Garlic Butter Chicken Recipe

If you are looking for a delicious stovetop chicken recipe, then make Garlic Butter Chicken Recipe. It is loaded with flavor and made with simple ingredients. Chicken breast is cooked in a savory butter sauce in less than 20 minutes.

This recipe is perfect for a weeknight meal and my entire family loves it. The garlic butter sauce is delicious and gives the chicken so much flavor. Everything cooks together easily in the skillet which makes for an easy cleanup. Try these other chicken recipes – Brown Sugar Skillet Chicken or Easy Skillet Salsa Chicken Recipe.

What is Garlic Butter Chicken?

Garlic Butter Chicken is a rich and delicious weeknight meal. Thin slices of chicken is cooked in a skillet and then drenched in a butter sauce. The flavor of the garlic butter sauce is delicious and made with simple ingredients.

Ingredients

Scroll to the bottom for the full recipe and ingredients in the recipe card.

Variations Ideas

• Change Chicken – We love making this recipe with boneless chicken breast, but you can also use boneless skinless chicken thighs. Cooking time may vary.
• Seasoning – We used a simple seasoning for this recipe. We added the Italian Seasoning blend, but feel free to use what you have. It can be as simple as using just salt and pepper. Dried herbs are always a great option and gives the chicken so much flavor.
• Oil – We cooked the chicken in olive oil, but you can use whatever oil you prefer. We have used avocado oil and it turned out so delicious and it is a healthy option.
• Butter – Unsalted butter is what we prefer to use in this recipe so we can control how much salt is added. But you can use salted butter you may just need to add in less salt.
• Broth – Chicken broth works great in this recipe, but you can also use some cooking wine. It gives the chicken a rich and savory flavor.
• Garlic – Minced garlic is what we prefer, but you can also use garlic powder.
• Extra Spice – If you would like to add in extra spice for a kick to this recipe, add in a teaspoon of red pepper flakes. It adds the right amount of heat to the mixture.
• Cheese – Before serving top the chicken with shredded parmesan cheese. Shredded Mozzarella would also be a delicious option.
• Fresh Squeeze Lemon Juice – Top the chicken with some fresh squeeze lemon while it is cooking in the glaze. Delicious lemon flavor combined with the garlic butter is the perfect combination.

How to Make Garlic Butter Chicken Recipe

Step 1 – Prepare Chicken Breast – Pound the chicken breasts to make them roughly the same size.  Pat them dry, then season them with the Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. 

Step 2 – Heat Skillet – Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Place the chicken breasts into the skillet on olive oil. 

• Step 3 – Cook Chicken – Sear the chicken breasts on one side for 5-6 minutes until browned (do not move the chicken during this time).  Then flip and sear the opposite sides of the chicken for 5-6 minutes until browned and cooked through (do not move the chicken during this time). 
• Step 4 – Remove Chicken – Remove the pan fried chicken from the pan to a separate plate.  
• Step 5 – Add Chicken broth to skillet – Turn the heat to high and deglaze the bottom of the skillet with the chicken broth. 

Step 6 – Add butter and garlic to skillet – Turn the heat down to medium.  Add in the butter and heat until melted.  Stir in the minced garlic and cook until aromatic (approximately 1 minute). 

Step 7 – Turn heat off – Turn the heat off on the skillet.  Add the chicken back to the skillet and flip it around in the garlic butter sauce to coat the chicken with the sauce.  Top the chicken with the fresh parsley and serve while warm. 

Recipe Tips

• Prepare Chicken – We recommend pounding the chicken thin so that it cooks evenly. This allows the chicken to cook tender by pounding out the thicker side of the chicken.
• Skillet Tips – We recommend cooking chicken in a hot cast iron skillet. It gives the chicken so much flavor and the best texture.
• Searing Chicken – All the chicken to sear for about 5 minutes on each side. Make sure to allow the chicken to just cook and then flip. It is important to not to touch chicken while it is searing.
• Glaze – Once the chicken has seared on both sides, then remove the chicken. This glaze is made from the chicken bits and adding in chicken broth.
• Coat the Chicken – Once you have added in the butter and garlic, then you are going to place chicken back into skillet. Allow the chicken to soak up the garlic butter glaze for delicious flavor to the chicken.
• Butter – We recommend the butter be softened to room temperature before melting.
• Chicken doneness – We recommend using a meat thermometer to make sure chicken is done before removing from skillet. This will give you a juicy chicken recipe and prevent it from drying out.

Serving Suggestions

• Pasta – Make a batch of egg noodles or spaghetti noodles to serve with this buttery dish. We love to pour extra garlic sauce over the top.
• Mashed Potatoes – This chicken dish is served perfectly with a side of Crockpot Mashed Potatoes Recipe.
• Green Beans – Roast some fresh green beans or heat up canned green beans. It is an easy side dish but it pairs perfectly with this garlic butter chicken.
• White Rice – Cook some Instant pot White Rice Recipe, Instant Pot Brown Rice, or Cauliflower Rice Recipe for a delicious side dish. We love to serve the chicken over the top with some extra sauce.
• Cheese Bread – If you love dipping into the sauce, make a side of cheese bread. This homemade cheese bread recipe is easy to make and the perfect side.

How to Store Leftovers Garlic Butter Chicken

Refrigerate the leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days. I like to store in individual containers for a quick lunch the next day. The chicken is so flavorful after it marinates in the buttery sauce overnight.

How to Reheat Garlic Chicken

You can reheat this chicken in the microwave in 30 second intervals to ensure that it doesn’t overheat. Feel free to bake the chicken in the sauce in a baking dish. Place in the oven at 350 degrees and heat for about 10 minutes.

You may need to cover in foil to prevent the top from burning.

Can you Freeze Butter Garlic Chicken?

Butter Garlic Chicken freezes great. Make sure to spoon all the sauce with the chicken in the bag so it all reheats together.

If stored properly the freezer meal will last about 4 months. When you are ready to serve, thaw in the fridge overnight and then reheat in skillet or the microwave.