★ Why You'll Love this Recipe ★
This delicious, traditionally southern chicken dish was made famous by the chain restaurant, Texas Roadhouse. It's known for its juicy and flavorful chicken, creamy gravy, and layers of mushrooms and onions.
Restaurant Quality, Easy to Make at Home
This smothered chicken dinner can be made at home following a few easy steps. Check out this recipe to learn how!
It's simple. You don't have to follow a million steps to achieve homemade smothered chicken. This recipe incorporates several shortcuts to get you amazing flavor in no time.
It's versatile. You can use any kind of chicken. Chicken breasts or thighs. You can even follow this recipe using pork chops.
Customizable
Just like at the restaurant, choose your favorite kind of jack cheese. Like a little spicy? Go with pepper jack. Want something mild and rich? Go with monterey jack cheese.
Don't like mushrooms? Skip them! You can replace them with bell peppers or just go with onions.
The chicken is moist, flavorful, and tender. Chicken breasts are tenderized, marinated, seared, and then simmered in a rich sauce made with onion, garlic, and broth. Mushrooms and bacon gristle are optional but add extra layers of flavor.
Pair this smothered chicken with a side of Baked Parmesan-Ranch Potato Wedges, Orange Candied Carrots and a Thin Mint Cocktail for a treat.
★ Ingredients You'll Need ★
Here's a look at everything you'll need to make this delicious smothered chicken with creamy gravy at home!
- Chicken. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts work great or your can use boneless thighs for juicier chicken.
- Italian dressing. Choose your favorite brand.
- Bacon drippings or butter. This is a great way to add flavor and use up bacon grease. If you don't have any bacon grease saved, that's OK. Butter will work just fine.
- Onions. I like white onions but you could use yellow or even red if you prefer or if that's what you have.
- Mushrooms. Sliced white mushrooms or you can use baby portabellas for a meatier flavor.
- Garlic. You can use fresh grated or I like to save time and use garlic paste. In a pinch you can use garlic powder but paste or fresh is going to give you more flavor.
- Chicken broth. Bone broth or any kind of chicken stock if you prefer.
- Heavy cream. Milk can be substituted for a lighter, less rich sauce.
- Worcestershire sauce. This adds a subtle meaty flavor that enhances the mushrooms and gravy.
- Dijon mustard. This adds tang and layers in flavor.
- Smoked paprika. Smoked is ideal but you can use regular paprika if that's all you have.
- Monterey Jack cheese. Shredded. You can also use pepper jack for added kick or colby jack if you prefer.
- Parsley. Fresh chopped for garnish. You can use curly or Italian flat leaf parsley. Whichever you prefer.
★ How to Make this Recipe ★
This recipes is very simple to make, just follow the steps and you can pull off a restaurant quality dish, at home.
Here's a look at the steps:
- Pound chicken and marinate.
- Cook chicken then set aside.
- Cook mushrooms and onions.
- Make gravy then add back chicken.
- Add cheese and melt.
- Garnish and serve.
Very simple! So good!
★ Tips & FAQs ★
Yes! If you prefer the flavor or convenience of grilling, you can certainly grill your chicken. Follow the recipe, just prepare the sauce in a separate pan and combine the chicken with the sauce when you're done grilling.
If you have a cast iron skillet, you can use that on your grill.
For ease of serving, boneless chicken breasts work well.
If you're a sucker for extra flavor and don't mind the extra work, bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces such as thighs, drumsticks, or breasts work well too. The bone and skin will add even more flavor and help keep the meat moist during cooking.
Smothered chicken pairs well with a variety of sides such as mashed potatoes, rice, biscuits, cornbread, green beans, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, or any roasted vegetables. These sides complement the richness of the chicken and gravy beautifully.
Sure. You can make smothered chicken healthier by using reducing the amount of fat used in the gravy, and incorporating more mushroom or vegetables into the dish. For a lighter gravy, you can use low-sodium broth and use margarine instead of butter or bacon fat.
If you are short on time, you can just season your chicken with dry Italian seasonings or salt and pepper to save time. Just sprinkle the chicken generously with the dry seasonings on each side before cooking.
The chicken will not be infused with flavor in the same way a marinade provides, but it will still be delicious with the gravy!
Smothered Chicken with Mushrooms
Equipment
Ingredients
Chicken and Mushrooms
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup Italian dressing
- 4 tablespoon bacon drippings or butter divided
- ¼ cup thinly sliced onions
- 8 oz sliced mushrooms
- 1 teaspoon garlic paste
Gravy
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
Cheese and Garnish
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 2 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley for garnish
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Instructions
- Prep chicken. Place chicken breasts onto a larger cutting board and cover with plastic wrap to prevent splattering. Use the flat side of a meat tenderizer to pound out each breast to an equal thickness. About ½" -¾" thick is ideal.
- Marinate chicken. Add chicken and Italian dressing to a large ziplock bag, seal, and shake to coat chicken. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
- Cook chicken. Heat 2 tablespoon of bacon fat in a skillet or butter over medium-high heat. Add the chicken breasts and cook for 5-6 minutes per side or until golden brown and cooked to an internal temperature of 165ºF. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.
- Cook mushrooms and onions. In the same skillet, add remaining bacon fat or butter, sliced onion, and mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened and mushrooms are glossy, about 5-7 minutes.Add garlic and cook for an additional 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Make gravy. Pour chicken broth, heavy cream, and Worcestershire sauce in skillet. Stir in Dijon mustard and smoked paprika. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil then reduce to simmer.
- Combine chicken with gravy. Return cooked chicken breasts to the skillet, spooning some of the sauce over the top. Simmer for 5 minutes or until sauce has thickened slightly and the chicken is reheated; flipping chicken half way through. Spoon some mushrooms and onions on top of each chicken breast.
- Add cheese. Sprinkle shredded Monterey Jack cheese evenly over the top of each chicken breast. Cover skillet with a lid and let the cheese melt for 2-3 minutes.
- Garnish and serve. Remove skillet from heat and garnish with parsley.Serve immediately with extra sauce spooned over the top if desired.
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