Creamy Garlic Herb Chicken Recipe
May 22, 2018, Updated Nov 01, 2023
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Creamy Garlic Herb Chicken is made with pan-seared chicken breasts cooked in a creamy sauce infused with garlic and herbs. This fantastic dinner is not only full of flavor but also conveniently prepared in a single pan, all in just 30 minutes.
This creamy garlic herb chicken dish epitomizes a hassle-free weeknight dinner, providing a quick, amazing meal without the mess of multiple pots and gadgets. It’s simplicity and deliciousness all cooked up in one pan!
Why I Love This Creamy Chicken Recipe
- All The Flavor: Garlic, herbs, and cream cheese create a flavorful, creamy chicken dinner.
- Quick Fix: Whip up this delicious dish in just 30 minutes!
- One Pan, No Fuss: Enjoy easy cooking and cleanup.
Ingredients For Creamy Garlic Herb Chicken
- For the Chicken: 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and olive oil.
- For the Cream Sauce: butter, garlic, all-purpose flour, milk, cream cheese, dried basil, dried oregano, and dried thyme.
- For Garnish: freshly shredded parmesan cheese and freshly chopped parsley.
How To Make Creamy Garlic Herb Chicken
- Season: Pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness and season them with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Cook: Heat olive oil in a skillet, sear the chicken for 6 to 8 minutes per side or until done, and then set aside.
- Melt and Sauté: In the same skillet, melt the butter and sauté the garlic until fragrant.
- Make the Sauce: Sprinkle in the flour, stirring constantly for 20 seconds. Add milk while continuously whisking. Drop in the cream cheese cubes, whisking until melted and smooth. Stir in the basil, oregano, and thyme, allowing the sauce to simmer gently.
- Combine and Serve: Return the chicken to the skillet, spoon the sauce over, and let it heat through for a minute. Garnish with Parmesan and parsley before serving.
Recipe Tips
- Even Cooking: For uniform cooking and a perfect sear, pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness before seasoning and searing them.
- Don’t Rush the Sear: Allow the chicken enough time to sear undisturbed on each side. This ensures a good caramelization and locks in the juices.
- Low and Slow: When preparing the cream sauce, keep the heat at a medium-low setting to prevent the dairy from curdling, ensuring a smooth and velvety texture.
- Rest Before Serving: Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving.
What To Serve With Creamy Garlic Herb Chicken
While this recipe is packed with flavor, add a delicious side dish of Garlicky Steamed Broccoli and make it a complete meal. It can be served with other sides, including One-Pot Caprese Pasta, or keep it lighter with this Pasta Carbonara with Zucchini Noodles.
Storing and Reheating
- Store the leftover chicken and sauce in separate airtight containers and refrigerate for 3 to 4 days.
- Reheat slowly over medium-low heat on the stove, stirring occasionally.
More Creamy Chicken Recipes
- One Skillet Creamy Lemon Chicken with Asparagus
- Creamy Lemon Chicken Piccata
- Creamy Pesto Chicken
- Creamy Garlic Sauce Chicken
- Spinach Artichoke Chicken
- Creamy Garlic Basil Chicken
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Creamy Garlic Herb Chicken Recipe
Creamy Garlic Herb Chicken is a quick, one skillet dinner prepared with pan-seared chicken breasts cooked with a creamy, garlicky herb sauce.
Ingredients
For The Chicken
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- salt and fresh ground pepper,, to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
For The Cream Sauce
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 3 cloves garlic,, minced
- 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup 2% milk
- 4 ounces low fat cream cheese,, cut up into cubes
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- freshly shredded parmesan cheese, , for garnish, optional
- chopped fresh parsley,, for garnish, optional
Instructions
For The Chicken
- Pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness and then season them with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet.
- Add the chicken to the skillet and cook undisturbed for 6 to 8 minutes. Flip the chicken breasts and continue to cook for about 6 more minutes or until cooked through.
- Remove the chicken from skillet and set aside.
For The Cream Sauce
- Return the skillet over medium heat and melt the butter. Stir in the garlic and cook for 15 seconds or until fragrant.
- Sprinkle the flour over the garlic and continue to stir constantly for 20 seconds. Whisk in the milk. Add the cream cheese, and continue to whisk until the cream cheese melts.
- Stir in the basil, oregano, and thyme; let the sauce come to a slow simmer. Return the chicken breasts to the skillet and continue to cook for 1 minute, or until heated through.
- Spoon the sauce over the chicken and garnish with parmesan cheese and parsley.
- Serve.
Video
Notes
- Even Thickness: Pound the chicken breasts to the same thickness for consistent cooking and a great sear.
- Chicken Doneness: Use an instant-read meat thermometer to check for doneness and remove the chicken from the skillet when its internal temperature reaches 165˚F.
- Fresh Ingredients: Use fresh garlic and quality herbs to boost the flavor.
- Searing: Let the chicken sear without disturbance on each side to lock in juices and enhance flavor.
- Slow Cook the Sauce: Keep the heat at a medium or medium-low when making the cream sauce to avoid curdling and achieve a smooth texture.
- Let the Chicken Rest: Allow the chicken to rest before serving to redistribute juices and ensure tenderness.
- Store leftovers for 3 to 4 days in the fridge. If possible, store the sauce and chicken in separate containers.
Nutrition
Calories: 313kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 100mg | Sodium: 318mg | Potassium: 581mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 340IU | Vitamin C: 2.1mg | Calcium: 136mg | Iron: 1.1mg
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.
Did you make a recipe? Leave a rating
thank you for your ideas. I didn’t have cream cheese so I used sour cream. didn’t get as thick but that didn’t matter. I didn’t have garlic so I used chopped onion and creole seasoning where applicable. this was an amazing dinner. cast iron skillet highly recommended, this was so perfect. sauce was also good when drizzled over asparagus. thank you
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Very flavorful, creamy, and delicious! We also made the suggested garlicky steamed broccoli and a pine nut couscous to go with it.
That’s great! I am very happy you enjoyed it! THANK YOU! 🙂
The idea of this dish was perfect… the taste not so much
This was delish!
I played around with it the second time of making it and added mushrooms, onions and fried bacon pieced to it and poured it over cooked Barilla Veggie Rotini nooodles and OMG it was so good! A couple of the fire guys came by the house to ask hubby a question and so I fed them too… they all loved it!
this has become one of my favorite dishes to make!! I’m not a fan of chicken so I’ve just been making it into pasta sauce! I add some spinach and extra of the seasoning and it is amazzzinngg!!! Thanks for the great recipe!
*I forgot to say i make this as a pasta!!! And that i add tomatoes too!
I made this tonight and it was absolutely fantastic. It was so easy and relatively quick to make, which I love. Even my 2 1/2 year old son gobbled it up. Because I made pasta to go with it, there wasn’t quite as much sauce as we would have liked, so next time I make it, I think I’ll make more of the sauce. Thanks for this delicious recipe. It’s a keeper!
This was so yummy, I shredded the chicken into the cream sauce and poured it over penne
Oh wow, that sounds SO GOOD! Very happy you enjoyed it! 😀
Delicious! I added a little chicken broth and a tad more seasoning to the sauce it was so yummy. Very quick and easy weeknight meal!
What a fantastic recipe! Made it this evening for dinner. My son, who only eats select foods gobbled it up! Next time, i will chunk up the chicken and double the sauce so I have enough for the rice. Definitely a make again recipe. Thanks for sharing!
One pan meals are my jam too! This looks delish and probably making this for dinner.