Marry Me Chicken is a skillet dinner with a serious reputation to live up to! Tender chicken breasts are browned until golden, then finished in a creamy sauce loaded with sun-dried tomatoes, shallots, and a splash of white wine. No proposal required, but prepare to have the compliments flooding in!
Despite the romantic name, Marry Me Chicken isn’t some centuries-old Italian recipe with a secret family history. No, it’s a relatively modern American dish that became an internet sensation!
This Marry Me Chicken recipe is essentially a good-looking, low-effort chicken dinner dressed for a date night. The chicken is browned first, then finished in the same skillet with a quick pan sauce that gets plenty of flavor from the browned bits left behind. Those sun-dried tomatoes bring a sweet-tart kick with a touch of oil, and the cream, shallots, and dry white wine round everything out, creating a sauce that deserves some serious lovin’ from a piece of crusty bread.
And yes, you could serve this at a romantic dinner. But I suggest making it as a surprise on a Tuesday with some Strawberry Cheesecake Cups and let the chicken do the flirting!
Chicken breasts
These days the chickens seem to get bigger and bigger with a single breast coming in at under one pound or more sometimes! When I get them, I like to slice them horizontally and get two chicken cutlets out of one breast!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
(Be sure to check the recipe card for a full list of ingredients and quantities)
- Chicken Breasts: Use boneless, skinless breasts and pound thicker pieces to an even thickness so they cook at the same rate. Chicken cutlets are a great shortcut and cook even faster.
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes: Drain the oil before dicing the tomatoes, but don’t toss the oil! It carries concentrated tomato flavour and makes an excellent cooking oil for the chicken. Olive oil works otherwise.
- Shallots: Their mild onion flavour works particularly well in the creamy sauce. Try a small yellow onion if you can’t find them.
- Dry White Wine: Wine deglazes the skillet and lifts all those browned bits left behind by the chicken. Use a dry wine rather than anything sweet.
- Heavy Cream: Gives the sauce its rich consistency and helps it cling to the chicken. Don’t substitute with skim or low-fat milk, as the sauce won’t have the same body.
- Seasonings: Garlic powder and paprika give the chicken a savoury, lightly smoky base before it ever hits the pan!
How to Make Marry Me Chicken
- Flatten & Season the Chicken. If you’re using whole chicken breasts, gently pound them to an even thickness between sheets of plastic wrap. You can also slice them horizontally into cutlets. Season both sides with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika.
- Sear the Chicken. Heat the sun-dried tomato oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken once the oil is hot and cook until deeply browned on both sides and cooked through (about 6 to 7 minutes). Remove and cover with foil.
- Build the Flavor Base. Reduce the heat to medium and add the shallots and diced sun-dried tomatoes to the same skillet. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Deglaze with Wine. Pour in the white wine and scrape the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon. Let it bubble until most of the wine has reduced.
- Finish the Cream Sauce. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the heavy cream. Simmer for about 2 minutes.
- Bring Everything Together. Return the chicken and any juices from the plate to the skillet. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and let it warm through for another minute or two. Finish with fresh parsley and serve with plenty of sauce!
- Large Skillet: A wide, heavy-bottomed skillet gives the chicken enough room to brown.
- Meat Mallet: Useful for flattening thick chicken breasts so they cook evenly.
Serving Suggestions
Marry Me Chicken comes with plenty of creamy sauce, so the best sides are the ones that give you something to soak it up with or add a bit of freshness to the plate.
- Spoon the chicken and sauce over Creamy Polenta to catch every bit of that sun-dried tomato cream sauce.
- Roasted Mashed Potatoes or freshly cooked pasta are another great match if you’re after a real comfort-food dinner.
- Some Potato Rolls on the side are also a good call for mopping up whatever’s left in the skillet.
- Pair this Marry Me Chicken recipe with a crisp salad or just some cooked green veggies!
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Frequently Asked Questions
Searing gives the Marry Me Chicken a lovely browned exterior and creates the flavourful bits on the bottom of the skillet. Those browned pieces are picked up when you deglaze with white wine to give you tons of extra depth!
Make sure the skillet and oil are properly heated before adding the chicken, then leave it alone while it sears. Chicken often sticks when you try to move it before a browned crust has formed. Patting the chicken dry before seasoning also helps!
Chicken breasts have very little fat, so they can go from perfectly cooked to dry surprisingly quickly. Flattening thick breasts to an even thickness helps them cook consistently. I also don’t recommend over-simmering, as it’ll just dry out the meat.
Spice Blends for Sale
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If using whole chicken breasts, pound slightly to flatten between plastic wrap. If wanting cutlets, slice each chicken breast in half horizontally. Season both sides with salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika.
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In a skillet over medium high heat add 2 tablespoons of the sun-dried tomato oil, or olive oil. Saute the chicken on both sides until browned and cooked through (165°F), about 6-7 minutes. Transfer to plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
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Add the shallots and sun-dried tomatoes to skillet and saute for 2 minutes over medium heat. Add the wine and bring to a boil, scraping the pan for browned bits, until wine has almost evaporated and reduced.
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Turn heat to medium and add the cream, stirring together for 2 minutes. Transfer chicken and accumulated juices into the skillet, spooning sauce over chicken to coat.
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Serve with sauce spooned over each piece of chicken and top with parsley.
Calories: 415kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 54g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 155mg | Sodium: 625mg | Potassium: 2042mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 750IU | Vitamin C: 25mg | Calcium: 89mg | Iron: 4mg
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
