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This creamy garlic chicken recipe is the ultimate easy comfort food! Tender chicken breasts smothered in a creamy garlic sauce are irresistible. Garlic lovers unite!
Love creamy chicken recipes? Try my Creamy Tuscan Chicken, this Creamy Bacon Chicken, or my Creamy Mushroom Chicken.
Why you’ll love it
This creamy garlic chicken is ready in about 30 minutes. It’s good enough to serve company, but it’s also one of those dishes that works for a quick weeknight dinner. A lovely reader said that it’s “one of the best things I have ever eaten!!!” It was an early hit on the blog and actually shaped the direction of S&L towards easy comfort food.
Yes, I include both garlic powder and an entire head of garlic in this recipe. It’s not a typo! Believe it or not, the garlic cloves themselves don’t make the sauce ridiculously garlicky. The flavor of garlic powder is slightly different than the fresh cloves. I’m going for all-out depth of garlic flavor here without making it overpowering.
What you’ll need
- Chicken – we’re using two large boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut in half lengthwise to cook faster and more evenly, so it remains tender and melt-in-your-mouth
- Flour – for a tasty crust on the exterior of the cutlets, and it also helps thicken the sauce
- Olive oil and butter – for sautéing
- Garlic cloves – use an entire head of garlic. Don’t worry if you don’t have the exact same number of cloves as I used. It’s not precise.
- Chicken broth – for the savory base of the sauce
- Lemon juice – a little bit of acidity for balance
- Garlic powder – for a different garlicky aspect! It’s a staple in my pantry.
- Heavy cream – it’s what makes the sauce luxuriously rich
Do I eat the garlic cloves?
- You do! If you’ve never really cooked with whole garlic cloves before, don’t worry. Cooking them in the sauce mellows them right out. It’s nothing like biting into raw garlic.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- You don’t have to spend a lot time peeling the garlic cloves. Use a silicone garlic peeler tube, or buy garlic cloves that are already peeled if you really want to save a bit of time. I usually just use my knife. Here’s a quick video tutorial how.
- This is my trusty 10.25″ Lodge cast iron skillet, and I use a chef’s knife to cut the chicken.
- Chicken is safe to eat at 165F, and the best way to never have undercooked or overcooked meat is using an instant read thermometer.
How to make creamy garlic chicken
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Cut the chicken breasts into four cutlets, season with salt & pepper, and coat with flour. Pan fry until golden, and then take them out of the skillet. Lightly brown the garlic cloves in the same pan.
Add the broth, lemon juice, and garlic powder to the skillet. Let it up bubble for a few minutes until the liquid has reduced somewhat. Pour in the cream, and return the chicken to the pan to cook until it reaches 165F inside and the sauce thickens. Garnish with parsley if desired.
Substitutions and variations
- Sub the cream at your own discretion. If you use something like milk or half-and-half, the sauce may curdle due to the high heat and end up thinner. I recommend reading through the reader comments. There’s tons of tips from readers who have tweaked this recipe to their liking.
- I use boneless/skinless chicken breasts for this recipe. You can substitute for chicken thighs, but keep in mind those may take a bit longer to cook.
- For an elegant touch, swap the chicken broth for a dry white wine like pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc.
- Readers have tried minced garlic in a jar, but the results won’t be the same and our kitchen has not tested that. You’re welcome to experiment.
What to serve with creamy garlic chicken
- Try Mashed Potatoes, a classic Easy Baked Potato, Stick of Butter Rice, pasta, or scoop up those tasty garlic cloves with fresh crusty bread.
- For veggie sides, I suggest sweet corn, Maple Roasted Beets and Carrots, or my very delicious Easy Roasted Cauliflower recipe. Green beans would also go great.
- If you’re pairing it with a salad, I love this Super Simple Parmesan Arugula Salad or going all out with my popular 10-Minute Caesar Dressing.
Leftovers and storage
- Store any leftovers of this creamy chicken in the fridge in a covered container for 3-4 days.
- Reheat in a saucepan slowly and over a low heat until warmed through.
- I don’t recommend freezing this one. The chicken will dry out, and creamy sauces don’t hold up well in the freezer.
More 30-minute chicken recipes
If you made this creamy garlic chicken recipe, leave a star rating and comment below! You can find me on Instagram and showcase your creations.
Creamy Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Flour for dredging
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter divided
- 1 whole head garlic cloves peeled
- 1/2 cup chicken broth or stock
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- Parsley chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Cut the chicken in half lengthwise so you have 4 smaller cutlets. Generously season them with salt & pepper and coat them in the flour.
- Add the olive oil and 1 tbsp of the butter to a skillet over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, sauté the chicken for 4-5 minutes/side or until it’s nice and golden. Take the chicken out of the pan and set it aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium (or even med-low if using cast iron), and add the rest of the butter to the pan. Let it melt and then add the garlic cloves. Cook them for 3-4 minutes, stirring often, until they’re lightly browned on the outside.
- Add the chicken broth, lemon juice, and garlic powder to the pan. Let it bubble for around 4 minutes or until the liquid is noticeably reduced.
- Stir in the cream and add the chicken back into the pan. Let it cook for another 5 minutes or so, until the sauce is reduced and the chicken is cooked through. Serve with freshly chopped parsley if you wish.
Notes
- I recommend using fairly large boneless/skinless chicken breasts for this recipe since we’re cutting them in half lengthwise. If you have smaller ones, use 4 of them and leave them intact.
- If your garlic cloves are particularly gigantic like some of mine were, feel free to cut them in half so they’re all roughly the same size.
- This recipe also can be found in the Salt & Lavender: Everyday Essentials cookbook.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I made this for my family tonight and everyone LOVED it!! Thanks!
You’re welcome!
This is probably the best chicken I’ve ever had… I like to pair the chicken with rice because the sauce on the rice is to DIE for! I’ve made the recipe at least 6 times since I found it 2 months ago. But just wondering, has anyone ever tried to make this in an instant pot? I don’t mind making it on the stove but I’m pregnant and sometimes I don’t have the energy! Would love to hear your suggestions! Thanks!
I am so happy that you like it so much, Britney!! We can see if anyone has any suggestions re: the IP. I haven’t tested anything similar (the cream can get pretty easily destroyed by the intense heat).
One of the best recipes I’ve ever found on the internet. And I did adlib just a tad. I did half white wine and half cream. I also thickened it up a little too much with some Wondra. OMG, so yummy!
So happy you liked it, Donna 😀
Made this for my family and they lapped it up! I skipped the dredging and air fried the chicken and added a splash of Worcestershire to the sauce along with fresh sage, rosemary and thyme. Thanks so much!!
I am so pleased to hear it, Stacey! 🙂
Absolutely delicious! I did modify it just a little bit , I added a quarter cup of white wine, onions, sliced Yukon potatoes, and white mushrooms along with the garlic and lemon. The chicken was tender and delicious. The sauce was to die for.
So pleased you liked it, Cindy! 🙂 Love your additions!
Best chicken I’ve ever made hands down, my family literally licked their plates lol. Thank youuu
Awesome!! Thanks for letting me know! 🙂
I’m about to make this, it sounds very tasty. I will follow the recipe as written. If it is as good as it sounds I think I may sub some or all of the chicken broth with wine and might do roasted red pepper too. The caramelized sounded good too. But this time no funny busines.
Hope you’ll enjoy it, Rick!
I plan on making this tonight. I was curious for those adding pasta to it…..does the recipe provide enough sauce for pasta? I prefer things saucy so I would want to make sure it wasn’t too dry before going the pasta route. Thanks in advance for any response.
This Recipe was top top notch family enjoyed it. I will definitely use it again but I didn’t have any chicken breast so I used Boneless chicken thighs.
I’d like to know this too. I want to add it on top of spaghetti, but don’t know if there is enough sauce.
I find there is plenty of sauce, but if you really want the pasta drowning in it, then you may want to double the sauce ingredients. The video in the post gives some indication of how much sauce there actually is.
I’m wondering if whole milk would be an ok sub. Mostly bc that’s what i have on hand and need to get rid of, but i’d also like to make a lower fat version
Hi! I recommend reading thru the comments because readers have done various subs and it may help. The sauce will end up thinner. You may need to adjust it a bit (maybe add more flour).
I made this substituting whole milk for the heavy cream. I added the flour into the butter and garlic mixture once the garlic turned brown. Definitely help to toughen up the sauce. I also added some half and half on with the whole milk. Also serving suggestion would be to chop the chicken into chunks once done cooking and toss with linguini, broccoli, roasted red peppers and the sauce.
Great suggestions! Thanks!
the flavors bombard you left and right sweet,salty,a little sour and yet savoury.
pretty simple dish but don’t let that fool you it’s indeed delicious.
i added a little twist on it though. by sauteing one chopped onion until it’s charamalise and then frying the chicken, chicken’s flavors will heighten and the sweetness of the cream will be far more noticable
still 10/10 i loved it
So glad you liked it!
Made this tonight, it was fantastic! I didn’t modify anything, I thought it was a perfect weeknight dinner; will definitely make again!
Excellent! Thanks for letting me know!