Pan seared chicken breasts are topped with a creamy tomato parmesan sauce in this Chicken with Parmesan Cream Sauce that is made in the same pan for an easy weeknight dinner.
If you love a good chicken dinner, you also should try this Chicken a la King, this Chicken Pot Pie, or Poppy Seed Chicken.
One of my favorite things about summer is the fresh produce. It’s the best when it comes straight from the backyard, but I’ve definitely used the farmers market and roadside stands when we haven’t had our own garden. But there is something about those garden fresh tomatoes, the sweet corn, the watermelon that’s always better than what you can get at the grocery store. I love it all.
This Chicken with Parmesan Cream Sauce is a great summer recipe – especially if you have cherry tomatoes and basil growing in your garden. And luckily, these are things that are easy to find if you don’t grow your own!
An Easy Weeknight Dinner
If you’re like me, summer meals need to be pretty no-fuss. Simple ingredients, and fairly quick to make. I love this recipe for a few reasons.
*You need less than 10 ingredients, and most of these are things you’ll already have on hand.
*It’s an inexpensive dinner. I use one of my favorite tricks cut 2 larger chicken breasts in half, forming 4 thinner pieces. If you have a good salad or side dish to go along with it, one piece of chicken is usually enough for a serving.
*I always grown basil during the summer, and I usually end up with so much that I don’t know how to use it all. And even though this recipe doesn’t use a lot of it, it brings some great, fresh flavor.
*Although it’s not done in 30 minutes, it’s pretty darn close.
*Plus, it’s all made in one skillet, which makes clean up so much easier!
Skillet Chicken Tips and Tricks
Cooking chicken is not easy. It’s not easy to cook it through, which is important, all while keeping it juicy and not dry. This recipe uses one of my favorite tricks for cooking chicken breasts perfectly.
- Like I mentioned above, you’ll take a chicken breast and cut it in half, making 2 thinner pieces. Then you’ll pound the chicken slightly, just to make sure the piece is an even thickness. The more even the breast is, the more even it will cook.
- Don’t crowd the pan. Even if this means that you’ll have to cook the chicken in 2 batches, it’s worth taking the extra time.
- If you have an instant read thermometer, this is a great time to use it. You’ll want the internal temperature to be around 160-165ºF.
- Keep an eye on it. It can go from done to dry quickly, so this isn’t a time to walk away and let it cook.
- When the chicken is done, remove it from the pan and place it on a plate and cover it with foil so that it stays warm and juicy while you make the sauce.
More Skillet Chicken Dinners
Garlic and Herb Skillet Chicken
Shoyu Chicken
Artichoke Chicken
Chicken Paprikash
General Tso’s Chicken
Hawaiian Chicken with Ham and Pineapple
Chicken in Caper Cream Sauce
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Chicken with Parmesan Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 8- oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
- 3/4 cup grape or cherry tomatoes quartered
- 2 tablespoons whipping cream
- 1/4 cup cold butter cut into 4-6 pieces
- 3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup shredded basil
Instructions
- Using a sharp knife, cut open the chicken breasts horizontally, making 4 thinner pieces. Place a piece of plastic wrap over the chicken, and use a meat mallet to even out the thickness to about 1/4-inch thick. Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned and no longer pink, 5-6 minutes, flipping once. (You may need to cook the chicken in 2 batches, depending on the size of your skillet. You don’t want to crowd the chicken so that it will brown properly.) Remove the chicken to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
- Add the chicken broth, onion and tomatoes to the skillet. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the skillet. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer until reduced to about 1/4 cup, about 10 minutes.
- Pour the cream into the skillet. Start adding the butter, one piece at a time, stirring until completely melted before adding another piece. Once all of the butter is added, stir in the Parmesan cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Serve the tomato parmesan sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle the basil over to serve.
Cec C. says
I made this tonight and it was delicious! I served it over pasta. Thanks for sharing.
Joanne says
I’m making this tonight for dinner because it looks amazing and the ingredients are delicious. My only question is what kind of Parmesan cheese do I use (freshly shredded or grated from the green container)???? Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Deborah says
I’m so sorry for the delay – I hope it all worked out for you! I use freshly grated Parmesan – I don’t think the stuff in the can melts very easily.
Joanne says
Hi Deborah – I did use freshly grated Parmesan however, I did something wrong because the cheese didn’t melt, it balled up into lumps. Maybe I should have turned off the heat and removed it from the burner. The flavor was delicious, but I’m going to try to figure out why may cheese did not melt into the sauce. Thank you for your response and of course your recipe.
Leslie says
I made this last night for dinner. It was absolutely delicious. Thank you so much!!!
Deborah says
Yay – so glad you liked it!
Joanne Bruno says
We have no room for a garden either and honestly, I think I like gardening much more in theory than in practice! I’m totally fine with just buying local and letting other people do all the hard work. 😛
Chels R. says
Okay, this does just look completely and totally delicious. I love slicing a chicken breast lengthwise. Saves you some money and is a more appropriate portion. Those tomatoes, gah! Can’t wait to make this!
Beth says
This dish looks so light and fresh. Perfect forsummer weeknights! On my list to make this week.
Liz says
Lovely recipe. Thank you and have a great day and week!
Yvonne Feld says
Ohmygosh Deborah! This looks INCREDIBLE!!! I definitely will be pinning this to make for later. We are renting too!! While I love gardening, it’s a LOT of work.. and don’t even get me started on weeding. Weeds are of the devil! Maybe next year you can do tomatoes!