This savory lemon butter chicken is super easy to make and over the top in taste! Full of flavor, every bite is unforgettable. The lemon butter sauce is hands down the best homemade sauce you'll ever make at home and pairs perfectly with the tender and juicy chicken!
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Best. Chicken. Recipe. EVER! We all need an easy and delicious recipe for those weeknights when you are too tired to put forth a lot of effort when making dinner. This rich in flavor lemon butter chicken has the most delicious lemon butter sauce and is about to become a favorite in your house! This is a recipe you will make over and over again.
This lemon chicken is a one pan recipe that is simple to prep, easy to cook, and makes clean up incredibly easy. It starts on the stove top and finishes cooking in the oven. We're talking the most delicious sauce that is incredibly easy to make and it's made without flour. The lemon butter sauce is so good you'll want to eat it by the spoonful! Made in under an hour, this lemon chicken will quickly become a dinner that is requested over and over again!
🛒 Ingredients You'll Need
The ingredients needed to make this lemon butter chicken recipe are not only budget-friendly, but you probably already have these in your kitchen. Here's what you need to make this recipe:
- Chicken Breasts
- Garlic
- Fresh Spinach
- Smoked Paprika
- Lemon
- Fresh Cracked Pepper
- Heavy cream
- Unsalted Butter
- Chicken Broth
- Parmesan Cheese
- Thyme
- Parsley
- Wine (optional, but soooo worth the splash!)
Fresh ingredients taste best in this dish. Use fresh garlic instead of the jar version. Fresh chopped garlic tastes way better! The same rule applies when it comes to lemon juice...freshly squeezed juice from the lemon adds a hint of zesty freshness. While frozen spinach can work in a pinch, fresh spinach holds up better in this dish. Using smoked paprika adds a hint of smokiness to the dish adding a lot of depth to the flavor. Adding a splash of white wine, like Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc, really finishes off this dish.
🔪 How To Make Lemon Butter Chicken Step-By-Step
Start by seasoning the breasts with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika.
Next, add the unsalted butter and sauté for about 2-3 minutes, on each side.
When it's finished sautéing, set the breasts aside on a plate so you can sauté the garlic and butter.
When the garlic is sautéd, you're ready to start making the sauce. Combine the sautéd garlic, broth, heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, and thyme. Oh - and if you're adding a splash of wine, add it now!
From there, bring the sauce to a slow rolling boil.
Add a large handful of fresh spinach to the sauce and stir once to coat.
The spinach will start to wilt as the sauce gets hot and starts to slowly thicken.
When the sauce slightly thickens, add the sautéd chicken into the dish with the sauce so it can bake together with the other ingredients. The sautéd garlic mixed with the juices and other ingredients makes you want to eat it at this stage...but since the chicken is not fully cooked, you'll have to wait a bit longer!
After it bakes in the oven, this lemon garlic butter chicken is ready to eat! Super fast and easy to make, the lemon butter sauce is delicious to soak up with these ciabatta rolls! We're talking flavor that is so good, this is about to become your favorite chicken dinner!
Variations
To kick this up a level, try adding fresh mushrooms and capers. Add them in when you add in the spinach and parsley. Sun dried tomatoes also tastes great in this dish. If you're not a fan of spinach, try adding in fresh kale.
🥗 Serving Suggestions
This is the perfect weeknight dinner recipe and it pairs really well with so many side dishes. I love pairing it with this Instant Pot Rice. The sauce soaks into the rice giving it an incredibly savory flavor. It's also really good served on top of these homemade mashed potatoes. Creamy and delicious, the sauce serves as a gravy on top of these potatoes. If you want to cut some of the carbs, these oven roasted vegetables taste amazing served alongside this lemon butter chicken. No matter what you pair it with, this is going to be the most flavorful lemon chicken!
💭 Expert Tips
- If using thick chicken breasts, use a meat tenderizer to pound the meat. This helps break down the fibers making the meat extra tender.
- Don't use flour to thicken the sauce. It adds a pasty flour flavor and texture and will ruin the sauce. The cornstarch slurry I mentioned above works best.
- Regular paprika works fine in this recipe, but I highly recommend using smoked paprika. Regular paprika is just crushed dried chilies. Smoked paprika uses chilies that are smoke-dried and then crushed. There truly is a huge flavor difference.
- Depending on the size of the breasts will determine how long it takes to fully cook. Use a digital thermometer to check for doneness. When the breasts reach 165°F, it's done.
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Do not freeze.
- Use a stove top and oven safe dish when making this recipe. A shallow dutch oven works well.
🙋 Frequently Asked Questions
In this recipe, it's made with freshly grated Parmesan cheese, heavy cream, chicken broth, butter, garlic, lemon juice, thyme, and a splash of white wine. It's so good you'll want to eat it by the spoonful!
Yes! Boneless and skinless work best.
This recipe should not be made ahead of time. It's best fresh out of the oven.
More Chicken & Lemon Recipes
Chicken and lemon pair amazingly well together so if you're looking for more chicken & lemon recipes, make sure and try this lemon pepper chicken with lemon sauce. This lemon sauce is made with egg and adds a lot of texture and flavor! And this lemon garlic chicken is another good one that works great for a family meal! And this lemon garlic chicken with white cream sauce is juicy and delicious. It's another one that is started on the stove top and finished in the oven!
Follow Recipes Worth Repeating for more amazing recipes!
How To Make Lemon Butter Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
- ½ tablespoon smokedpaprika
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 4 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- juice of 1 lemon
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 cups fresh spinach
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- fresh cracked pepper, to taste
- splash of dry white wine, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and paprika. Set aside.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large ovenproof dish (dutch oven or deep cast iron works best) over medium high heat.
- Add the chicken and sear both sides until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove and set chicken aside on separate plate.
- While the chicken is resting, return back to the same skillet and melt remaining tablespoon of butter in the skillet. Add garlic and saute for 2 more minutes.
- Stir in the chicken broth, heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, thyme, and a splash of wine.
- Bring sauce to a boil and reduce heat.
- Add in the spinach and parsley and simmer until the spinach and parsley has wilted and the sauce has slightly thickened.
- Continue to cook the sauce about 5-7 minutes so the sauce becomes thicker.
- Once the sauce has reached the desired thickness, return the chicken to the ovenproof dish.
- Place in the oven and cook for 30 minutes.
- Remove the dish and let sit for about 5 minutes before serving. Top with fresh chopped parsley. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- The sauce will be a little thin. To thicken the sauce, add a cornstarch slurry. To do this, add one tablespoon of cornstarch to one tablespoon of water into a small bowl. Whisk the ingredients together until it forms a slurry. While the skillet is still on medium heat, slowly whisk the cornstarch slurry into sauce and continue to whisk until it has slightly thickened.
- Thighs can be substituted for chicken breasts.
- If using thick breasts, use a meat tenderizer to pound the meat. This helps break down the fibers making the meat extra tender.
- Don't use flour to thicken the sauce. It adds a pasty flour flavor and will ruin the sauce. The cornstarch slurry I mentioned above works best.
- Regular paprika works fine in this recipe, but I highly recommend using smoked paprika. Regular paprika is just crushed dried chilies. Smoked paprika uses chilies that are smoke-dried and then crushed. There truly is a huge flavor difference.
- Depending on the size of the breasts will determine how long it takes to fully cook. Use a digital thermometer to check for doneness. When the breasts reach 165°F, it's done.
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Do not freeze.
- Use a stove top and oven safe dish when making this recipe. A shallow dutch oven works well.
Nutrition
Update Notes: This post was originally published in September of 2016, but was republished with new photos, step-by-step instructions and tips in November 2022.
This recipe was originally written for Eazy Peazy Mealz.
Sharon
This recipe is DELICIOUS!! From start to finish, the recipe guides even the most least experienced chef/“chef” through so the dish will come out as pure perfection!! I’m pretty experienced with cooking and I love home cooked meals and making them. My family members can be picky but they all love this dish!! The chicken comes out tender and juicy. The sauce is absolute Heaven from the oven!! We love it on linguine or fettuccine,noodles, or even on brown rice! The leftovers heat up well and taste just as delish!! I’ve been making this for the last 4 years❤️
Amanda Mason
Hi Sharon! I'm so glad you all love the recipe so much!! It's one of our favorites as well!! I'd love to hear what other recipes of mine you try!!
Nancy
Good. I added diced potatoes instead of the spinach.
Amanda Mason
I'm glad you enjoyed it, Nancy!! Potatoes are a great add!!!
Malwina
Can I simmer this dish instead of cook in the oven?
Amanda Mason
You can try that method, yes. Bring it to a boil for a bit longer before simmering. The sauce will probably be more liquidity so you may beed to add in a cornstarch slurry.
Malwina
Thanks. That's what I'm going to do 🙂
Jackee
My daughter (who hates spinach) found this recipe and said it looked good I have made it for us three times already - it has so much flavor!! I love that she found a healthy recipe with ingredients she was willing to try!
Amanda Mason
I am SO glad to hear this!! SO glad she loves it!
Samantha Kinlen
Flavor is good. The Parmesan did not properly melt which was a huge disappointment as I thought this would be an easy meal to make.
Amanda Mason
I'm glad you liked the flavor! Did you use freshly grated Parmesan cheese or a bag of pre-shredded? The bag of pre-shredded tends to clump and not melt very well.
SNK Social Fame
Damn! It's looks so delicious and yummy recipe. i will definitely try this home.
Amanda Mason
Thanks! Enjoy!
Luke
Great lemon butter chicken recipe I've made, I've tried loads of recipes, and this is by far the best recipe I've made 🙂
I've passed this on to my family to try 😉
Amanda Mason
Great! So glad you enjoyed it!! It's a fan favorite, for sure!!!
Ann
This chicken dish was delicious, and very simple to make. It worked great to make on a busy weekday night. Thanks for the share!
Amanda Mason
Perfect! Glad it was a good easy weeknight dinner for you!!
Amy Liu Dong
Wow! This recipe looks yummy and perfect for me! The chicken breast cook in the best possible way and the sauce makes it so enticing and tempting! I'll definitely make this at home! Thanks!
Amanda Mason
Glad you liked it so much!!