This pan seared garlic butter chicken recipe has a delicious herby sauce coating the chicken breasts for a delish high-protein dinner ready in one pan. And you can make it in just 25 minutes.
Why This Recipe Works
Here’s why we love this easy butter chicken recipe:
- The chicken and sauce cook in one pan so you can save on dishes, just like our One-Pan Mozzarella Chicken In Tomato Sauce.
- The garlic butter sauce is super flavorful and herby, plus you can use any of your favorite herbs to build flavor.
- It’s easy to make this garlic butter chicken recipe with leftover cooked chicken or turkey.
- This is a great recipe for meal prep! Serve it with Vegan Thai Rice Salad.
What Goes Into This Recipe
These are the ingredients for this garlic chicken breast recipe:
- Chicken breasts. Choose boneless, skinless chicken breasts for a high-protein, low-fat entree.
- Flour. Regular all-purpose flour works great.
- Butter. You can use unsalted butter to control the seasoning in the dish.
- Olive oil. This helps brown the chicken in the skillet.
- Garlic. Use more or less garlic depending on your taste preference.
- White wine. Use a dry white wine that you like the flavor of.
- Parsley. You can swap this with another fresh herb that you love.
- Chili flakes. Use as much or as little spice as you like.
Ingredient Swaps
Here are a few simple swaps if you don’t have all of the ingredients for this pan seared chicken with garlic sauce:
- Replace the wine with chicken stock or lemon juice. Lemon zest will add a nice hit of acid to boost the flavor.
- You can swap all-purpose flour with gluten-free all-purpose flour.
- Swap out unsalted butter with ghee or clarified butter. Or, for a dairy-free dish, use olive oil.
- You can replace parsley with any other fresh herbs you love: like basil, oregano or dill.
- Feel free to use turkey cutlets instead of chicken breast.
How to Make This Garlic Chicken Breast Recipe
Follow these steps to make the best pan seared chicken with garlic sauce:
First, prepare the chicken. Lay the chicken breast on a clean cutting board and make 4 parallel slices to score the top of each breast. Be sure not to go all the way through. Next, cut a second set of perpendicular lines. Scoring will help the chicken cook evenly and infuse flavor into the meat.
Next, set up a dredging station. First, on a shallow plate, combine the flour with salt and pepper. Then dredge the chicken breasts into the flour, ensuring they’re covered on both sides.
Meanwhile, heat the oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a non-stick pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted, carefully add the chicken breasts and cook for 6-8 minutes per side, or until cooked through and no longer pink on the inside. Finally, set the chicken aside and cover to keep warm.
Add the garlic to the hot skillet and cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Then add the wine and use a wooden spoon to scrape off any brown bits stuck on the bottom of the pan. Next, add the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter to the pan, constantly stirring as it melts to make an emulsified sauce. Finally, stir in the chopped parsley and chili flakes, and return the chicken to the pan, spooning the garlic butter sauce over the chicken. Enjoy!
FAQs
I love my good old heavy-bottom cast iron skillet. A nonstick pan should work too!
Serve the pan-seared garlic chicken breast with a fresh salsa like our mango avocado salsa. It is also great with the lemony quinoa tabbouleh or our vegan chopped salad!
You can definitely marinate your chicken before cooking, for even more flavor. If time allows, leave the chicken in the marinade overnight in the fridge and cook it the next day. The results will be even more tender and juicy.
Try this delicious and easy chicken marinade recipe:
1 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp lemon zest
Any chopped herbs of choice
Salt and pepper, to taste
Mix the marinade and add it to a Ziploc bag with the scored chicken. Allow it to marinate for 1 hour to overnight in the fridge.
The best seasoning for butter chicken is garlic. I recommend fresh cloves, but you can use garlic powder and add to your taste. Herbs work great too.
Dried herbs are more concentrated than fresh, so use a ratio of one tablespoon of fresh herbs to one teaspoon of dried herbs. I love parsley and dill, but basil and oregano are great too.
Cook the chicken for 6-8 minutes per side, or until cooked through and no longer pink on the inside. It’s best to use a meat thermometer since the thickness of the chicken breast can vary. The temperature should read 165°F/75°C.
Yes, make it ahead and add some cooked rice or cauliflower rice to your meal prep containers. Keep it refrigerated for no more than 5 days.
Yes, to make it keto-friendly, skip the flour and replace the wine with chicken stock or lemon juice. This would also be gluten-free.
Expert Tips
Keep these tips in mind when making this easy butter chicken recipe:
- Before you start cooking, let the chicken come to room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes. This will ensure an even cooking and keep all the good juices inside.
- You can also use leftover cooked chicken or turkey if you have it as well. First, make the garlic butter sauce and toss in the cooked protein. Warm it through, then serve it hot!
More Easy Chicken Recipes
- Keto Creamy Chicken with Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce
- Chicken Florentine – Creamy Chicken in White Sauce
- Keto Artichoke Chicken
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Pan Seared Garlic Butter Chicken
Equipment Needed
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts - boneless, skinless
- 1/4 cup (30g) all-purpose flour
- Sea salt and ground pepper - to taste
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 tbsp butter - divided
- 4-6 cloves garlic - chopped
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) white wine
- 1/4 cup (15g) parsley - minced
- 1 tsp chili flakes - or to taste
Instructions
- Lay the chicken breast on a clean cutting board and cut 4 parallel lines but don't go all the way through. Next, cut a second set of perpendicular lines. Scoring will help the chicken cook evenly.
- On a shallow plate, mix the flour with salt and pepper.
- Dredge the chicken breasts into the flour, ensuring they're covered on both sides.
- Heat the oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a non-stick pan over medium heat.
- Add the chicken breast and cook for 6-8 minutes per side, or until cooked through and no longer pink on the inside. Set aside and cover to keep warm.
- In the same preheated pan, sauté the garlic for 30 seconds.
- Add the wine and use a wooden spoon to scrape off any brown bits stuck on the bottom of the pan.
- Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter to the pan, stirring continuously as it melts, to get a smooth sauce.
- Stir in the parsley and chili flakes, and return the chicken to the pan, spooning over the garlic butter sauce.
Recipe Notes
- For even cooking, it’s important to let the chicken come to room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Scoring the chicken helps it cook evenly and allows the garlic butter sauce to get into the center of the meat.
- You can store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- You can use leftover cooked chicken or turkey. Simply make the sauce as described, and toss in your cooked protein until warmed through.
- If time allows, you can marinate the chicken. Check the FAQs for a good marinade for garlic chicken breast.
- To make this easy butter chicken recipe Keto, skip the flour and replace the wine with chicken stock or lemon juice.
- You can replace all purpose flour with GF flour, butter with ghee, and parsley with your preferred fresh herbs (basil, oregano, dill).
Nutrition
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