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Sometimes it only takes a few ingredients to make a weeknight meal great, and this 5-Ingredient Creamy Chicken Marsala is the perfect example of just that. Chicken cutlets, hearty cremini mushrooms, rich marsala wine and of course, a little bit of butter are the perfect combination for this easy, but elegant dish.
Creamy Chicken Marsala
I have friends that cook, and friends that don’t cook. Obviously.
The friends that don’t cook, love to eat, and while we have great takeout options around the city, occasionally they’re forced to put a skillet to a stove. For those handful of friends, a recipe must include ingredients that are commonly known, even to the most novice of cooks, it must:
- Take 30 minutes or less.
- The ingredient list shouldn’t have an obscene amount things to purchase outside your standard pantry items.
- It must be delicious.
Creamy Chicken Marsala checks all of those boxes.
I have a few 5-ingredient recipes within the archives of this site (like this, this and this), and, according to those friends that “don’t cook,” these are the most prized items lurking around. They’re not intimidating, they don’t require a trip to a specialty store, and they’re still a heck of a lot more impressive than some greasy fast food.
Because I want my friends to be able to actually cook some of the recipes I create, I’ve made a promise to them to create more 5-ingredient meals, plus now that I’m a new Mom, these easy recipes are a total lifesaver when I don’t want to spend any more time in the kitchen than I have to.
Today’s five ingredient meal is a classic, simplified – chicken marsala.
Chicken breasts are seared in a little bit of butter until they’re perfectly browned and cooked through, then set aside. A little over half a pound of cremini mushrooms are browned up in a little bit more butter (in the same pan), then hit with a generous pour of good-quality marsala wine and a little bit of heavy cream. The chicken is added back into the pot (along with any accumulated juices), and then everything simmers until the sauce thickens up a bit.
I believe the whole process from start to finish, takes about 25 minutes, making this five ingredient wonder, something to be proud of.
If you want to add one more ingredient in, a sprinkling of freshly chopped parsley should do the trick.
Five ingredients, and full of flavor.
For more easy chicken recipes, check out these posts:
Easy Greek Chicken and Potatoes: The Mediterranean Dish
Lemon Glazed Chicken Nuggets: Damn Delicious
Chicken Mushroom Spaghetti: Cooktoria
- 4 small chicken breasts
- 4 Tlbs. butter
- 12 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
- ½ cup marsala wine
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ tsp. salt
- Place chicken breasts in a plastic bag. Use a rolling pin to slightly flatten each chicken breast, you want them about ½ inch thick.
- Season chicken liberally on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Heat a large skillet to a medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of butter. Once the butter melts, add chicken breasts, cook until golden brown on both sides, about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from pan and on to a plate, cover with foil. (It's ok if the chicken isn't cooked all the way through, it will finish cooking in the sauce.)
- Add remaining butter to the skillet, once butter melts add mushrooms. Cook 2-3 minutes until softened and brown. Add marsala wine, simmer until reduced by half, about 1-2 minutes. Add heavy creamy and salt. Simmer for 1 minute and then add chicken breasts along with any accumulated juice back to the pan. Cover and simmer until chicken is cooked through and sauce has thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Debra Hinz says
Hello,
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Michelle says
This was so good! I added a few extra things but I will definitely make this again.
[email protected] says
Simply Delicious! I found your website/this recipes through a Southern Living email and I’m so glad I clicked open instead of delete. This was easy quick and oh so good. Dusted the chicken with freshly ground black pepper in addition to the salt and added a swirl of EVOO to the butter for sautéing the chicken – just because that’s how I was taught. Only had 1/3 cup of Marsala on hand so I added Sherry to finish out the 1/2 cup but enough of the Marsala flavor came through. Served alongside roasted Brussels Sprouts. A delicious savory dinner was ready in minutes and minimal clean up. Thanks for a great recipe. I look forward to trying more.
frogprof12 says
I have made this six or seven times since pinning it a year ago — it is absolutely DELICIOUS. I use chicken tenders and cook only two per meal (spinster here), so I just refrigerate whatever sauce and mushrooms are left over for the next night when I cook more chicken, add more butter, and slightly smaller portions of wine and cream to the leftovers. Thank you so much for such a great, easy recipe!