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Cook this creamy, garlicky chicken and asparagus in one skillet with a rich, herb-filled cream sauce. Ready in 30 minutes, this dish is perfect for busy weeknights!
This creamy chicken and asparagus recipe couldn’t be easier to make. It involves juicy chicken thighs cooked in a flavorful garlic cream sauce with basil and tender asparagus spears. And, it’s ready in 30 minutes or less, all in one pan.
Swing by the wine aisle for a bottle of dry white (why not?), and we’re ready to hit the checkout line and get cookin’!
Why We Love This Chicken And Asparagus Recipe
- One-pan. The chicken, asparagus, and sauce come together in about 30 minutes in one skillet on the stovetop. Just like my one-pan honey garlic chicken recipe, low-carb, easy weeknight dinners don’t get much better.
- Prepped herbs. Dried basil brings a delicious flavor to the sauce. Gourmet Garden lightly dried herbs are super convenient, and they last so much longer than fresh herbs (less waste, yay!). Plus, everything is already chopped up and ready to go. I also use their stir-in garlic paste, which I always have on hand in the fridge.
- Customizable. I love this asparagus chicken recipe because you can swap out ingredients as needed for a delicious family meal.
What You’ll Need
The best part about chicken and asparagus is that you need just a handful of ingredients to make it. Below are the key ingredients, along with some easy swaps if needed, but please scroll to the recipe card for a full ingredient list and detailed instructions.
- Chicken: As mentioned above, boneless skinless chicken thighs are my go-to. You can use another type of chicken such as bone-in thighs, skin-on, chicken breasts, etc., just make sure to adjust the cooking times accordingly.
- Basil: Dried, or fresh basil that’s been chopped up finely. For this recipe, I use the lightly dried basil from Gourmet Garden. Their dried herbs can be substituted 1:1 for fresh herbs in any recipe.
- Garlic: I used garlic paste for the sauce, but 3-4 cloves of finely minced garlic are your next best bet.
- Evaporated Milk or Cream: I use low-fat evaporated milk in place of cream in this recipe. It works so well! All the creaminess without loads of excess fat. Of course, feel free to make this recipe using heavy cream or half-and-half if you prefer.
- Asparagus: Chopped fresh asparagus spears with their woody ends trimmed. In addition to or in place of asparagus, change up this skillet chicken recipe with broccoli, green beans, snap peas, and mushrooms.
Can I Use Bone-In Chicken Thighs?
I make this recipe with boneless, skinless chicken thighs. However, you can technically use any cut of chicken that you’d like, even chicken breasts. Some things to remember: bone-in thighs will take longer to cook in the pan (8-10 minutes per side), while boneless, skinless chicken breasts will be shorter (5-7 minutes per side). The key is that the internal temperature reaches a cooked 165ºF.
How to Make Creamy Garlic Chicken and Asparagus
This one-pan chicken and asparagus recipe is one of my favorite weeknight dinners because it’s just so simple, yet so crazy-full of flavor! With all your ingredients ready to go, here’s how to make it:
- Prepare the chicken thighs. To start, season your boneless chicken thighs with salt and pepper, and give the thighs a generous sprinkle with dried basil. Add the chicken thighs to a hot skillet with a bit of olive oil and cook until the thighs are browned all over and cooked throughout.
- Make the sauce. Remove the chicken from the pan for now. Next, whisk together the evaporated milk with flour, garlic paste, and more basil, along with salt and pepper. Add this to the skillet to heat up.
- Combine with asparagus. When the sauce is bubbling, stir in the asparagus, and arrange the chicken thighs back in the skillet. Nestle them right in there and continue to simmer everything together for a few more minutes. Once the asparagus is tender, your creamy chicken is ready to serve!
Recipe Tips
- Use a non-stick skillet. If you have one, I highly recommend it! It helps with sticking and makes clean-up that much easier.
- Drain any excess chicken juices from the pan before you make your sauce. Browned bits are more than fine (hello, flavor!), but if there’s a lot of liquid left over in the pan, you can discard it.
- Check the temperature of the chicken. Your chicken thighs are cooked when the juices run clear, and the internal temperature reads 165ºF on an instant-read thermometer.
- Use the sauce as a gravy. This basil garlic sauce makes the best gravy for mashed potatoes and other sides.
- Marinade. This recipe comes out deliciously juicy even without marinating. However, if you’d like to marinate your chicken before pan-searing, I’d recommend my lemon chicken marinade.
Serving Suggestions
This juicy and tender chicken already comes with a side of asparagus, but you can also serve it next to fluffy mashed potatoes, and spoon the creamy garlic and herb sauce over top. Try cauliflower mash for a low-carb version.
Chicken and asparagus is amazing served over a bed of plain jasmine rice or this zesty lemon rice, too. You could also pair it with a side of sauteed spinach, kale, or garlic broccolini. Serve it with a fresh green goddess salad, or with a side of lemon kale Caesar salad.
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
- Refrigerate any leftovers of the chicken and asparagus airtight for up to 3-4 days, or freeze leftovers for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight before reheating.
- To reheat leftover, add everything together to a pan on the stovetop and cook over medium-low heat until it’s heated through. You can also use the microwave if you’re in a hurry. If the sauce has thickened, add a splash of water to help loosen up the texture a bit.
More One-Pan Chicken Dinners
- Creamy Lemon Parmesan Chicken Breasts
- Chicken Marsala
- Creamy Cilantro Chipotle Chicken
- Mozzarella Chicken in Tomato Sauce
- Creamy Coconut Milk Chicken
- Creamy Chicken Francaise
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Chicken and Asparagus
Ingredients
FOR THE CHICKEN
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 8 skinless boneless chicken thighs
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ tablespoon dried basil
FOR THE CREAM SAUCE
- 12 ounces low fat evaporated milk
- 1½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon garlic paste, or to taste
- 1 tablespoon dried basil, or to taste
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 pound fresh asparagus stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces (break off and discard the woody ends of the asparagus)
- parsley,, for garnish
Instructions
- Cook the chicken. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet. Season the chicken with the salt, pepper, and dried basil. Place the chicken thighs in the skillet and cook for about 7 to 8 minutes, or until browned.
- Finish cooking the chicken thighs. Flip the chicken and cook for about 8 more minutes, or until the chicken is fully cooked. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Make the sauce. Combine evaporated milk, flour, garlic paste, dried basil, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl; whisk until well combined. Add it to the hot skillet and bring it to a boil.
- Add the asparagus and chicken. Stir in the asparagus, return the chicken to the pan, and lower the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for 4 minutes or until the asparagus is tender and the chicken is heated through.
- Finish and serve. Remove from heat. Garnish with parsley and serve.
Equipment
Nutrition
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.
I made some additions that really round the recipe up in my opinion:
Added to the sauce:
2 bay leaves
some white wine
a dash of lemon juice
I also didn’t use those gourmet what not dried herbs and went for fresh basil and garlic instead.
I served it over potatoes to make it a more filling dish, but for that I’d double the sauce next time.
That being said the asparagus really leaks into the sauce nicely, giving it a good taste. With these additions the recipe was a real hit among my hubby and friends I served that to.
After adding the asparagus, the sauce curdled. While it didn’t look very appealing, it was still delicious. I recommend cooking the asparagus separately and stir it into the sauce just before serving.
I made this recipe. There’s just something about the sauce, I don’t know what it is but it just is missing something flavor wise. I will use the recipe again in the future but I will be playing around with the seasoning and trying some different things.
Chopped garlic is better than garlic paste.
My daughter said the same thing. Would be interested in knowing what different spice you used. I was thinking maybe thyme.
You might like a bit of lemon juice and/or zest to brighten the flavor à
Has anyone made this with boneless chicken breasts? We have some that prefer breasts to thighs.
I made it with breasts tonight and it was delicious. Also used fresh pressed garlic and frozen cubes of fresh basil in the sauce as that’s what I had on hand 🙂
Made for dinner last night and it was so delicious! My 3 little ones devoured it and asked me to make it again! Loved the sauce…such great flavors. Thanks for the great recipe!
Can this be frozen?
My husband and I LOVED this!! Thank you so much for a great recipe!
Very happy to hear!! 🙂 Thank you!
Is there a non-dairy substitute that would work in place of the evaporated milk? Thanks. I might want to make this for friends who can’t have dairy products.
Yes, I was wondering if I could use almond milk instead of the evaporated milk?
Thanks!
Hi!! You would need to make a roux to thicken it which involves mixing in some butter and flour. I would do 1 tablespoon butter with 1 tablespoon flour. Melt the butter and then cook the flour in it for a couple of minutes before whisking in the basil-garlic milk mixture.
Personally I don’t care for almond milk in a white sauce. Sometimes when coconut milk is substituted it tastes too sweet. I would suggest adding in the Dayia dairy free cream cheese or if only lactose is the issue use lactose free sour cream. And to make it gluten free, sub in arrowroot or cornstarch in place of the flour.
Use coconut milk for anything that calls for milk or cream. So yummy