Time for this Weeknight Creamy Garlic Sauce Chicken Skillet! I know, this title is something else! BUT I had to include the creamy garlic sauce because if you are a GARLIC LOVER, you are gonna LOVE this sauce. It has TWO heads of garlic in it! You read that correctly. This bone-in chicken recipe is made in one skillet; seasoned with fresh rosemary, thyme, and nested/cooked in a dairy free sauce (no heavy cream here!) with two heads of garlic.
Recently I have been into cooking with french-inspired recipes in mind but with an easier, quicker, more American twist to them. Check out my French Onion Burgers as my most recent example.
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What you need to make this Creamy Garlic Chicken recipe
This is one of those impressive looking dishes....but minimum effort. Done in one skillet with pantry and fridge staples. You can throw this together and impress your guests and they will never know it took you about 45 minutes from beginning to end to pull this off on busy weeknights 😉
- Bone-In Chicken - You can use skin-on breasts, thighs, or the legs here. You can also use boneless skinless chicken breasts (just lower the cook time by a few minutes). But I HIGHLY recommend using the bone-in. It really holds onto the lemon/rosemary flavors and adds more flavor to the sauce too!
- Garlic - Ok ok. Let's talk. So you are thinking, "HOW in the world is two heads of garlic going in here? And that it's not going to over power the dish?" The splash of lemon juice, olive oil, wine (or chicken broth) reduction, and coconut milk work together to mask a lot of the overpowering bite that raw garlic has. It actually mellows the garlic out and creates the ample garlic flavor we all love. 🧄
- Dry White Wine - Used to deglaze the pan as well as flavor the sauce. You can also use chicken broth instead.(See full instructions in the recipe card)
- Fresh Rosemary - I don't know about you, but I LOVE the smell of fresh rosemary. We have a huge rosemary plant outside and I am always finding ways to smell it and use it in other dishes.
How to make this Simple Garlic Sauce Chicken Skillet
Since this is a simple 30 minute chicken skillet dish, the process is pretty straight forward.
Preheat the oven.
Start with coating the chicken with oil, season, then turn up the heat in a large skillet! But don't touch it! Let it crisp skin side down for about 4-5 minutes then move to a plate for a minute. We are looking for a light golden brown on that chicken before roasting.
In the same skillet, add the shallots, garlic, wine, and dijon mustard and scrape up any browned bits. Stir with a wooden spoon, then nest the chicken on top. Roast the chicken for 25-30 minutes and a meat thermometer confirms the chicken is cooked (165F).
Lastly, stir in the lemon juice and coconut milk to make the delicious sauce. Simple ingredients + skillet = easy meal for the entire family.
What to serve with this creamy garlic chicken skillet
So many options here! You can serve with rice and asparagus (as pictured).
Or I typically love to make my own greens and grains bowl with cooked quinoa, fresh herbs and veggies, green beans or asparagus, toss in some mixed greens. YUM.
You can use over a bed of greens, cauliflower rice, or even hearts of palm!
Top tip to cooking with a head of garlic 🧄
Fresh garlic is a MUST. And if you are new to cooking with a whole head of garlic, I GOT YOU. It's a lot less intimidating than you think.
There are 2 different ways to get to the garlic cloves:
- 1st method is to slice off the top of the garlic and simply pull out each garlic clove
- 2nd method is to take the flat part of your chef's knife and press HARD to break apart the garlic head
After that, toss the cloves in a mason jar or container with a lid and SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE! The skin on the cloves should just fall off easily. No smelly garlic hands!
I am ALL about that garlic life. This skillet chicken recipe is sure to be a new family favorite for your repeat weeknight dinners.I want to hear from YOU! Nothing puts a smile on my face than to hear that you are trying and enjoying cooking my recipes in your home! Leave your feedback below in the comment section or share a picture of your TK creation on Instagram and tag me : @thekitcheneer and I will share it on my stories!
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Weeknight Creamy Garlic Sauce Chicken Skillet (Dairy Free)
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
This Weeknight Creamy Garlic Sauce Chicken Skillet is your new impress-the-guests in about 30 minutes with a luscious dairy free garlic cream sauce.
Ingredients
- 3tbs of avocado oil
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 3 tbs of fresh rosemary, chopped
- Salt and Pepper (about 1 teaspoon of each)
- 2 bone-in skin on chicken breasts
- 1 shallot, finely diced
- 2 heads of garlic, broken into cloves, with skin removed
- 1 tbs dijon mustard
- 1 cup of dry white wine or chicken broth
- Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
- 3 tbs of full fat coconut milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F.
- Using a high rimmed cast iron skillet or oven safe pan, add the chicken and coat with 2 tbs of the oil. Season the chicken with lemon zest, salt, pepper, and rosemary.
- Turn the burner on to medium high heat, and cook the chicken skin side down for 6-7 minutes (until the skin is browned). Do not touch the chicken during this time as this will interrupt the searing process and possibly ruin the skin. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
- To the same skillet, add the shallots, garlic, wine, and dijon mustard. Stir then nest the chicken on top of the garlic. Drizzle with remaining oil.
- Roast the chicken in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until the internal temperature is 165F.
- Transfer chicken to a plate to rest for about 10 minutes.
- While the chicken rests, stir in the coconut milk and the crushed red pepper flakes.
Notes
*You can swap the coconut milk for equal amounts of whole milk or half and half.
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: French-Inspired
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