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Tender skillet chicken in balsamic caramelized onion cream sauce. All you need are a few simple ingredients, and you’ve got a restaurant-quality meal at home. And you won’t believe how easy it is to put this together!
Here we goooooo!
🎶Here were go one more time, everybody’s feeling fine, here we go noooow!🎶 Quick – name that 90’s song!
This balsamic caramelized onion chicken is the newest addition to my one skillet chicken dinner recipes. Tender seasoned chicken that’s been seared in a pan, and then we use that golden beautiful fond (the French word for the brown stuff stuck to the bottom of your skillet) to make a ridiculously delicious, so-good-you’ll-wanna-cry pan sauce.
I shared this dinner with my parents one evening. And let me tell you, I didn’t expect this. My dad is not someone who’s easily impressed by food in general. He just isn’t. So imagine my surprise when he takes a bite and realizes that even he couldn’t stop eating the balsamic cream sauce. I know you don’t know him, but this is earth-shattering if you know my dad.
Table of Contents
Chicken in Balsamic Caramelized Onion Cream Sauce Recipe:
Ingredients for chicken in balsamic cream sauce
- Chicken: I like to use 4 small chicken breasts for this recipe (or roughly 1 ½ pounds of chicken.) If you can’t find small chicken breasts, feel free to use larger ones; just split them in half horizontally and pound the chicken down so that it cooks evenly. You could also use boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe. Bone-in thighs will also work. However, they will take significantly longer to cook. I suggest using a meat thermometer to make sure the chicken is cooked through o 165ºF.
- Seasonings: I love this recipe because it uses tons of pantry staple ingredients. We’ll need salt, pepper, garlic powder, sugar, thyme (fresh or dried,) and red pepper flakes.
- Oil: the oil is used for cooking the chicken since it cooks for a while, and we don’t want to risk burning the butter.
- Chopped onions: we’ll start the sauce with chopped onions and butter. You could use a red, yellow, or even white onion for this recipe. To make it even fancier, use shallots!
- Butter: just a bit of butter will help soften the onions as they cook low and slow. If you use salted butter, be sure only lightly to season the chicken or use low sodium chicken stock because you don’t want it to be too salty at the end!
- Sugar: a few pinches of sugar helps bring out the sweetness in this sauce and it balance the salty and acidic notes.
- Balsamic vinegar: This one is pretty self-explanatory! Balsamic gives the sauce that very notable flavor.
- Chicken broth: if you prefer a thicker sauce and plan on reducing it, I suggest using low sodium chicken stock for this recipe.
- Heavy cream: The cream adds that touch of luxury to this dish, making it perfect for weeknights and even better to serve company! Heck – skillet chicken in balsamic cream sauce would be perfect for a holiday dinner!
How to make skillet chicken in balsamic caramelized onion cream sauce
- This skillet chicken recipe starts the way all my skillet chicken recipes do. We’ll season the chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Then, we’ll cook the chicken in a skillet all the way through. To make this recipe even simpler than my chicken in lemon garlic cream sauce, I took the liberty of skipping the oven time on this recipe altogether. Cook the chicken all the way through in the skillet. Then remove it to a plate. We’ll use the fond as the base of our cream sauce.
- Then we’ll add butter to the pan along with the finely chopped onions. The onions will pick up all the brown bits left behind by the chicken. and they’ll have that delicious flavor all wrapped around them. Be sure to cook the onions on low and slow because you want them to pick up all the flavor and soften slowly. We cook them on a lower heat setting because we don’t want them to brown too quickly. This will give them that signature caramelized onion flavor.
- Season the onions around the halfway point with a pinch of sugar and some fresh thyme. Towards the end, when the onions are brown, we’ll deglaze all that caramelized goodness that should now be coating the pan with balsamic vinegar. The acid in the vinegar will help release all the flavor bits stuck to the bottom. Then, we’ll make a sauce by adding chicken broth and finally, a big splash of cream.
I’ve made this recipe before, why does it look different?
Originally, I had left a note about doubling the ingredients from the chopped onions to the heavy cream to make more sauce. Because we’ve had sooo many readers wanting more sauce that I went ahead and doubled the recipe’s ingredients (and adjusted the recipe directions.) You no longer need to double the ingredients for extra sauce! However, if you prefer the recipe with less sauce, feel free to halve everything from the onions all the way down to the heavy cream, which will yield less sauce at the end – just enough for the chicken.
If you like this recipe, you might also like:
- Balsamic Tomato Baked Chicken
- One Skillet Chicken in Lemon Garlic Cream Sauce
- Greek Chicken Meatballs in Lemon Cream Sauce
- Saucy Burst Tomato Basil Chicken
- Pesto Baked Chicken with Tomatoes
Skillet Chicken in Balsamic Caramelized Onion Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 small boneless skinless chicken breasts (or thighs)
- salt and pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup finely chopped onions
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
- pinch of red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- COOK THE CHICKEN: season both sides of the chicken breast with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook the chicken all the way through, roughly 6-12 minutes depending on the size. Make sure chicken reaches 165ºF on a thermometer; remove the chicken to a plate.
- CARAMELIZE THE ONIONS: add the butter to the skillet along with the onions. Push the onions around the pan so they pick up all the flavor bits left behind by the chicken, lower the heat to medium-low and allow the onions to cook for 12-15 minutes, stirring them as needed to prevent from sticking. The onions are done when they soften completely and deepen in color. Add the thyme, red pepper flakes, sugar, and balsamic vinegar, let the vinegar cook out for a couple of minutes.
- MAKE THE SAUCE: Grab a whisk for this next step. Slowly pour in the chicken broth in a steady stream while you whisk, this will help deglaze the pan. Kick the heat up to high and let the sauce reduce for 2-3 minutes or until it thickens a bit. Once the sauce reduces, lower the heat again, and add in the cream. You don’t want the cream to start boiling immediately as it will cause the sauce to split. Let the sauce come to a gentle simmer, once it does, add in the chicken breasts and spoon the sauce on top. Serve immediately. The sauce will thicken as it sits so you may need additional broth to thin it out.
Notes
- 12/20: Originally, I had left a note about doubling the ingredients from the chopped onions to the heavy cream to make more sauce, but we’ve had sooo many readers wanting more sauce, that I went ahead and doubled the ingredients in the recipe (and adjusted the recipe directions.) You no longer need to double the ingredients for extra sauce!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I’ve made this twice now – once with chicken breast and served over a bed of short pasta, once with boneless/skinless thighs which I chopped up and mixed into the sauce along with broccoli and spaghetti. Delicious both ways.
Definitely double the sauce, and consider adding a splash more vinegar at the end.
This is a regular on the meal rotation at our house and always a hit. Thanks for the great recipe!
I made this tonight for the family, outstanding! Didn’t change anything except to double the sauce, I could eat it as a soup. Thanks for the great recipe!! It’s a keeper!
I cannot express how delicious this is! All I can say is that you NEED to make this ASAP!!!!
Excellent recipe! This is a keeper! I doubled the recipe as the sauce is excellent and I served it with rice. Also, it’s easy to prepare with ingredients that I had in the house.
Incredible. I sent this recipe to my friends. I can’t wait to make this again.
This is my most favorite recipe of All Time! Wow! Everyone I’ve made this dish for wants the recipe. The sauce is unbelievably wonderful. This is my husband’s favorite recipe, and I make big points every time I make it. Thank YOU!!!
Absolutely delicious. Is there a way I could make the sauce a little thicker? Maybe I did not deglaze long enough
Corn starch?
This was excellent! Quick, easy, and the sauce is as delicious as all the other reviewers say it is!! Will definitely make again.
I made this for dinner tonight and have to say that the flavor is in the top 5 entrees I have ever eaten in my entire 58 year old life. It is DEFINITELY a keeper. Next time, though, I will do 2 things differently. I thought cooking chicken breasts to 165 had to be wrong (too high), but just in case, I brined the chicken. I cooked it to 163, but it still turned out dry. Typically you cook chicken breast to about 150-155 and then carry over cooking brings it up to 165. So next time I will either use boneless thighs, or reduce the cooking temp to 150ish. Secondly, I am going to try this with pork tenderloin (cut into 1/2″ thick medallions). Pork tenderloin generally works with chicken recipes that have creamy sauces, and pork is less temperamental (doesn’t dry out so easily, and cooks very quickly). The sauce in this recipe is so incredibly good that I could drink it from a glass. In fact, I think I am going to dream about it tonight because there is one piece left in the fridge along with a whole lot of the leftover sauce (I doubled it). Or maybe I will just have to wait until my husband goes to sleep so I can have it all to myself for a midnight snack. My husband is going to get sick of this because he is going to have to eat it at least once a week until I die.
I’ve Been making this for years, part of our usual rotation. I’ve used pork tenderloin medallions & boneless loin chops & they are both great.
This recipe was so delicious! I made it vegan with vegan chicken, vegan chicken broth, and vegan milk (instead of heavy cream) . I served it over rice. I will definitely be making this again!
I’ve made this with thick sliced portobellos in place of some or all of the chicken & it’s great!
This dinner instantly became my husband’s favorite meal!!!!
I added some mushrooms with the onions! It was fantastic!!!
This recipe was amazing!! It received rave reviews in my home. It came together very quickly and I took your advice and doubled the sauce. SO GOOD. No leftovers so we’re making it again next week. Thank you 🙂
I’ve made this 4 or 5 times now since July and it is now a go to recipe! I use coconut milk instead of cream and it tastes amazing. I also have added mushrooms to the sauce which is a nice addition. Making it again for dinner tonight! And easy recipe with few ingredients.
I’m going to make this for supper tomorrow night and I was just wondering what would you serve it over. Mashed potatoes, rice or a pasta.
Hi Jane! All three would work this recipe, totally your call!
This was delicious!! I used a little less butter and light cream instead of heavy cream. The sauce DEFINITELY needs to be doubled (or more) because it’s so good! I wish there were more specifics in the directions about how long to cook the chicken for (approximately.) I checked the temperature a bunch of times as it was cooking, but it would have been nice to have a ball park idea of how long it might take.
Hi Christina! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe. For the chicken, it can take anywhere from 6-12 minutes depending on the size of the chicken breast. Always best to check with a thermometer to be sure they’re cooked all the way through though! Hope that helps!
Delicious! Made this tonight. Easy, looks fancy, and so yummy. I would serve this to guests. Definitely making again. Thanks!
Happy to hear you gave it a try, Erinn! Thank you so much for circling back to leave a comment 🙂
Made this the other night. Doubled the sauce. My spouse looked at me and said “this is REALLY GOOD” and went back for more before he had even finished his first serving. We will definitely be making it again. Thanks for the great recipe!!
I’m so glad to hear that, Jana! Appreciate you circling back to leave a comment 🙂
Made this tonight, my husband usually says ” it’s good, but I would do….” and he updates what he would change.
Not tonight! He loved it! Thinking about what other ways we can use the sauce recipe!
Outstanding!
So glad to hear it was a hit, Leslie! Appreciate you circling back to leave a comment 🙂
Wow! This came across my inbox and I had all ingredients in hand…what a winner! This one is going in my favorites folder. The fact that it was so easy was a bonus.
Happy to hear you enjoyed it, Karyn! 🙂