce has that perfect balance, rich, cozy, and still simple enough to count as a weeknight creamy garlic chicken you can rely on.
What I love most is how the caramelized garlic melts into the broth to create a creamy garlic chicken with broth that tastes like it simmered much longer than it did. It's an easy creamy garlic chicken breast recipe that feels familiar, almost like a blend between a classic chicken with garlic cream sauce and the Spanish garlic chicken I grew up with. And if you're a garlic lover like me, serve this creamy garlic chicken in one pan with garlic bread or buttered noodles, you'll want it on repeat.
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⭐Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Quick One-Pan Meal: This creamy garlic chicken dinner comes together in just 25 minutes, making it perfect for busy evenings when you still want something warm and satisfying.
- Bold Garlic Flavor: The sauce is infused with caramelized garlic, giving the dish a deep, mellow garlic taste that makes every bite feel rich and comforting.
🧾Ingredients
You'll find the exact measurements in the recipe card, but here's a closer look at a few of the ingredients and why I use them.
- Chicken Cutlets: I like slicing the chicken breasts into thin pieces because they cook quickly and stay tender, especially once coated lightly in flour.
- Garlic & Thyme: Whole garlic cloves and fresh thyme are my favorite combination here; they soften slowly in the butter and give the sauce that warm, mellow depth I always enjoy.
- Creamy Sauce Base: A mix of broth, heavy cream, and a splash of white wine creates the velvety sauce. I like adding a bit of garlic powder too; it rounds out the flavor beautifully.
- Finishing Touches: A little butter brings the sauce together, and a sprinkle of fresh parsley at the end adds a bright, fresh lift that works so well with the creamy garlic.
👩🏻🍳How to Make Creamy Garlic Chicken
You can find the complete printable recipe with measurements below, but for now, here's a quick overview of how it goes:
1. Prepare the Chicken: Cut the chicken breasts lengthwise into four even cutlets, season with salt and pepper, and dredge lightly in flour.
2. Sear the Cutlets: Heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet, then sear the chicken for 3-4 minutes per side until golden. Transfer to a plate.
3. Build the Sauce: Lower the heat, melt the remaining butter, and sauté the smashed garlic for 2 minutes. Add the thyme and white wine, scraping up the browned bits, and let it reduce by half.
4. Finish the Sauce & Return Chicken: Stir in the broth, cream, and garlic powder, simmer until thickened, then return the chicken to the pan and warm through before serving with parsley.
🍽 What to Serve with Creamy Garlic Sauce Chicken
This creamy garlic chicken is perfect with mashed potatoes, buttered rice, or roasted potatoes, anything that can soak up the sauce. A tomato salad works well too, and crusty bread is always a great addition.
💭My Tips for Recipe Success
Slice the Chicken Evenly: I've found that even cutlets cook more consistently and stay moist, especially with quick searing.
Avoid Overheating the Garlic: If the garlic browns too quickly, the sauce can turn sharp. Keeping the heat low for that step gives the best flavor.
Storage: I store leftovers in an airtight container, and the sauce thickens beautifully by the next day, just warm gently with a splash of broth or water.
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Recipe
Creamy Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper - Freshly ground
- 30 g All-purpose Flour - For dredging
- 2 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 tablespoon Butter - Divided
- 9 Garlic Cloves - Peeled and smashed
- 3 Fresh Thyme Sprigs
- 120 ml Dry White Wine
- 240 ml Chicken Broth
- 120 ml Heavy Cream
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 tablespoon Fresh Parsley Leaves - Chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise to create 4 thin, even cutlets. Season the cutlets with salt and black pepper, then dredge lightly in all-purpose flour.
- Heat the extra virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet over medium-high heat and sear the chicken for 3-4 minutes per side until golden; transfer to a plate.
- Lower the heat, add the remaining butter, and sauté the smashed whole garlic cloves for 2 minutes.
- Add the fresh thyme sprigs and pour in the white wine, scraping the skillet to release any browned bits and cook until the wine is reduced by about half, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Stir in the chicken broth, heavy cream, and garlic powder until smooth and simmer for 8-10 minutes until the sauce thickens.
- Return the chicken to the pan and warm through for a couple of minutes.
- Remove the thyme sprigs and sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Lilly says
This creamy garlic chicken turned out amazing! The sauce had so much flavor, and the chicken stayed tender the whole way through. Such an easy weeknight recipe, I’ll definitely be making it again.