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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!
Superb! Made a few changes such as I didn’t have heavy cream so I used whole milk and cooked it down a little bit. I also mixed the broth mixture with the onions earlier in the day and let the chicken marinate in it until I was ready to cook dinner. Added a little white wine to the broth mixture. I will definitely be making again! The sauce was so so delicious! Thank you!
Excellent flavor. The sauce was a bit runny so I will add a little flour while cooking it on the stove. Served it with yellow saffron rice and the sauce tasted great with it. Thanks for a great recipe! Will make again!,
This recipe is awesome! My family enjoyed it so much they asked for it again the very next night!
I love this recipe! I use it whenever im in a “chicken funk”, is that a thing? Tonight I’m making it with mashed potatoes and green beans! Thanks for a great recipe!
It’s definitely a thing! Your sides sound perfect with this!
This was delicious. I made it as shown except I didnt have any shallots on hand so I just left it out. The leftover sauce was delicious over rice. All 3 of my kids liked it so this may become a regular dish in our household!
We loved it!! I have made this several times for my family. I double the recipe and make 4x the sauce. (We love sauce!!)
I also added capers to the sauce at the end. My kids call it “crack chicken”, because the sauce is so addictive! This has become one of our family favorites.
I have made this twice, second time I doubled the sauce 🙂
VERY good!!! Would double the yummy sauce!
Made this one night when I needed something to entice
my husband to eat “chicken “ & was pleasantly surprised
when he inhaled this dish. I added sautéed mushrooms
@ the end to the sauce. DELICIOUS!!
Thanks
It was so good. Found I had to make the chicken longer in the oven. So cooked total in the oven about 20 minutes versus the recipe called for 5-8. Cooked with corn.
I love this recipe! I have made it three times, and it’s a keeper with the family, and guests! I love the sauce so much, that I add a little more of everything so there’s enough to dip french bread in, and it’s heavenly! So easy, thank you for this yummy dish!
Love it!
I even made the same mistake and grabbed the handle! Those ants hurt!
I have done that SO many times!
Absolutely fantastic!! I made this tonight because I had all the ingredients on hand. This one is going in the rotation!
Absolutely LOVED it! I had to double it for our family of seven and tripled the sauce, simply because we love sauces, and this one is sensational!!! We will definitely make this again and again!
Thank you for sharing this recipe!
This was absolutely DELICIOUS!! My kids LOVED it! I think next time I will double the sauce just because it’s so delicious served over rice.
This recipe was great. I could go for a little more lemon, but I will make this again.
I agree! Absolutely delicious and I will make it again and again!!
Amazing recipe. I made this recipe couple times now, we enjoy it everything.
This was so good my grandson said you gonna make this again when you come back. Now I’m making it again in my new apartment. Love it
I made this last night and didn’t have shallots or heavy cream, so I used onion powder and sour cream. It was really good! We loved it so much that I made it again tonight, but with all the correct ingredients and it was even better! This recipe is now a staple in our home!!
Thank you! I don’t have either of those items wither and was wondering what I could use. I’m going to try this recipe this week.
Made this tonight and it was so delicious! I could eat this every night. I made it with just a side of sauté garlic butter green beans. The only thing I did different was that I like to put a light coating of flour on the chicken before frying. I like the texture of it that way and it helps the sauce stick to the chicken. Can’t wait to make it again.