Description
Golden, juicy chicken coated in a simple creamy sauce with tomatoes, garlic, and thyme. I like it with mashed potatoes and a salad! This is just so good.
Ingredients
Marry Me Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced (note 1)
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste (note 2)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup chicken broth
- a few sprigs of thyme
- 1 14.5–ounce jar petite diced tomatoes, drained thoroughly (note 3)
- salt to taste (note 4)
Chicken:
- a batch of air fryer chicken (note 5)
Instructions
- Sauce Base: Heat a large skillet over medium low heat. Add the butter, garlic, and tomato paste; sauté for a few minutes until it’s all soft and fragrant.
- Add Cream, Broth, and Thyme: Add the cream; whisk to get the tomato paste smooth. Add the broth and thyme sprigs; simmer for 10-15 minutes to thicken the sauce until it reduces and clings to the back of a spoon. (If you’re using the air fryer chicken, now is a good time to start that.)
- Add Tomatoes and Chicken: Pop your drained diced tomatoes in the sauce and stir them in. Tuck the cooked chicken into the sauce and spoon a bit of sauce over the top.
- You’re Done! Yum. Sprinkle some thyme, parsley, or basil over the top to make it look pretty. Serve the pieces of chicken with spoonfuls of the sauce over rice, noodles, or mashed potatoes (personal fave) and a side salad for a beautiful, mega delicious meal.
Notes
Note 1 on Garlic: I prefer thinly sliced garlic to minced garlic for this recipe because it’s less textured and the flat little slips of garlic just get extra tender and sort of melt into the whole recipe. But minced garlic also works. Garlic clove size can vary greatly, so I typically try for somewhere between 1-2 tablespoons of thinly sliced garlic.
Note 2 on Tomato Paste: I use the DeLallo tomato paste in a tube which is “double concentrated”, but that is not necessary. Regular tomato paste would also work.
Note 3 on Petite Diced Tomatoes: I highly recommend petite diced tomatoes vs. regular canned diced tomatoes. The size of the petite dice is much more pleasant in the sauce. I also love this with the DeLallo bruschetta tomatoes which are marinated in olive oil, garlic, and basil. I drain off the oil and just add the tomatoes to the sauce. It’s VERY good, but petite diced canned tomatoes are easier to find which is why I listed them here.
Note 4 on Salt: I use 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt for the sauce, but how much salt you use should be dependent on how salty your broth is as every broth is different and some have reduced sodium. If you’re not sure, start by adding 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, taste and see what you think, and go up from there.
Note 5 on Chicken: If you don’t have an air fryer or prefer to make it on the stovetop, you’ll just pan-fry a pound of thinly sliced chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins in the same skillet before you start the sauce. Season your chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder, maybe a bit of paprika for color. Many Marry Me Chicken recipes recommend coating the chicken in a tablespoon of flour as well to give it a lightly breaded feel. Pan fry it in a bit of butter or olive oil. Once the chicken is golden and cooked through, remove it, set aside, and then add the chicken back into the finished sauce.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: marry me chicken, creamy chicken, creamy chicken skillet dinner, chicken breast recipe