Chicken Marsala
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Chicken Marsala is an Italian-American dish of golden pan-fried chicken cutlets and mushrooms in a rich Marsala wine sauce.
Chicken Marsala is an Italian-American dish of golden pan-fried chicken cutlets and mushrooms in a rich Marsala wine sauce. It’s the most popular chicken recipe on this website, and though it’s a classic restaurant dish, it’s really easy to make at home. With just one pan, you can have it on the dinner table in 45 minutes. The recipe makes a lovely sauce that is delicious over pasta, polenta, rice, or mashed potatoes.
If your family loves Italian food like mine does, once you master chicken Marsala, try your hand at other Italian restaurant favorites, such as chicken cacciatore, pasta e fagioli, eggplant parmesan, penne alla vodka, and lasagna.
What You’ll Need To Make Chicken Marsala
Marsala is a brandy-fortified wine from Sicily that is 100% worth adding to your pantry, if only to make this dish time and again. It will keep in a cool, dry spot for months.
I buy boneless skinless chicken breasts and pound them thin myself, as opposed to using the ultra-thin sliced cutlets sold at the supermarket, since pounding tenderizes the meat. This adds an extra step but you can save time by using pre-sliced mushrooms. (Or you can skip all this hassle by using chicken tenderloins.)
How To Make Chicken Marsala
If your chicken breasts are large, like the ones in the photo above, it’s best to first cut them in half horizontally. (If you pound them without first halving them, they’ll be ginormous and oddly shaped.)
Once you’ve got four flat filets, pound them each to an even 1/4-inch thickness.
Place the flour, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a ziplock bag.
Add the chicken to the bag; seal the bag tightly and shake to coat chicken evenly. Set aside.
Heat the oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. (Use a stainless steel pan for the best browning. Nonstick will work too, but you won’t get that nice golden color on the chicken.) Place the flour-dusted chicken in the pan, shaking off any excess first.
Cook, turning once, until the chicken is golden and just barely cooked through, about 5 to 6 minutes total. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.
Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter in the pan. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms begin to brown, 3 to 4 minutes.
Add the shallots, garlic, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.
Cook for 1 to 2 minutes more.
Add the broth, wine, heavy cream, thyme, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper; use a wooden spoon to scrape any brown bits from the pan into the liquid. Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium.
Gently boil, uncovered, until the sauce is reduced by about half, slightly thickened, and darkened in color, 10 to 15 minutes (you’re going for a thin cream sauce; it won’t start to thicken until the very end of the cooking time).
Add the chicken back to the pan, along with any juices that accumulated on the plate. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the chicken is warmed through and the sauce thickens a bit more, 2 to 3 minutes.
Sprinkle with parsley, if using, and serve.
Video Tutorial
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Chicken Marsala
Chicken Marsala is an Italian-American dish of golden pan-fried chicken cutlets and mushrooms in a rich Marsala wine sauce.
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded ¼-inch thick (see note), or chicken tenderloins
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 1 (8-oz) package pre-sliced bella or button mushrooms
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped shallots, from 1 medium shallot
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ⅔ cup chicken broth
- ⅔ cup dry Marsala wine
- ⅔ cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Place the flour, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper in a ziplock bag. Add the chicken to the bag; seal bag tightly and shake to coat chicken evenly. Set aside.
- Heat the oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. (Use a stainless steel pan for the best browning. Nonstick will work too, but you won’t get that nice golden color on the chicken.) Place the flour-dusted chicken in the pan, shaking off any excess first, and cook, turning once, until the chicken is golden and just barely cooked through, about 5 to 6 minutes total. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.
- Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter in the pan. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms begin to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the shallots, garlic, and ¼ teaspoon of salt; cook for 1 to 2 minutes more. Add the broth, Marsala, heavy cream, thyme, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon of pepper; use a wooden spoon to scrape any brown bits from the pan into the liquid. Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and gently boil, uncovered, until the sauce is reduced by about half, slightly thickened, and darkened in color, 10 to 15 minutes (you’re going for a thin cream sauce; it won’t start to thicken until the very end of the cooking time). Add the chicken back to the pan, along with any juices that accumulated on the plate. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the chicken is warmed through and the sauce thickens a bit more, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley, if using, and serve.
- Note: If your chicken breasts are large (like the ones in the photos that are about ¾ lb. each), it’s best to first cut them horizontally to form four flat fillets, then pound them to an even ¼-inch thickness. If you pound large chicken breasts without first halving them, they’ll be huge. Of course, you could also pound them thin first and then cut them in half vertically; the only drawback is that they’ll lose their natural shape (which, admittedly, is not a big deal!).
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Calories: 537
- Fat: 32 g
- Saturated fat: 16 g
- Carbohydrates: 12 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 43 g
- Sodium: 877 mg
- Cholesterol: 203 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Wow, this is fantastic! I used what I had: a cheap sweet-ish Marsala, dried thyme, etc. and it came out perfect with tender chicken. Served it over Trader Joe’s frozen Jasmine rice. My wife and nephew loved the slight sweetness from the Marsala, and we could have been happy just eating the sauce over the rice :-). Next time they have requested that I double the sauce, so I will increase the broth, cream, and wine.
This recipe was fabulous! I did a double batch, and I served it over linguini. I made one small tweak. I used half and half instead of heavy cream since it was what I had on hand. My boyfriend gobbled it up and said it tasted just like what you’d get in a restaurant. I will definitely be making this again!
Hi Jenn, I’m one of your fans from French-speaking Québec. I intend to double this recipe and serve this dish to company. As I would like to spend less time in the kitchen and more with my guests, can I prepare the recipe in advance and reheat it slowly ?
Hi Marie, I think this dish is best if served right after it’s prepared, but it does reheat nicely. Hope everyone enjoys!
Made this recipe tonight 6/1. It was the best I’ve ever had! Truly beyond delish!!
Loved the recipe!! I had leftovers, which I froze. Unsure how this will go – but defrosted in the fridge and now want to heat up. Best way? Oven at 350 covered? How long? Thanks!
Ruby
Glad you liked it, Ruby! I’d reheat it on the stove just until heated through. I’d love to hear how the leftovers turn out!
Thanks for speedy reply Jenn – you saved my leftovers! I pulled from the oven where it’d been for about 10 minutes and re-heated as you suggested on stovetop, and voila (chef’s kiss!) – chicken still tender, sauce as delicious as the original, just slightly thicker. I loved this recipe – first time I ever tried to make this dish – a fav of mine to order in good restaurants – and it came out truly splendid – def comparable to restaurant versions I’ve enjoyed. Thanks for the great recipe!
Thanks for reporting back and so glad it reheated nicely!
Wonderful recipe. Tasted as good as a restaurant.
I love this recipe, as does my family. I have to make it for 40 people and wonder if I can bake the chicken?
Glad you like it! Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend baking it – sorry!
OMG! Jenn- you have another winner here (I made your refridge pickles and will have some today with burgers/meatloaf for Memorial Day) This Chicken Marsala is just heavenly! I made with boneless breasts, halved like you showed, used my Chrissy Teigen 7 in 1 knife – very easy! Made large portabellas, crispy with parmesan and panko, and added them with the chicken breasts to the baby portabella sauce as in recipe. Husband loved it. One of his favorite restaurants serves an insanely good portabella appetiser, and these were just as good cooked with the chicken and added to the sauce. I had such fun making this yesterday. If you make a double recipe like I did a large wok is ideal. It was all I had that was big enough and it was perfect! Of course shared with fb friends including hs classmates!
LOVED this recipe. Followed it pretty much exactly as written/shown and was amazed by how great it came out. I will be looking to this person/site again for more of her recipes! Only one piece of feedback – she said to add in the cream at the same time as the broth, marsala, thyme, etc. At this point, when I added in the cream it kind of curdled. Not sure if maybe it would be good to reduce the heat slightly after adding the other liquids, but before adding the cream? But, a minor thing really. Thanks for this deliciousness!
This was the best chicken marsala my family ever had…they ate it all up!
I’ve made this same recipe 3 times now and we are loving it! It’s an awesome recipe! Thanks for sharing!💕
Made for my family, they loved it. I love your recipes!
This recipe is excellent! I added diced up crisped pancetta on top at the very end. It adds a nice punch of salty Porky deliciousness!
This dish was as good as advertised! Be sure to use a good Italian Marsala wine, not the cooking variety.
This was outstanding! I made it exactly as directed, but didn’t have the fresh herbs so I used dried herbs instead . I served it with pasta and roasted broccoli. Definitely going to be adding this to our meal rotation. SO good!
My husband loves when I make this for dinner, I’d say it’s one of his favourite dishes (mine as well)! Very easy and delicious, thank you for sharing this recipe.
I can only say DELICIOUS!
This came out so so so so good! I doubled the sauce recipe (including mushrooms) and used three large chicken breasts (then cut them in half). My boyfriend doesn’t love mushrooms but he was licking his fork when he finished. I can’t wait to make this dish again.
I made this tonight and it was delicious. I served it over mashed potatoes. I treated myself to once upon a chef weekend/weeknight a year ago and have made several of the recipes. All great.
I’ve been looking for the perfect Chicken Marsala recipe for years. I finally found it here. The only change I’ll make to this recipe going forward is to increase the stock, marsala, and cream to one cup each, because I like a little more sauce since I serve this with buttered noodles and want a bit of sauce for the noodles. But the proportions in the sauce were PERFECT! I literally licked the spoon after putting the leftovers in a container. Thank you!
Very floury. Need more marsala.
This was my first chicken dish! I chose this for its simplicity and for the fact that it involved wine and heavy cream. I followed all directions and ingredients. Everyone in the house loved it. This is rewarding to write as our household has some very picky and hesitant palates. The sauce, it’s all in the sauce! Mashed potatoes & broccoli on the side. Thank you so much for sharing and providing perfect instructions! I’ve made your beef stew several times (to die for) and I’m thrilled to add a chicken recipe of yours to my go-tos. Greatness from Jenn Segal ❤️
Will a Dutch oven work well for browning the chicken?
Yes, technically a Dutch oven will work, but because the surface area of a Dutch oven is smaller than that of a large skillet, you’ll likely need to brown the chicken in 2 batches.
Jenn, I have leftover dry sherry from your mustard-sherry pork. Could I substitute that for the Marsala? If not, do you have other ideas for how to use it up? Thanks!
Hi Amanda, it will taste a little different, but several readers have commented that they’ve used dry sherry and have been happy with the results. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
I’m having a large party (about 60 people) and am looking for a good recipe to make ahead and freeze. Does this dish freeze well?
Hi Diane, this is not a great candidate for freezing. I have a whole category of freezer-friendly recipes; I’d recommend looking there to see if you find something that appeals to you.
I made this for dinner tonight and was the best chicken Marsala I’ve ever had
Amazing
Followed this recipe exactly and it was fantastic. My husband, who doesn’t like mushrooms, said it was really good and even had a second plate. Thank you!
I want to make this for a group of 16. I know I’ll cook the chicken in batches but can I put it back into one big pan with the sauce?
Sure, Dolly, that will work. Hope everyone enjoys!
Looking forward to making this!
Tried this recipe for the first time tonight and it was a hit! All three kids loved it and requested I always make chicken like this lol. Plus hubby and I had 2nds. So good!
What is the best way to keep the integrity of this recipe and make it gluten free? Love all your recipes!
Hi Nicole, any gluten-free flour should work nicely here. Enjoy!
I highly suggest doubling the sauce recipe if you’re making more than four breasts of chicken. The recipe is fantastic. I think it’s better than cheesecake factory. I added 1 bay leaf and subbed shallots for onion, because that’s what I had.
My family LOVES this recipe. I’ve made it four times in the last six weeks. Thank you, Jenn!
My son said it was better than any restaurant he’s had it. That’s saying something!
Oh Jenn! You did it again. This dish is a home run. I prepared with roasted Brussels sprouts, roasted red potatoes (used your recipe) and broccoli. We were so satisfied. EVERY TIME I PREPARE ANYTHING FROM THIS SITE, I FEEL LIKE A CHEF! We really appreciate the time you take in your kitchen to perfect these recipes for us. You’re a star ⭐️
💗
Used butter instead of heavy cream and dried thyme and it still smacked.
This was SO GOOD!!! I am not a very good cook, and a lot of times I’ll find a recipe and follow it to a T but it just doesn’t turn out/doesn’t taste that great and it leaves me dissapointed. THIS recipe, however, is SO easy and SO delicious and virtually foolproof!!!! I will definitely be making this again. Can’t wait to try other recipes on your website. Thank you!!
Would I increase the broth if I eliminate the cream due to a dairy allergy?
Hi Julie, Yes but keep in mind it won’t thicken up. You could add a cornstarch slurry at the end to give the sauce some body. Enjoy 🙂
Does this hold up to being made ahead of time?
Hi Tj, I think this dish is best served fresh, but it does reheat nicely.
By far the best Chicken Marsala recipe. Have made it several times since I found it a few weeks ago.
I actually doubled the sauce ingredients and made penne pasta as side. It was perfect!
My 3rd time making this. My favorite chicken recipe!
This is really fabulous . I bet that is as good or better than any restaurant . (I don’t order chicken in restaurants because we eat it often at home).
My store was out of fresh thyme so I threw a bit of dried time in the sauce. Still delicious .
Every recipe I’ve tried from you is wonderful . Thank you .
My 15 year old daughter made this for dinner tonight & it was absolutely delicious. She served it over mashed potatoes, with roasted carrots on the side. This was better than the marsala I had at a local restaurant recently, yet easy enough for a novice cook.