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This creamy sherry chicken recipe has tender pan-fried chicken in a savory sherry cream sauce with mushrooms. It’s easy, elegant, and ready in about 30 minutes!
Love sherry? Try my Chicken Gloria recipe for a cheesy take on this dish.
Why you’ll love it
This skillet chicken recipe is ideal for date night or when you want to make something special for company but don’t really feel like spending hours in the kitchen. It’s perfect when you’re short on time since it takes just half an hour to make and has no obscure ingredients, but it tastes like it’s on the menu at a fancy restaurant.
The sauce is truly the star here. The mushrooms, cream, and sherry combine to make some magic and completely envelop the tender and juicy chicken. It’s silky, rich, and satisfying, and the signature sherry flavor is so memorable and one you’ll want to try if you haven’t before!
What you’ll need
- Chicken breasts – we’re using two of them cut into four thinner cutlets
- Garlic powder, salt & pepper, flour – for seasoning and dredging the chicken
- Olive oil and butter – for sautéing and to make the base of the sauce
- Mushrooms – I like cremini for this recipe for their flavor and meaty texture. White button mushrooms would also work in a pinch.
- Onion – sweet (Vidalia) is our go-to variety
- Italian seasoning – it’s a fragrant blend of dried herbs like rosemary and thyme that comes in one single jar. I use it in so many of my sauces!
- Garlic – you can use even more than suggested if you really like garlic. I use this press to mince it since you don’t even need to peel the cloves.
- Sherry – use a dry sherry for this savory recipe. Sherry is a fortified wine. I don’t recommend using “cooking” wines if you can avoid it. They’re never as good and can also be quite salty.
- Heavy cream – to make that luscious cream sauce
Can I substitute the sherry?
- Sherry gives this recipe its signature taste, so I wouldn’t recommend it. You could try marsala or madeira wine, but then it’d be different than intended (and you can make separate recipes with those wines specifically that I’ve linked below). White wine would work, but then you may as well make my Creamy White Wine Mushroom Chicken!
How to make creamy sherry chicken
This is an overview, and full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise so they cook through faster and remain tender, then sprinkle them with salt & pepper, garlic powder, and coat them in flour.
- Pan-fry them until they’re just about cooked through, then take them out of the skillet.
- Sauté the mushrooms and onions along with the Italian seasoning. Once the water has cooked off, pour in the sherry. Let it reduce, then stir in the cream. Finish cooking the chicken in the sauce (it’ll thicken up a bit), and that’s it!
Substitutions and variations
- You could make this without the flour if need be, but I’d be sure to get your pan hot enough that the chicken doesn’t stick, and you may want to let the sauce reduce for a bit prior to adding the chicken back to the pan for the last step.
- As always, sub ingredients at your own discretion. If substituting the cream for something lower fat, it may yield a thinner and less rich sauce that’s likely to curdle, so I wouldn’t suggest doing so.
What to serve with this recipe
- Rice or potatoes are a great pairing with that creamy sauce. My Roasted Red Potatoes or Easy Garlic Mashed Potatoes would go great.
- Pasta is another option. Try these Quick & Easy Garlic Butter Noodles.
- For vegetables, my Roasted Green Beans would go well. Or make a side salad with this Olive Garden Salad Dressing!
Leftovers and storage
- Leftovers of this chicken will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days.
- It won’t freeze well because of the cream sauce.
- To heat it up again, put leftovers in a small saucepan over a low heat so that the sauce doesn’t separate.
More restaurant-quality dishes
Will you make this sherry chicken? Questions? Let me know in the comments below!
Creamy Sherry Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 large chicken breasts cut in half lengthwise
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Flour for dredging
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter divided
- 7 ounces cremini mushrooms sliced
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/2 cup dry sherry
- 3/4 cup heavy/whipping cream
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise so you have four thinner cutlets. Sprinkle them with the garlic powder, season them generously with salt & pepper on both sides, and then coat each piece in flour.
- Add the oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter to a skillet over medium-high heat. Let the pan heat up for a few minutes.
- Sear the chicken for about 4-5 minutes/side or until golden. Transfer it to a plate.
- To the skillet, add in the remaining butter, mushrooms, onions, and Italian seasoning. Cook for about 5-6 minutes or until the water has been released and then cooked off.
- Stir in the garlic and cook for about a minute.
- Add in the sherry and scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Let the sauce bubble for until the liquid is reduced by half (about 2-3 min).
- Stir in the cream, then add the chicken back to the pan. Let it cook for about 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has reduced/thickened up a bit. Season with extra salt & pepper if needed.
Notes
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Delicious!! My partner grew up in Switzerland and this dish reminded him of home. I added more onions, mushrooms, garlic and spices than called for, and it was so good. (Made my own spice blend of garden rosemary, thyme, and parsley, with dried oregano.) Topped with fresh chopped parsley. Suggestion is to check the seasonings for more salt and pepper at the mushroom/onion stage of cooking and before the heavy cream. Served with spaghetti and it was a hit. Will be making this again. Thank you for sharing!
I’m thrilled to hear that! thanks for your review!
So blah. I expected so much more for this recipe. Highly disappointed
What was so bad about it? You do know you need to add salt to bring out flavors, right?
Wonderful recipe. This is added to my regular meal rotation. Served it with rice and spinach salad.
I’m so glad to hear it, Joyce! 🙂
I’ve never cooked with sherry before (I usually just drink it lol), but I must say I was very impressed with this dish. I didn’t have any garlic powder so put extra fresh garlic in the sauce and coated the chicken with Italian herbs as well as the salt and pepper. I’ll definitely be making this again.
I’m so happy you enjoyed it!! 😀 Appreciate your review, Judith!
This dish has become a favorite of mine! Delicious!
Wonderful!! Appreciate your 5-star review, Melissa!
I was very impressed with this dish. The wife and I loved it. I’m a big fan of sherry. Though the recipe calls for dry sherry, I used a sweeter variety. It was wonderful. Of course it is reminiscent of a Chicken Marsala but with a creamy sauce and the sherry makes the dish. Just loved it. We talked about this one for several days. YUM!
Rod, so happy you and your wife enjoyed the recipe so much! Thank you for your review!
Hi
So far all the recipes you posted and i made have been winners. I am making the sherry chicken tonite.
That’s awesome to hear, Amy!! I hope you enjoy this one too! 🙂
Really easy, really tasty, and I would definitely make it again. I served with roasted Brussels, and mashed potatoes! Chefs 😚
Awesome!! Thanks so much for your kind review, Ria!
Made this tonight! Such amazing flavor and so so so easy!
Added some fresh Italian parsley and served with mashed potatoes. It reminds me a lot of chicken marsala, and for us the sherry is much more accessible than the wine needed for chicken marsala, so it’s a win here!!
Thanks so much for sharing this awesome recipe! 🙂
You’re very welcome, Monica!! So happy you enjoyed it! 😀 Thanks for your review.
I just made this recipe tonight and it was good! I make a different chicken recipe every week. This recipe was easy to make. The sherry gives the cream sauce a nice flavor. I only used 1/2 the amount of mushrooms because my husband doesn’t like mushrooms. I served this chicken with rice. I will definitely be making this recipe again.
I’m so glad it was a hit!! 🙂
Another fabulous dish by Natasha- I come to this site frequently when looking for a pleasing dish. This dish initially reminded me of Chicken Marsala, but lighter and if you will and also has similar flavors of chicken ala king (I use sherry in this dish too). It’s very rich and I choose to serve over white rice. I sliced the onions instead of chopping to add to the thickness of the mushrooms. I believe that you should definitely use cream over a lighter alternative, however I used half the amount called for and it was plenty in quantity and richness. Husband says it’s a keeper of a recipe. Thanks!
I’m so happy you enjoyed it!! 🙂 Thanks so much for your kind review.