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Creamy Chicken Francaise

This traditional Italian-American Creamy Chicken Francaise is kicked up a notch with a creamy, garlic sauce! A one-pan gourmet style meal made right at home in less than 30 minutes!

Easy Chicken Francaise

I love lemon! Lemon anything, really. It just makes me think and feel – fresh. A little lemon on your plate can brighten up a whole meal! 🍋 I also love easy pan chicken recipes, and this easy creamy chicken francaise is the perfect intersection of both! It is impressive to look at, and your family will think you have become a gourmet chef! Don’t even get me started on the fragrant smell. With all of the lemon and garlic – I’m sure you can imagine!

What is Chicken Francaise?

Chicken Francaise is a super easy and flavorful Italian-American specialty. You may have seen it spelled Chicken Francese before, and you might get it confused with its slightly less breaded cousin, Chicken Piccata.

Francaise means “in the French style.” This refers to the fact that the chicken is breaded in what might seem a backward process. It first goes in the flour, then the egg mixture, and finally, into the pan.

Then, it’s topped with a creamy lemon garlic sauce. 😍

Ingredients

Whoa, check out all of these ingredients! Just kidding! Don’t get nervous. We’ll separate it into the breading station and the sauteing station.

First of all, you’ll need:

  • Olive oil
  • butter
  • Boneless, skinless chicken breasts

For the breading station:

  • Eggs
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Flour
  • Salt and pepper

For the Sauce:

  • garlic
  • chicken broth
  • heavy cream
  • fresh chopped parsley
  • lemon juice

Lightly breaded chicken pan fried

How to Make Chicken Francaise

  • Prep: Set a large 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat and add in olive oil and butter.
  • Dredge: Add the eggs and Parmesan cheese to a shallow bowl and mix them together until they’re well combined. Add the flour, salt, and pepper in a separate shallow plate and stir to combine. IF counting carbs, use Keto approved/low carb flour; I use Coconut Flour and absolutely LOVE the added subtle taste of the coconut. 
  • Working with one chicken filet at a time, coat both sides of each chicken with flour; then dip in the egg mixture to coat on all sides. Allow the excess egg mixture to drip off.
  • Pan fry: Add each filet to the heated oil and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes per side, or until cooked through and golden brown. Remove chicken filets from skillet and transfer to a paper towel lined plate and set them aside.
  • Sauce: Add the garlic to the skillet and cook it until it’s fragrant. This should be about 20 seconds. Slowly whisk in the chicken broth, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Continue to cook until it’s reduced. This should be about 4 minutes.
  • Lower the heat to medium-low and whisk in the heavy cream and 2 tablespoons of parsley. Continue to cook until the sauce thickens. This will be about 2 minutes. Whisk in lemon juice until it’s completely incorporated and continue to cook for 2 more minutes.
  • Serve: Remove from heat. Add chicken pieces back into the pan. Spoon sauce over the chicken and garnish it with your remaining parsley.
Chicken cooking in the skillet

Tips for the Best Chicken Francaise

Traditional Chicken Francaise is excellent, but my special creamy style is even better. Here’s how I make it so good:

  • The egg goes on the outside! First, dip your chicken in the flour, THEN the egg. For the best crunch, allow the excess egg to drip off.
  • Set up your dredging station from left to right. Use one hand for dry ingredients and one hand for wet ingredients.
  • Pan fry in a mixture of olive oil AND butter. This combo adds flavor and impacts the smoke point.
  • Once you place the chicken in the pan, don’t move it around until you flip it. You don’t want the light breading falling off.
  • Turn off the heat BEFORE you add the chicken back to the pan. If you continue to cook the chicken in the sauce, the breading will get soggy and pull away from the chicken. Instead, simply spoon the sauce over the chicken

Serving Ideas

  • My favorite way to serve Creamy Chicken Francaise is with a side of mashed potatoes and green beans. Seriously, this creamy lemon garlic sauce is so good over mashed potatoes. Don’t believe me? You’ll have to try it yourself. Use cauliflower mashed potatoes if you’re hating on carbs, like me. 
  • You can also serve this chicken over your favorite noodle or pasta with steamed broccoli. Or, try it with orzo and roasted Brussels sprouts.

Are you noticing a trend here? Basically, serve your creamy Chicken Francaise with any starch and green veggie and you will be good to go.

Sauce spooned over chicken served with lemon and fresh herbs

How to Store Leftovers

  • You can refrigerate your leftovers in an airtight container for 4 to 5 days.
  • Or, freeze the leftovers in a freezer safe airtight container for about 3 months.

More Easy Chicken Dinner Ideas

ENJOY!

Sauce spooned over chicken francaise served with lemon and fresh herbs

Creamy Chicken Francaise

Katerina | Diethood
This traditional Italian-American Creamy Chicken Francaise is kicked up a notch with a creamy, garlic sauce! A one-pan gourmet style meal made right at home in less than 30 minutes!
5 from 14 votes
Servings : 4 serves
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 (8-ounces each) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, Cut in half, lengthwise, to make four 1-inch thick filets
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 eggs
  • ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour,
  • salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup heavy cream, you can also use half & half
  • 3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley, divided
  • 1 lemon, juiced

Instructions
 

  • Set a large skillet over medium-high heat and add in olive oil and butter.
  • Add eggs and Parmesan cheese to a shallow bowl and beat/mix until well combined.
  • Add flour, salt, and pepper in a separate shallow plate and stir to combine.
  • Working with one chicken filet at a time, coat both sides of each chicken filet with flour; then dip in the egg mixture to coat on all sides. Allow excess egg mixture to drip off.
  • Add filets to the heated oil and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes per side, or until cooked through and golden brown. If chicken is browning too quickly, but not cooking through on the inside, lower the heat.
  • Remove chicken filets from skillet and transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Cover with a paper towel and set aside.
  • Set skillet back over medium-high heat. Add garlic to skillet and cook for 15 seconds, or until fragrant. Stir so it doesn't burn.
  • Slowly whisk in chicken broth, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.
  • Continue to cook for 4 minutes, or until liquid is reduced.
  • Lower heat to medium-low and whisk in heavy cream and 2 tablespoons parsley.
  • Continue to cook for 2 minutes, or until thickened.
  • Whisk in lemon juice; whisk until completely incorporated and continue to cook for 2 minutes. It's important to whisk continuously so the cream does not curdle when you add in the lemon juice.
  • Remove from heat.
  • Add chicken pieces back into the pan; spoon sauce over chicken, garnish with parsley, and serve.

Notes

  • To make this recipe Keto-Friendly, Low Carb, and Gluten Free, use an alternative flour. Coconut Flour works very well.

Nutrition

Calories: 618 kcal | Carbohydrates: 12 g | Protein: 33 g | Fat: 49 g | Saturated Fat: 22 g | Cholesterol: 256 mg | Sodium: 352 mg | Potassium: 611 mg | Fiber: 1 g | Sugar: 1 g | Vitamin A: 1509 IU | Vitamin C: 21 mg | Calcium: 143 mg | Iron: 2 mg | Net Carbs: 11 g

Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.

Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American, Italian
Keyword: chicken breast dinner, chicken francaise, chicken francese, chicken skillet dinner recipe, low carb chicken dinner
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31 comments on “Creamy Chicken Francaise”

    1. Avatar photo
      Michelle Toscano

      Um, they asked for it again yesterday (so soon!) and were mad that I didn’t have chicken in the house. Needless to say, I went and got some chicken so we can have it tonight. So yummy!

  1. Avatar photo
    Peggy Churchill

    How do I save your favourite recipes? I clicked on Save Favourites but nothing happens and when I click on View Favourites, it tells me no favourites have been saved.

  2. Avatar photo
    Krissy Allori

    I love a good one pan meal and this one delivered. It was so good and creamy and a big hit with my family.

  3. Avatar photo
    Dorothy Reinhold

    I love that the ingredient list is simple and things that I already have on hand. We will be enjoying this tomorrow for dinner!

  4. The garlic sauce adds so much flavor! We love chicken dishes & these are all my favorite ingredients!

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