Creamy Mushroom Chicken Thighs are coated in a rich garlic mushroom cream sauce with the right amount of seasoning and herbs. Served with freshly chopped parsley and parmesan makes it the best weeknight chicken dinner meal.
Winner winner chicken dinner is here! This chicken recipe is one of our family’s favorites. From our popular chicken recipes such as Asparagus and Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breast and Gluten Free Chicken Alfredo Bake this is for sure, one of my best creations so far.
If you like creamy sauces with fragrant garlic and mushrooms, you will want to make this again and again. And not only with chicken.
The true highlight of this recipe is of course the garlicky creamy mushroom sauce but what makes it really special are the seared golden brown chicken thighs coated in the rich sauce.
You can substitute with ground chicken, beef, or pork or use your favorite cubes of meat instead. I like this recipe because you can even make it simply without the meat.
Make the sauce, add some veggies of your choice (for example we like broccoli, carrots, asparagus, or spinach), and serve over pasta or rice. Don’t forget the bread to wipe out every single last drop of the sauce.
There is a skip-to-recipe button in the top left corner along with a clickable table of contents list (just below) that will quickly take you to the part you are more interested in. Enjoy!
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Ingredients
My few comments on the ingredients + don't forget to read the Tips section!
The full recipe and ingredients can be found in the recipe card below this post.
This is a budget-friendly recipe that you can make with simple ingredients in just almost 30 minutes.
- Mushrooms - cremini mushrooms, also called baby Bella or baby portobello is what I used. These mushrooms are dark brown and firmer than the common white button mushroom. or you can use a huge variety from Portobello, Shiitake, Crimini, White or Chanterelle, Morel, Oyster, and Porcini. Honestly, whatever mushroom you use will taste great once you fry these until golden brown in the butter/oil mixture with browned garlic.
- Chicken thighs - with skin on and bone-in. This part of the chicken is well, very forgiving! Especially when using skins which helps the chicken not to dry out. Even if you don't eat the skin, I highly recommend cooking the chicken with the skin on in this recipe. The skin protects the chicken from drying out.
- Cream - for the richest and thickest sauce use heavy cream of at least 35%. You can definitely use low-fat options such as evaporated milk or coconut milk or half-and-half if you counting calories. BUT the thickness that we are talking about here will not be the same. I also didn’t use any wine here, as I did with my Garlic Chicken Pasta. It adds moisture and flavor to the sauce without having to taste the alcohol. Add about ¼ cup of white wine or rose to your mushrooms and let it cook down until most of the wine is evaporated. Then follow with the cream. Totally optional but gives a nice flavor boost!
- Dried Italian seasoning/herbs - use all those spices and herbs sitting in your kitchen. We like the Italian herbs as it gives a good twist and matches the creamy garlic mushroom sauce to a T. If you don’t have these, a couple of stalks of rosemary, thyme, tarragon, marjoram, basil, and oregano would work too. Thyme is one of my favorites And I often add 2-3 stalks to simmer in the sauce in addition. Just don’t forget to discard these before serving.
Garlic - don’t skip this! Browned garlic cooked with mushrooms adds the needed richness and complexity to the sauce and helps the mushrooms cook perfectly flavored and not are absolutely not ''boring'' tasting.
- Parmesan cheese - adds nutty and salty flavor to the sauce and at the same time thickens it as we love. Feel free to double up the parmesan cheese or add a generous pinch or two when serving individual portions of the chicken thighs. We just love cheese, what can I say?
Instructions
Wash and pat dry the chicken thighs well.
Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper on all sides.
In a large bowl or plate coat the chicken thighs in cornstarch. Shake off/discard any leftover cornstarch on the plate. Cornstarch helps the chicken thighs crisp up and make less mess while searing these in a sizzling hot skillet.
In a large nonstick skillet heat cooking oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot sear the chicken thighs for 6 minutes on both sides. The exterior should crisp up and become golden brown.
Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the skillet with a lid and cook the chicken for an additional 12 minutes or until a kitchen thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken registers 165 F.
Set the chicken aside on a plate.
In the same skillet melt the butter, and add the sliced mushrooms. Cook constantly stirring for about 4 minutes and add Italian herbs and garlic.
Make sure the garlic gets slightly brown.
Cook for additional 30 seconds to 1 minute. Deglaze the pan with chicken stock and simmer for 3 minutes. Make sure the heat is on medium-low and slowly pour in the cream.
Let the cream simmer for a minute or so before adding the parmesan. Stir the sauce until the parmesan is melted and the sauce thickens.
Taste for seasoning and add salt and black pepper accordingly.
Return the cooked chicken thighs and coat them in the sauce. Let them simmer in the sauce for 3-5 minutes. Garnish with parsley and more parmesan.
We like to serve this chicken with our party favorite stuffed mushrooms as a side dish or a tasty appetizer.
Tips
- Use a meat thermometer and test from the thickest part of the chicken (without touching the bone) to ensure it reaches 165°F.
- If you go for the low-fat route and use evaporated milk, your sauce will not be as thick as we would want it to be. In this case, we can thicken the sauce by adding a simple water cornstarch slurry. Use equal parts about 2 tablespoons of each. And stir it into the sauce in the end, make sure that you are cooking it on medium heat as the slurry may curdle if too hot temperatures.
- Searing the chicken is necessary for not only keeping the chicken inside juicy and not dried out but also adding rich and caramelized buttery flavor.
- I also recommend adding only little salt as you go along, once you add the cheese to the creamy sauce taste for seasoning again and adjust where necessary.
Look for thighs that are uniform in size so they all cook the same.
Serving Suggestions
Serve these creamy mushroom chicken thighs over pasta, rice, mashed potatoes or baked sweet potatoes.
For low-carb options, you can try mashed cauliflower, or cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles or simply with some green veggies such as Asparagus (with or without the cheese), air fryer broccoli and air fryer cauliflower.
Freezing And Storing Instructions
Once the leftovers are fully cooled, keep them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
You can also use skin-on chicken breasts, they will take less time to cook than thighs.
Freeze. To freeze cooked chicken thighs, place them in a freezer-friendly plastic bag or container and freeze them for up to 3 months. Let chicken thighs thaw fully in the refrigerator when ready to reheat.
For reheating, do it over the stovetop (my go-to method) or microwave.
FAQ
If you go the low-fat route and use evaporated milk, your sauce will not be as thick as we would want it to be. In this case what can thicken your sauce is adding a simple water cornstarch slurry. Use equal parts about 2 tablespoons of each. And stir it into the sauce in the end, make sure that you are cooking it on medium heat as the slurry may curdle if too hot temperatures.
We like to cook the mushrooms down with butter and oil and browned garlic until mushrooms become nicely golden brown. For the most flavor, cook off all water that mushrooms release.
To know when your chicken thighs are done cooking is simple. Insert a kitchen thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken and wait until it registers 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
I don’t recommend washing or keeping the mushrooms in water before cooking. Mushrooms release plenty of water when are cooked and we don’t want even more of that when cooking. What you can do is quickly rinse the mushrooms and then gently wipe down the excess water and dirt. If some parts are still dirty, use a small sharp knife to gently peel off the dirty part.
Chicken thighs and chicken drumsticks are considered dark chicken meat. This meat is usually more tender and juicy than the white chicken meat.
More Chicken Dinner Recipes
If you’re looking for other creamy recipes, try this one skillet Creamy Chicken Pasta In White Wine Sauce, or this juicy Mexican-style Creamy Chicken Enchilada Casserole.
Oh, and I can’t forget about this creamy chanterelle mushrooms recipe that was a base for these creamy mushroom chicken thighs.
All of these are quick to make, 30 minutes, and I can guarantee you lick the plate clean.
Easy Skillet Dinners
ALL ONE POT DINNER recipes.
I hope you'll enjoy this creamy mushroom chicken thighs recipe, please leave a rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo of your food and tag me on Instagram @theyummy_bowl. I love seeing your creations!
Thank you for reading,
Love,
Julia
One Pot Creamy Mushroom Chicken Thighs
INGREDIENTS
- 6 chicken thighs skin on bone-in
- 9 oz. cremini mushrooms or any brown mushrooms of choice sliced medium thick
- ½ cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons neutral cooking oil avocado, or canola
- 1 tablespoon butter salted
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons Italian herbs blend
- ⅓ cup chicken stock
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese grated
- Fresh parsley for garnish
INSTRUCTIONS
- Wash and pat dry the chicken thighs well.
- Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper on all sides.
- On a large plate coat the chicken thighs in cornstarch. Shake off/discard any leftover cornstarch on the plate.
- In a large nonstick skillet heat cooking oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot sear the chicken thighs for 6 minutes on both sides. The exterior should crisp up and become golden brown.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the skillet with a lid and cook the chicken for an additional 12 minutes or until a kitchen thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken registers 165 F. Set the chicken aside on a plate.
- In the same skillet melt the butter, and add the sliced mushrooms. Cook constantly stirring for about 4 minutes and add Italian herbs and garlic. Cook for additional 30 seconds to 1 minute. Deglaze the pan with chicken stock and simmer for 3 minutes. Make sure the heat is on medium-low and slowly pour in the cream. Let the cream simmer for a minute or so before adding the parmesan. Stir the sauce until the parmesan is melted and the sauce thickened. Taste for seasoning and add salt and black pepper accordingly.
- Return the cooked chicken thighs and coat in the sauce. Let them simmer in the sauce for 3-5 minutes. Garnish with parsley and more parmesan.
PRIVATE NOTES
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)
This recipe has been inspired from here.
Julia
Incredibly creamy and juicy chicken thighs smothered in garlicky mushroom sauce.