Creamy Garlic Chicken

If you’re looking for a quick weeknight meal that still packs a punch of flavor, this Creamy Garlic Chicken recipe can be ready from start to finish in under an hour.

This recipe serves up perfectly cooked chicken thighs (because chicken thighs > chicken breasts) in a creamy garlic sauced with a hint of spice, caramelized onions and literally a whole head of garlic. It’s truly so, so good!

What to Serve with Creamy Garlic Chicken

I’m a huge fan of mashed potatoes for this recipe (because the gravy is just that good that mashed potatoes are the perfect vessel for soaking up all that deliciousness), but you can also serve it alongside from rice, cauli mash or whatever else makes you happy.

Creamy Garlic Chicken Ingredients

First thing’s first: let’s get your shopping list squared away.

Chicken thighs: I prefer chicken thighs in 99% of recipes, but you can absolutely swap these out for chicken breasts. If you do, just adjust the cooking time a bit (typically a little less time to cook), ensuring the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.

Garlic cloves: You’ll be using a ton of garlic here, but don’t worry it won’t overwhelm you.

Onions: We’ll caramelize these onions for an added pop of sweetness.

Chicken stock: Can sub broth. As usual I use chicken bouillon powder in water because CONVENIENCE.

Heavy cream: To make these… creamy. Some recipes match the heavy cream to the stock, but I do a little less because I prefer the taste of chicken over the taste of cream. I like cream just to bring creaminess, not to overpower the dish to taste like milk.

Parmigiano-Reggiano: To bring even more creamy flavor to the gravy.

Red pepper flakes: We’ll be adding the red pepper flakes earlier on so that they infuse into the oil. This helps distribute their flavor through the dish.

Spices: We’ll be seasoning the chicken, the dredge and even the chicken stock.

Soy sauce: This brings balance to the gravy.

Beef bouillon powder: This might sound weird to add to the chicken stock, but believe me.

How to Make Creamy Garlic Chicken

This recipe will be ready pretty quickly, so it’s a perfect meal for a weeknight (and yummy enough for a lazy weekend).

Step 1: Prep your ingredients

The first (and arguably most important) step is to prep all of your ingredients so that you can move quickly when you start cooking.

In this step you’ll want to dice your onions, peel your garlic cloves (I just toss the whole cloves in to a shaker bottle and shake them up, once you dump them out the peels will come off like MAGIC), measure out your wet ingredients and set up your dredging stations. You’ll also want to add the spices to your chicken stock mixture.

Step 2: Dredge your chicken

You’ll first season the cleaned chicken thighs with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and paprika. Once that’s ready, set up your dredge by mixing flour with Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and Parmigiano. Pass each chicken thigh through the flour mixture, shake off any extra and add to a clean plate. Make sure you let the chicken sit for a bit (at least 30 minutes) in order to come to room temperature. This will make sure it cooks evenly.

Step 3: Cook your chicken

Add 1 TBS butter and a bit of olive oil to a medium-high skillet. Once hot, add a few pieces of chicken (making sure not to crowd the pan) and cook until almost cooked through (about 3–4 minutes per side) and golden on both sides. Remove to a plate and set aside.

Step 4: Caramelize your onions and garlic

Next add another TBS of olive oil and the red pepper flakes to the skillet. Let infuse for a minute and then add the onions, bringing the heat down to medium. Let cook slowly, making sure to stir so that you don’t burn the onions. Once softened with a little but of caramelization (6–8 minutes), add the garlic cloves. Let the garlic cloves soften and caramelize (6 minutes).

Step 5: Make the gravy

Now add the chicken stock to deglaze the pan but stirring to scrap up any brown bits. Bring to a gentle boil and let reduce halfway (about 5–8 minutes). Once reduced, lower the heat a bit and add the heavy cream and stir to combine. Bring to a gentle boil and let cook for about 5 minutes or until it’s starting to thicken. Add the Parmigiano and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a gentle boil and then add the chicken back to the pan. Let cook for about 15 minutes, or until the sauce is to your desired consistency.

If you try this recipe, don’t forget to leave a comment and/or a rating! My favorite part about sharing my recipes and kitchen tips is being able to chat with you. If you ever share a recipe to Instagram, don’t forget to tag me so that I can see it! Happy eating <3