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Simple Chicken Marsala

Featured in Reliable Evening Meals.

Golden-fried chicken with mushrooms in a creamy Marsala wine sauce. Ready in 45 minutes, pairs perfectly with side veggies or mashed potatoes.
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Aisha
Updated on Sat, 22 Mar 2025 16:04:15 GMT
Close-up of two fried chicken breasts topped with mushrooms and garnished with herbs on a white plate. Pin it
Close-up of two fried chicken breasts topped with mushrooms and garnished with herbs on a white plate. | cookingflavor.com

This made-from-scratch Chicken Marsala brings together golden crispy chicken cutlets with juicy mushrooms in a smooth, wine-infused sauce. It works brilliantly for quick family meals or when you want to impress guests. This Italian-American dish delivers top-notch taste with basic ingredients and simple methods. Its deep, woody flavors create a stunning yet doable meal that'll quickly become a regular request at your table.

What Makes This Dish Special

What's great about this meal is how everything works together perfectly. Juicy chicken cutlets, browned mushrooms, and a smooth Marsala wine sauce make an awesome dinner that's done in under an hour. When sweet Marsala wine meets creamy dairy and aromatic veggies, ordinary ingredients turn into something you'd expect at fancy restaurants, but you can totally pull it off in your own kitchen.

What You'll Need For Chicken Marsala

  • For the Chicken:
    • 4 chicken breasts without bones or skin, cut sideways
    • 1/2 cup regular flour
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • For the Sauce:
    • 16 ounces sliced cremini mushrooms
    • 3/4 cup Marsala wine
    • 3/4 cup chicken broth
    • 1/2 cup heavy cream
    • 2 finely chopped shallots
    • 4 minced garlic cloves
    • 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
  • For Cooking:
    • 4 tablespoons butter, split up
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • Fresh parsley for topping

How To Make It

Get Your Chicken Ready
Flatten chicken to 1/4-inch thick. Combine flour, salt, and pepper in a flat dish. Coat chicken pieces with the flour mix.
Cook Your Chicken
Warm up 2 tablespoons each of butter and oil in a big pan over medium-high heat. Brown chicken for about 4 minutes each side. Set aside on a plate.
Create The Mushroom Sauce
In the same pan, melt the rest of your butter. Toss in mushrooms and cook until they're golden. Add shallots and garlic, cooking till they're soft. Pour in your Marsala wine while scraping the pan bottom.
Complete The Sauce
Pour in broth, cream, and thyme. Let it bubble until it's half the amount, around 5 minutes. Put chicken back in and warm through for 2-3 minutes.

Tips For The Best Results

Go for dry Marsala wine instead of cooking wine. Make sure your chicken is pounded flat for even cooking. Don't put too many pieces in the pan at once when cooking chicken or mushrooms. Let your sauce reduce enough to get the right thickness. Taste and add more seasoning at the end if needed.

A dish showing golden chicken pieces covered with cooked mushrooms and sprinkled with chopped parsley in a rich sauce. Pin it
A dish showing golden chicken pieces covered with cooked mushrooms and sprinkled with chopped parsley in a rich sauce. | cookingflavor.com

What To Serve With It

This goes great with buttery pasta, smooth polenta, or fluffy mashed potatoes. Try it with steamed asparagus or oven-roasted veggies. Add some fresh parsley and extra thyme on top if you want. You might want some crusty bread to soak up all that tasty sauce. It also pairs well with a simple green salad.

How To Keep Leftovers

Keep any extras in a sealed container in your fridge for up to 3 days. Warm it up slowly on the stove, adding some broth if needed. The sauce will get thicker when cold, so add warm broth when heating it up again. For the tastiest results, you can prep sauce ingredients ahead of time and put everything together just before you're ready to eat.

Frequently Asked Questions

→ What's the best pan to use?
A stainless steel pan browns chicken best. Nonstick pans can work too but won't give that same color or flavor boost.
→ How do I handle large chicken breasts?
Slice large breasts horizontally to make thinner pieces, then pound them to about 1/4-inch thick for even cooking.
→ How do I know my sauce is done?
It should thicken slightly, reduce by half, and have a deep, rich color. The texture will feel like a light cream sauce.
→ What sides go well?
Try serving this with green beans or mashed potatoes seasoned with Parmesan. Any side that soaks up sauce is great.
→ Can I switch up the mushrooms?
Absolutely! Baby bella or button mushrooms are both excellent choices. You can use pre-sliced ones to save time.

Conclusion

This Italian-American classic features

golden chicken fillets served with mushrooms in a Marsala wine cream sauce. Comes together in just 45 minutes for an easy-to-make, restaurant-quality meal at home.

Chicken Marsala

Golden chicken pieces paired with a creamy Marsala wine and mushroom sauce. A comforting Italian-American favorite for dinner.

Prep Time
15 Minutes
Cook Time
30 Minutes
Total Time
45 Minutes
By: Aicha

Category: Dinner

Difficulty: Intermediate

Cuisine: Italian-American

Yield: 4 Servings (4 flattened chicken pieces)

Dietary: ~

Ingredients

01 1½ pounds chicken breasts without bones or skin, flattened to about ¼ inch thick.
02 3 tablespoons plain white flour.
03 A pinch of salt.
04 Black pepper, freshly cracked.
05 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
06 3 tablespoons split-up unsalted butter.
07 1 (8-ounce) pack of pre-sliced cremini or white mushrooms.
08 3 tablespoons shallots, finely minced.
09 2 garlic cloves, chopped up small.
10 ⅔ cup of chicken stock.
11 ⅔ cup dry Marsala wine.
12 ⅔ cup of heavy whipping cream.
13 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped.
14 2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley for a garnish (optional).

Instructions

Step 01

Toss some flour, ¾ teaspoon of salt, and ¼ teaspoon of pepper into a ziplock bag. Place the chicken inside and shake it around until everything is evenly covered.

Step 02

Warm oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a big skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the floured chicken until it’s golden brown and cooked through, about 5-6 minutes in total. Take it out and set aside on a plate.

Step 03

Use the leftover butter in the pan and melt it. Stir in the mushrooms and cook until they have a nice browned color, about 3-4 minutes. Next, add shallots and garlic with a pinch of salt, and keep stirring for another 1-2 minutes.

Step 04

Pour in the broth, Marsala, cream, thyme, salt, and pepper. Scrape up the browned bits stuck to the pan. Let it boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the sauce gets thicker, about 10-15 minutes.

Step 05

Put the chicken back in with any juices collected on the plate. Let it simmer just until the chicken is hot and the sauce thickens up, about 2-3 minutes. Add parsley on top if you’re using it.

Notes

  1. A stainless steel skillet gives the best sear.
  2. If the chicken breasts are too big, slice them horizontally before flattening.
  3. Tastes great with some smashed potatoes or green beans.

Tools You'll Need

  • A big pan, ideally stainless steel.
  • Plastic bag that seals (ziplock).
  • A meat pounder or mallet.

Allergy Information

Please check ingredients for potential allergens and consult a health professional if in doubt.
  • Contains dairy.
  • Contains wheat.

Nutrition Facts (Per Serving)

It is important to consider this information as approximate and not to use it as definitive health advice.
  • Calories: 537
  • Total Fat: 32 g
  • Total Carbohydrate: 12 g
  • Protein: 43 g