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This Chicken Riesling recipe has bacon and mushrooms in a dreamy white wine cream sauce! It’s paired with buttered parmesan pasta for an irresistible meal.
Try my Easy Chicken Madeira or this Easy Chicken Marsala for another impressive dish.
Why you’ll love it
Chicken Riesling is a restaurant-quality favorite that you can make right at home. It’s on the Cheesecake Factory menu, but you can easily make an even better version in your kitchen with a few simple ingredients. I think you’ll be thrilled with my take on it!
If you’ve never tried it, this Chicken Riesling is one of those easy chicken recipes that’s straight out of the Salt & Lavender playbook, so I’m thinking you will adore it. It’s ideal for both a quick weeknight meal and for serving guests.
What is Riesling?
- It’s a white wine made from Riesling grapes. It’s similar to some varieties of chardonnay but is more fruity. It originated in the Rhine region of Germany but is made in lots of places in the world today. Here’s a great article if you want to learn more about Riesling.
What you’ll need
- Bacon – we’re using 5-6 strips of bacon cut into small pieces
- Chicken – two chicken breasts are cut into 4 smaller cutlets
- Garlic powder, salt & pepper, flour – for seasoning and dredging the chicken. Flour helps to get a great crust and also thickens the sauce, so I wouldn’t skip it.
- Mushrooms – we’re pan frying cremini mushrooms in butter
- Italian seasoning – it’s a blend of tasty dried herbs that comes in a single jar for convenience
- Garlic – I went for 3 cloves, but if you’re a garlic lover, you can use more
- Riesling – the signature dry white wine flavor of the sauce
- Heavy cream – for the luxurious cream sauce. I wouldn’t sub it for anything else.
- Pasta – If you want to serve it with pasta, our simple buttered parmesan pasta has just three ingredients: butter, parm, and spaghetti!
How to make Chicken Riesling
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Boil the pasta if using. Cut the bacon into small pieces and fry in a skillet until crispy. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate, leaving behind some of the bacon fat. Cut the chicken into smaller cutlets, dredge in the flour, garlic powder, and salt & pepper, and pan fry until golden.
Transfer the chicken to a plate. Sauté the butter, mushrooms, and Italian seasoning until the water from the mushrooms has cooked out. Stir in the garlic. Add in the Riesling, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Let it reduce.
Stir in the cream, and then add the chicken back in along with the bacon. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened. Add extra salt & pepper and garnish with parsley if desired. Serve with the parmesan noodles if you’re making them.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- A garlic press is a game changer for mincing garlic. You don’t even need to peel the cloves first.
- I use kitchen shears to cut up the bacon.
- Don’t overcook your chicken! It’s easiest to tell if it’s done when an instant read thermometer registers at 165F when you place it in the thickest part.
- Always grate your own parmesan cheese. The pre-grated stuff just isn’t as fresh and doesn’t taste as good. I like using my Microplane zester for it.
Substitutions and variations
- Since this is Chicken Riesling, I of course recommend buying a bottle of Riesling. However, it could be subbed with another dry white wine (try a chardonnay or pinot grigio) or even something like marsala or sherry for a different but equally delicious sauce.
- Try subbing the chicken breasts for thighs. I’d sear them for a bit longer to ensure they’re melt-in-your-mouth tender.
- Swap cremini mushrooms for another variety if you wish.
What to serve with Chicken Riesling
- We love how it plays with the buttered parmesan noodles, but you could serve this with Mashed Potatoes instead.
- I also enjoy serving it alongside a classic Caesar salad with Homemade Caesar Dressing.
- You can’t go wrong with a slice of Extra Cheesy Garlic Bread!
Leftovers and storage
- Leftovers will be fine for 3-4 days in the fridge in an airtight container.
- Reheat in a saucepan over a low heat so that the sauce doesn’t separate. If you have to use a microwave, make sure it’s on the lowest setting, and try 30-second increments.
- We don’t recommend freezing cream sauces.
More restaurant-worthy recipes
Any questions? Did you make this recipe? I’d love to hear from you below, or tag me on Instagram!
Chicken Riesling
Ingredients
- 5-6 strips bacon cut into small pieces
- 2 large chicken breasts cut in half lengthwise
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Flour for dredging
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 7 ounces cremini mushrooms sliced
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup Riesling
- 3/4 cup heavy/whipping cream
Buttered parmesan pasta:
- 8 ounces uncooked spaghetti
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- If making the buttered parmesan pasta with this recipe: boil a large salted pot of water for the spaghetti, and cook it al dente according to package directions. Aim for it to be done around the same time as the chicken. Once the pasta is cooked, drain it, return it to the pot it was cooked in, and then immediately toss it with the 2 tbsp butter and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese until smooth and well-coated. Keep covered until you're about to serve it.
- Cut the bacon into small pieces (I use kitchen shears), and fry in a skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. Take the skillet off the heat. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel lined plate and leave 2-3 tablespoons of the bacon fat in the skillet.
- Cut the chicken lengthwise into 4 thinner pieces, then sprinkle each piece with the garlic powder and some salt & pepper (go fairly easy on the salt as bacon is salty), then coat it in flour and shake off the excess.
- Return the skillet to medium-high heat, and once it's hot again, add the chicken and cook for 4-5 minutes (golden but not fully cooked through). Transfer to another plate.
- In the same skillet, add the butter, mushrooms and Italian seasoning. Cook for 5-6 minutes or until the mushrooms release their water, it's cooked off, and they get a nice sear.
- Stir in the garlic and cook for about 1 minute.
- Add the white wine to the skillet and scrape any brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Let it bubble until the liquid is reduced by half (about 2-3 minutes).
- Stir in the cream, then add the chicken and bacon back to the skillet. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened up a bit and the chicken has cooked through. Spoon some sauce over the chicken and season with extra salt & pepper if needed. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Nutritional information doesn’t include the buttered parmesan pasta. With the pasta, it’s 812 calories/serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Would love to see a recipe for shepherds pie.
Hi Debbie! You’re in luck – I do have one. I will link it. For future reference, you can just type the recipe name that you’re looking for into my blog’s search bar or google “Salt and lavender + the recipe name”. Here it is: https://bit.ly/3PAiXJs
Thank you! My 5-year old is a picky one and somehow the chicken riesling from the Cheesecake Factory made it on to his approved list. I made this recipe last night and he loved it!!! He ate mushrooms!!! Thank you!
Oh wow that’s awesome!! 😀 Thanks for letting me know, Jennifer!
Absolutely delicious! Thank you!
Thank you, Becky! 😀
Excellent recipe! Was simple to follow and delicious! We served over pappardelle
I’m thrilled to hear that, Andrea! Appreciate your review!
This recipe was delicious. Since I was making a large amount for guests, I put the chicken in a baking dish, put bacon on top of it, then the cream sauce. I put it in the oven to keep warm till I was ready to serve it. Everyone loved it.
I’m thrilled it was a hit, Patty!! 😀 Thanks so much for your review!
Can this dish be made and then frozen
Hi! I don’t typically recommend freezing cream sauces. See “leftovers & storage” in the blog post.
Just made this dish. Instead of Italian Seasoning I used fresh Tarragon. Simply wonderful. Now my 13 yr. old grandson wants to learn how to make it. He loves to cook and this is a recipe he can make easily. Thanks for sharing it.
I’m thrilled it’s a hit and he wants to learn, Sharon! 😀 Thank you!
Omg! I’ve made this twice now in 2 weeks. 1st time with chicken as written. 2nd time with shrimp. I cut down on the cooking time, the garlic, and used half and half as well as inexpensive cooking wine and some prosciutto I had on hand. This will definitely be on repeat.
I’m so glad it’s a new favorite, Mona!
Hi, I want to make this tomorrow…is it a dry Riesling or is it a sweet riesling? There are two different kinds, so just let us know which one to get. Thank you!!!
It’s a dry Riesling. 🙂 Enjoy!!
This was delicious! I used chardonnay and another ¼ cup heavy cream. I would add some chicken stock or pasta water next time, still wasn’t enough sauce for me! Such a great dinner!
I’m thrilled you liked it!