Creamy Lemon Chicken – (30-minute recipe)

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In 30 minutes or less, you can have this creamy lemon chicken on the table. Pan-seared chicken is tossed in a creamy, lemony white wine sauce with fresh spinach. It’s a delicious one-skillet dinner that will be a weeknight go-to and a family favorite.

On busy nights, easy chicken dinners like this are my go-to. But what I love about this one is that it breaks up the monotony. Sure, baked chicken breasts and chicken sheet pan meals are yummy and useful in a pinch.

But this creamy lemon chicken isn’t a meal you have every day–even though it uses everyday ingredients.

The lemon flavors are perfect for a fresh, spring dinner, while the cream sauce is everything you need on a cold winter’s night. So you can enjoy this year-round.

This bright and lemony dinner is one of our family favorites. It’s a one-skillet meal that is on the table in 30 minutes or less. And that, my friend, is a win any night of the week.

Watch How to Make Creamy Lemon Chicken

Tips For Making Creamy Lemon Chicken

Use a white wine split.

I worked the creamy lemon sauce ingredients around using a split of wine because I don’t drink white wine (but I’ll split a bottle of red with you any day).

Technically, a split is loss cost-effective. So if you like white wine or have some left over, don’t worry about getting a split.

However, if you are like me, and white wine isn’t something you drink or keep around, splits are useful pantry items.

Deglaze the pan before adding the garlic.

To cook the chicken through, the pan needs to be pretty hot–hotter than what minced garlic can tolerate. As such, I recommend deglazing the pan with wine first.

Deglazing is simply adding liquid to a hot pan to release the caramelized bits of flavor stuck to the bottom.

Not only does deglazing add flavor to your dish, it can also cool off the pan a little so you can add the garlic.

Make sure the chicken is cooked through.

The chicken should be cooked through before removing it from the pan and making the sauce.

If not, you would have to finish cooking it in the sauce and spinach, which will make the spinach mushy.

Don’t overcook the spinach.

Sometimes, when people say they don’t like spinach it’s because they are accustomed to overcooked spinach. The trick to cooking spinach is to barely cook it.

Add it to the sauce, then stir it for a minute. Place the chicken in the pan, and you are done. The residual heat will finish cooking the spinach without overdoing it.

What to Serve with Creamy Lemon Chicken

• Toasted sourdough – A thick slice of toasted no-knead sourdough bread is delicious with creamy lemon chicken.
• Orzo – Lemon chicken and orzo is a classic combo. Get the orzo going before you start the chicken. That way, it will be ready when you are done cooking the creamy lemon chicken.
• Rice – I love any dish with rice and a creamy sauce. One trick is to bulk prepare and freeze rice. Or if you have leftover rice, this is a great way to use it up.
• Broccoli – A side of broccoli is not only delicious with creamy lemon chicken, but it also steps up the nutrition. If you are making another broccoli dish like cheddar broccoli and potato soup, chop up extra so you have it ready to go on a busy weeknight.

FAQs

Should you use chicken thighs or chicken breasts?

Either! I use whatever I have on hand. Chicken breasts are thick and take a while to pan fry. So I recommend slicing them thin (longways down the middle) or pounding them.

Can you make creamy lemon chicken ahead of time?

Creamy lemon chicken tastes best if it is served right away. So I wouldn’t recommend making the full dish ahead of time. However, if you want to save time, you can prep the ingredients in advance.

How should you store leftovers?

Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, I recommend heating the chicken separately. Then, warm the sauce over low heat or for 30 seconds at a time in the microwave. You don’t want to overcook the spinach while reheating.

Can you freeze creamy lemon chicken?

Creamy dishes like this don’t always freeze well. Upon thawing, the sauce can separate, which is less than appetizing.

Creamy Lemon Chicken Ingredients

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour – You will need this for dredging the chicken
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil – Avocado oil is a good choice, but any neutral oil will do for pan frying the chicken
• 1 lb. chicken thighs or thin-cut chicken breasts – I prefer chicken thighs because they cook faster. But if you have thin-cut chicken breasts, they will work.
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced – Fresh garlic is best, but garlic powder will work in a pinch.
• 6 oz white wine, divided – I use a split because I don’t drink white wine, so I don’t want to open a whole bottle. Feel free to reduce the amount of wine to taste.
• 1 cup heavy cream – This is heart of the sauce! I’ve also made this with half-and-half. It was good, but not as good as with heavy cream.
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced – I always recommend using an actual lemon, not the bottled juice. I like to use a zester and juicer to keep this simple
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan – The Parmesan adds depth to sauce’s flavor.
• 5 oz baby spinach – My whole family loves the spinach in this dish. Sometimes, I double the amount of spinach. Just make sure you don’t overcook it.
• Lemon slices for garnish (optional) – The lemon slices are completely optional. But they will make you look and feel fancy without having to be fancy (though I think you are the fanciest either way!).
• Salt and pepper to taste – Always! I prefer to use coarse kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. But use whatever you have on hand and that is closest to the stove.

How To Make Creamy Lemon Chicken

1. Place the flour in shallow bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Dredge both sides of the chicken in the flour, shaking off the excess. Allow the chicken to rest on a plate while you prepare the skillet.
2. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Place the chicken in the skillet and cook for 4-5 minutes. Flip the chicken, and cook for another 4-5 minutes. When the chicken is golden brown and cooked through (165° F), move the chicken to a plate, and set aside. Sprinkle the hot chicken with a little salt to taste.
3. If your skillet is very hot, turn down the heat. Deglaze the pan with a little of the white wine. Scrape the bottom of the skillet to get all of that flavor unstuck.
4. Add the garlic, and cook until aromatic. About 1 minute. Avoid burning the garlic.
5. In the skillet, add the cream, remaining wine, lemon zest, lemon juice, and Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer, and cook until the sauce is heated through and begins to thicken, about 2-3 minutes.
6. Add in the spinach, and stir. Cook just until the spinach begins to wilt. You want the spinach to remain bright green.
7. Return the cooked chicken to the skillet.
8. Garnish with lemon slices if you are feeling fancy! (lemon slices are optional, but feeling fancy is mandatory!).

More Dinner Recipes You’ll Love

• Homemade Cheeseburger Helper
• Sourdough Fried Chicken
• Cheddar Broccoli and Potato Soup
• Garden Vegetable Soup