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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.

how to make chicken marsala

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 Parmesan smashed 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 ingredients including mushrooms, heavy cream, and chicken broth.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

Person slicing a chicken breast with a large knife.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.)

Sliced chicken breast on a cutting board.

Once you’ve got four flat filets,  pound them each to an even 1/4-inch thickness.

Person pounding a chicken breast with a meat mallet.

Place the flour, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a ziplock bag.

Seasonings in a bag.

Add the chicken to the bag; seal the bag tightly and shake to coat chicken evenly. Set aside.

Seasoned chicken in a bag.

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.

Seasoned chicken in a skillet.

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.

Partially-cooked chicken in a skillet.

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.

Mushrooms in a skillet.

Add the shallots, garlic, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.

Cooked mushrooms with other ingredients in a skillet.

Cook for 1 to 2 minutes more.

Skillet of cooked mushrooms.

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.

Cream with mushrooms in a skillet.

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).

Skillet of creamy mushrooms.

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.

Skillet of chicken marsala.

Sprinkle with parsley, if using, and serve.

Plate of chicken marsala.

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.

Servings: 4
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 30 Minutes
Total Time: 45 Minutes

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

  1. 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.
  2. 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.
  3. 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.
  4. 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

Powered by Edamam

  • 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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Comments

  • Omg! This is my best try so far! I’m never lucky when I’m trying a new recipe. My husband loved it and so did I! Thank you!

    • — Fernanda Menezes on May 17, 2022
    • Reply
  • Wow ran short on marsala but added a little cabernet was awesome. Will definitely make again.

    • — Gary on May 14, 2022
    • Reply
  • I am trying my hand at cooking again and found your recipe. It was excellent, I have to say this is so simple and so much better than so many restaurants I’ve had it at over the years. I made rice pilaf to go with it, but I will try angel hair pasta next time. I will make this again and again thank you for posting it.

    • — Peter Groth on May 13, 2022
    • Reply
  • Have to comment on this recipe again. It has become a staple of our dinner rotation. Every time I make it comes out delicious and the family loves it. Thanks so much, Jen.

    • — Mark H. on May 13, 2022
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  • can I make in the AM and reheat?

    • — Carol J Winkelman on May 12, 2022
    • Reply
    • Hi Carol, this is best right after it’s prepared. That said, if you’d like to give it a try, a few readers have commented that they’ve made this ahead, stored the sauce & chicken separately, and reheated it briefly before serving. Please LMK how it goes if you go that route!

      • — Jenn on May 12, 2022
      • Reply
  • Great

    • — Withheld on May 11, 2022
    • Reply
  • Oh my goodness! I think this is better than any I’ve ever had in a restaurant (and I’ve eaten a lot of marsala b/c my hubby loves Italian food but my stomach doesn’t love tomato sauce.) Fabulous recipe!

    • — Lisa Siard on May 7, 2022
    • Reply
  • I serve Chicken Marsala over spaghetti noodles. We like extra sauce for the noodles, so I doubled the sauce portion of the recipe. It was perfect. The instructions are detailed and easy to follow. This is a great recipe.

    • — Sandy on May 4, 2022
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  • Delicioso

    • — Lois on April 29, 2022
    • Reply
  • I made this recipe yesterday to the letter & it came out exceptional. Today I made it with Cauliflower, & its even more delicious.
    Its the sauce that makes it, Thank you once upon a chef. Im gonna post a pic of the Cauliflower marsala on IG.

    • — Yolanda on April 29, 2022
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  • Delicious! Served with rice and followed recipe mostly. I only had chicken stock so used that instead. I made a mistake and doubled the stock. But, I like it saucy so it came out fine. I had several pieces of chicken; so, I finished in the oven. Even my 4-year old loves it!

    • — Kysh on April 25, 2022
    • Reply
  • This recipe was fantastic and really hit the spot. The one thing I would change, based on personal preference is multiplying everything but the chicken. Once this cooks down I want more sauce and mushrooms. Not a bad problem to have if you ask me :). Thanks for a wonderful recipe.

    • — Sarah on April 24, 2022
    • Reply
    • I made this and it was DELICIOUS.
      I did add a little Italian spices to the salt and pepper, and I made a double recipe of the sauce (we like our pasta well coated)
      Everyone loved it and better the next day.

      • — Kris on July 26, 2022
      • Reply
  • simply grandioso!!!, i served with italian farfalle primavera, used 2% milk and sliced white mushrooms

    • — alexis on April 23, 2022
    • Reply
  • We loved it! Your instructions were easy to follow. I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour and Sperone Cremovo Marsala Wine so I am not sure if it was different in taste from your ingredients but my family loved it.

    • — Rosie on April 17, 2022
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  • I didn’t have cream so I used Oatmilk. It was surprisingly creamy. Bought a huge bottle of Marsala so I’ll be making this often!

    • — Amy on April 16, 2022
    • Reply
  • I’m planning on tripling the recipe for a dinner party. I saw one person commented that when the recipe was doubled it didn’t come out the same. Has anyone else had success or difficulty with doubling or tripling?

    • — Alison D on April 15, 2022
    • Reply
    • Hi Alison, I think that you can successfully double it but would suggest doing it in two separate pans.

      • — Jenn on April 16, 2022
      • Reply
      • The best Chicken Marsala recipe I’ve come across. Thanks for sharing!

        • — Mary on May 14, 2022
        • Reply
      • I love mushrooms but my husband doesn’t. Can I substitute another vegetable? Asparagus or spinach?

        • — Catherine DiMaria on October 24, 2022
        • Reply
        • Hi Catherine, asparagus would work. Another option that comes to mind is eggplant. Hope that helps!

          • — Jenn on October 24, 2022
          • Reply
  • I made this for dinner tonight – it was easy and delicious!!!

    • — Kathy W. on April 15, 2022
    • Reply
  • DELICIOUS 😋! WILL MAKE AGAIN!

    • — Diane Polonsky on April 12, 2022
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  • The only thing I would change about this recipe — more sauce!!! Maybe do a cup each of the broth, marsala, and heavy cream, and adjust the garlic, shallots, and thyme accordingly. Otherwise excellent.

    • — Brian T. on April 10, 2022
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    • Very good. Skipped pounding the breasts, so took a little longer to cook. Cream was a delicious addition, only used 1/3 cup. Will definitely make again, allowing more prep time.

      • — Susan Ridgway on April 24, 2022
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  • Your chicken Marsala recipe is almost identical to the one I’ve been using for decades. The differences are few. I don’t add heavy cream, or any cream. I use 16 oz of mushrooms; there are never enough mushrooms. I also substitute beef for chicken broth. I like the richness of beef and Marsala. And I use 3/4 to 1 cup of Marsala. If the sauce needs thickening I add a touch of flour.

    As a side, I dice potato into 3/4 to 1 inch pieces, add them to a zip-lock bag, add some oil and an assortment of Italian herbs and spices and shake to coat the potato. I then oven bake in a single layer until tender and slightly browned.

    Next time I will add some cream.

    • — Steven on April 9, 2022
    • Reply
  • Great recipe, true restaurant quality.

    • — Poolman on April 8, 2022
    • Reply
  • I tried a couple of other recipes over time, but always seemed to come back to yours, Now I just automatically use your recipe. Have used rice and even pasta as a side, but my favorite way to eat this is with mashed potatoes and steamed fresh green beans. The sauce is soooo good. Thank you for many wonderful meals, I make it at least once a month.

    • — Valerie Norman on April 2, 2022
    • Reply
  • VERY GOOD!! Easy recipe, but packs a lot of flavor. Looks beautiful too! I made this for 20 people. I made it a few hours ahead but based on how good the leftovers were the next day, it could be made a day in advance. I cooked the chicken, put it on a baking sheet covered with foil and refrigerated. I also made the mushrooms and sauce ahead, covered and refrigerated. Put them together and left them out for about 30 min. to take the chill off. Then heated in the oven until warmed through for serving. Worked perfectly! The chicken was so tender and the mushrooms sauce was terrific. I couldn’t find dry Marsala wine, so I had to use sweet. To counteract the sweetness, I replaced about 1/3 of the Marsala with dry Sherry. Tasted so good. Can’t wait to make again! Thanks so much for a wonderful recipe!

    • This is good to know. I’m planning on making this for a dinner party and was wondering about preparing in advance. Thanks for taking the time to share.

      • — Cathy M on March 31, 2022
      • Reply
  • I’ve made this twice and it turned out excellent both times. It is an easy recipe to make too.

  • This was absolutely delicious. Times, measurements, directions were all bang on. Everyone in our home raved. “Gourmet”! Will definitely be making this again in the near future! Thank you for an incredible recipe!

  • I doubled this recipe when I made it, and followed it to a T. However, it came out EXTREMELY sweet and watery. I had to reduce the sauce for a good hour or more. Not sure what happened. I don’t know if it had to do with doubling the recipe, but I don’t see why that would make a difference. In retrospect, I also feel as though Chicken Marsala should not have included the heavy cream. It certainly changed the dish drastically from other recipes I have used. It took me about 3 hours to cook, which was ridiculous and took up the entire night. My father said it tastes like coffee.

  • So delicious! I have now made 3 recipes from your site and they are all delicious, easy to follow and well written. Thank you so much.

  • I absolutely LOVE this recipe! Thank you so much! Since I have sweet Italian Marsala on-hand I use that with a mix of dry Spanish Sherry (half and half), then use evaporated goat’s milk to replace the heavy cream and I also used a bigger portion of fresh thyme and it always turns out sublime! I served it once with truffled risotto and another time with Cacio e Pepe and chickpea pasta, and another time with just asparagus. ALL have turned out EXCELLENT! Next time I want to try it with my coconut milk cream instead of evaporated goat’s milk and see how it turns out. I usually use that for my butter chicken and you can’t taste any coconut at all so I’m hoping the same will happen. I enjoy challenging myself with healthier replacements in recipes for my healthier lifestyle.

    Note: The first time I let too much of the sauce reduce and it became thicker than I wanted so the following times after reducing for a bit I put a lid on to reserve more sauce and it worked out well. 🙂 Buon appetito!

    • — Jessica Wabbit
    • Reply
  • Amazing! The recipe was easy to follow and the outcome, delicious!

  • Delicious! I used without mushrooms and it still came out great.

  • Kosher salt? I understand that measurement is different for “table salt” than for kosher salt. Which are you using?

    • Hi Annie, I used Morton’s brand. 🙂

  • This was delicious and easy. I made it with cod filets because my dinner guests don’t mix poultry and dairy. I served it with bow tie pasta, green beans, and sautéed zucchini. No leftovers!

    • This sauce would be good over everything!

      • — Linda Berglund on May 27, 2022
      • Reply
  • Another great recipe! I doubled for my family of six and hardly had any leftovers. Served over grits cause I’m a southern girl. I’ll say it again, OUAC you never disappoint!

  • Hi Jenn

    I love this site and your cookbooks. This is a great recipe and we use it often. One question. In your Penne a la Vodka recipe to reduce the calories I substituted sour cream for the heavy cream and it worked out wonderfully. Would that work for this dish as well?

    • So glad you like the recipes! I’ve never used sour cream in the sauce. While I think it’s possible, I’d suggest waiting to add it until after you’ve reduced the remainder of the sauce. Please LMK how it turns out this way!

    • I use fat free half and half and it works great-have made this recipe several times with chicken or veal-it’s dinner tonight

  • I omitted the heavy cream due to lactose intolerance, added a little sifted cornstarch at the end of simmer to thicken. It was fabulous, will definitely make again.

  • Wonderful
    I made this with pork tenderloin, used tarragon instead of thyme, and didn’t use the full amount of garlic.
    Excellent flavour, I will definitely do it again and also try it with chicken.

  • Wonderful! I didn’t change a thing because it’s perfect. Thank you

  • Very flavorful and perfect step by step tips! My whole family loved it and I will be making it again! Thank you!

  • Awesome recipe!! Was stressing because I couldn’t find my Tyne and was still so delicious!!

  • Made this tonight for dinner. My usual complaint about a Marsala recipe is the lack of marsala flavor. This has the perfect ratio of liquids . Most time consuming piece of this was waiting for the sauce to reduce. Will definitely make again.

  • I like Chicken Marsala, but this took it to a whole new level. I accidentally used fresh rosemary instead of thyme and it tasted better than any other Marsala I have ever had. I will cherish this recipe!

    • I was wondering if anyone has used boneless chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts?

      • — Cindy Rush on April 1, 2022
      • Reply
      • Hi Cindy, I wouldn’t recommend chicken thighs; I think they would make the sauce too rich/greasy. Sorry!

        • — Jenn on April 2, 2022
        • Reply
      • I made this with boneless, skinless chicken thighs and now it’s the only way I make it! So tender, everyone has loved it. My go to dish for guests. Superb!

        • — Ellen on June 9, 2022
        • Reply
  • Made this for dinner tonight. I love chicken Marsala in restaurants but I’ve never found a recipe that I loved. This is it! I made no deviations other than I halved it because it’s just two of us. My husband kept saying he wanted to lick the plate. I only found your site yesterday. I have already made four of your recipes! And EVERY one was amazing!! I consider myself a pretty good cook but now I feel like I need to do my own version of Julie & Julia. Sharon and Jenn. I think it’ll be a hit. LOL

    • 😂

      • Delicious!!

      • Made this recipe to a T. Maybe it has to do with the type of wine I used, I don’t know. But it turned out generally bland and not that flavorful. Not bad, but I wouldn’t make this recipe again.

        • — Jamie on June 19, 2022
        • Reply
    • I feel the same way! This is my first stop when I’m menu planning for the week. Lately I’ve had at least two recipes from this site in my weekly menu. Sometimes they are a new find and other times they are a tried and true favorite.

  • Just made this for dinner- it’s very good, but next time I’ll double the amount of Marsala wine.

  • I added 1/2 cooking sherry as well. Great recipe.

    • I made it according to recipe. Although I had high hopes, utilizing 20+ minutes of reduction time still led to a watery sauce without a classic maroon marsala color. The addition of cream really “american-ized” it and although it tasted good, it shouldn’t be called chicken marsala

      • I tend to agree-it’s very good, but my preference is to use beef stock and marsala, but no cream. To each his/her own.

      • Superb recipe..have made this over 20 times…

        • — Monty York on July 6, 2022
        • Reply
  • Jenn, I modified your recipe slightly and made a chicken marsala pizza with it. It was to die for! Thanks for the recipe!
    I cut the chicken into bite size pieces, made extra sauce and reduced it until it was very thick. I spread the marsala over the pizza crust, then generously sprinkled shredded mozzarella on top. Baked it on the bottom rack ~ 15 minutes at 525°. Grated fresh parm on top. YUM!! It is our new favorite nontraditional pizza.

    — LISA ON FEBRUARY 23, 2022

  • Absolutely delicious and easy to make!

  • I am in love with this recipe. The taste is so good. I made it when I had guests over for dinner. Everyone loved it and asked for the recipe.

  • The best chicken Marsala I’ve ever made. And EASY!! Gave this recipe to my son and his wife raved about it.

  • Wow, this recipe was SOOO good! I made it for my girlfriend and I over Valentine’s Day weekend and I can honestly say it was better than any restaurant-made chicken marsala I have had before. I mostly followed the recipe exactly except for the last part where I let the sauce simmer for 10 minutes and then added the chicken in and let it go for another 5-7 minutes. The sauce was creamy and delicious, and the chicken was tender and perfectly cooked. Highly recommend this recipe – I will for sure be making it again 🙂

  • I’m a pretty good cook and I really like this recipe and it’s fairly simple with ingredients you would normally have around. We served it plain with a side salad to try to cut the calories a little. I’m going to make a larger batch today and try freezing it – hope it freezes well.

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