Creamy, cheesy and delicious. This Easy Marry Me Chicken is irresistible! Seared chicken breasts are cooked in a rich creamy sauce that includes parmesan, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, oregano and chili flakes. Serve this show-stopping main with mashed potatoes, rice, pasta or vegetables.
So what’s with the name marry-me chicken? The story goes that if you make this dish for your partner, they will marry you! This restaurant-quality chicken main combines cream, parmesan, chicken and seasoning to make an insanely flavorful dish that will leave you wanting more.
What I Love About This Recipe
This recipe earned a spot on my blog for many reasons:
- The ingredients used to make it are easy to find.
- It is ready in 30 minutes.
- It can be served with various sides like roast potatoes, mashed potatoes, vegetables, rice or pasta.
- You only need one pan to make this dish.
- It is budget-friendly.
Ingredients
- Chicken breasts: Use fresh good-quality chicken. If the chicken is frozen, then let it thaw completely before cooking.
- Salt to taste: Do not add too much salt to this dish because parmesan and sun-dried tomatoes are naturally salty.
- Black pepper to taste: Add less or more, depending on your preference.
- Heavy cream: Use full-fat cream to create a rich and creamy sauce.
- Chicken broth: Use homemade or shop-bought chicken broth.
- Sun-dried tomato: Select good-quality sun-dried tomatoes for this recipe. If they are large, then chop them into bite-sized pieces.
- Oregano: Use dried oregano for this recipe.
- Chili flakes: I like to add 1-2 tsp of chili flakes because I like spicy food but feel free to add less or more to suit your taste.
- Parmesan: Select good quality parmesan and make sure you grate it before adding it to the sauce.
- Olive oil: For cooking
- Basil: To garnish.
Equipment
Large pan
Cooking spoon
Recipe Variations
This dish has many variations. You can make it with chicken thighs instead of breasts, add spinach for more greens or add mushrooms for a more earthy flavor.
You can also omit sun-dried tomatoes if you are not a fan.
How to make Marry Me Chicken
- Add chicken breasts to a bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Do not add too much salt because the sauce is quite rich.
- Heat a splash of olive oil in a pan and sear chicken on each side for 5-6 minutes or until golden brown.
3. Once the chicken is done, remove it from the pan and set it aside for later. Add more olive oil to the pan if necessary and add minced garlic. Cook for two minutes or until fragrant.
4. Pour Heavy cream and chicken broth into the pan. Stir until combined.
5. Season the sauce with salt to taste, black pepper to taste, oregano and chili flakes. Add grated parmesan and stir until combined. Do not add too much salt as the sauce is very rich.
6. Add sun-dried tomatoes and the seared chicken breasts to the pan. Simmer for a few minutes then cook the chicken on low heat for 15-20 minutes or until done. Garnish with chopped basil.
7. Serve marry me chicken with tortellini, potatoes or rice and enjoy!
Tips and Tricks
- Chicken breasts: Bash the chicken breast with a blunt object before seasoning. This breaks down the fibers, makes the chicken tender and helps it to cook faster. For extra crispy chicken pat it dry before seasoning and searing.
- Parmesan: Use a block of parmesan instead of grated parmesan, as it has more flavor.
- Oven: Use a cast iron or oven-proof pan if you want to finish this dish in the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes in the oven at 190C/375 after adding the seared chicken and sun-dried tomatoes to the sauce.
- Basil: If you are not a fan of basil, then swap it for thyme or parsley instead.
FAQs
The popular marry me dish includes seared chicken breasts cooked in a rich creamy sauce. It also includes parmesan, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, chicken broth and seasoning. Marry me chicken can be cooked on the stovetop or baked in the oven.
This dish will work well with white wines such as Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc.
This dish is best served fresh however, it can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Thanks for reading this recipe, comment below if you made this and let me know how it went! Follow @simshomekitchen on Instagram, take a photo, tag and hashtag it with @simshomekitchen.
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Easy Marry Me Chicken
Equipment
- Saucepan
Ingredients
- 5 chicken breasts
- Salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- 3-4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2/3 cup sun-dried tomato
- 2 tsp oregano
- 1-2 tsp chili flakes
- 1/2 cup of parmesan
- Olive oil
- basil
Instructions
- Pat chicken breasts using a paper towel. Add them to a bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Do not add too much salt because the sauce is quite rich.
- Heat a splash of olive oil in a pan. Sear chicken on medium heat on each side for 5-6 minutes or until golden brown. Remove chicken from the pan and set aside for later.
- Add more olive oil to the pan if necessary then add minced garlic and cook for two minutes or until fragrant.
- Pour Heavy cream and chicken broth into the pan. Stir until combined.
- Season the sauce with salt to taste (do not add too much salt), black pepper to taste, oregano, chilli flakes, grated parmesan and stir until combined.
- Add sun-dried tomatoes and the seared chicken breasts to the pan. Let the sauce simmer for 2-3 minutes then cook the chicken on low heat for 15-20 minutes or until done. Garnish with chopped basil.
- Serve marry me chicken with tortellini, potatoes or rice and enjoy!
Notes
-
- Chicken breasts: Use fresh good-quality chicken. If the chicken is frozen, then let it thaw completely before cooking. Bash the chicken breast with a blunt object before seasoning. This breaks down the fibers, makes the chicken tender and helps it to cook faster. For extra crispy chicken pat it dry before seasoning and searing.
-
- Salt to taste: Do not add too much salt to this dish because parmesan and sun-dried tomatoes are naturally salty.
- Oven: Use a cast iron or oven-proof pan if you want to finish this dish in the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes in the oven at 190C/375 after adding the seared chicken and sun-dried tomatoes to the sauce.
Hey Jen, I made your “Marry Me Chicken” and it was a total hit! Seriously, my taste buds are still swooning over those flavors. Keep the amazing recipes coming, this on is def on repeat!!
I’m already married, but my husband said he’d propose all over again if we weren’t. That cream sauce was everything and the chicken was so succulent and juicy.
I served this chicken over couscous and it was oh so good! This is a recipe I will assuredly keep bookmarked.
I had everything on hand already to make this chicken so it was meant to be! Your recipe was easy to follow and the chicken came out perfect served with mashed potatoes. Thank you!
This chicken was absolutely delicious! It stayed so juicy and the sauce was to die for. Will be making this again soon.