There are nights when I open the fridge at 6:15 with no plan and a pack of chicken breasts. This is what I make. Chicken cutlets in a garlic butter pan sauce, one skillet, and it is done before anyone asks how much longer.
Prep time: 10 minutes. Cook time: 15 minutes. Total time: 25 minutes. Serves: 4.
Why cutlets and not whole breasts
A whole chicken breast from the supermarket weighs 8 to 10 ounces and is thick at one end, thin at the other. It takes 20 minutes or more to cook through, and the thin end is dry by then. Slice each breast in half horizontally and you get two cutlets about half an inch thick that cook in 6 to 8 minutes total and stay juicy.
That single knife cut is the whole reason this recipe fits in 30 minutes. If you buy chicken already labeled thin-sliced or cutlets, you skip it entirely.
What you will need
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts (2 large), sliced into 4 cutlets
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about half a lemon)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- Pinch of red pepper flakes, optional
The flour is not for breading. It is a thin dusting that gives the chicken a better crust and thickens the sauce at the end without cornstarch slurries.
How I make it
- Pat the chicken very dry with paper towels. Lay each breast flat, put your palm on top, and slice through it horizontally with a sharp knife to make two thin pieces. Season both sides with the salt and pepper, then dust lightly with the flour and shake off the excess.
- Heat the oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high until the butter stops foaming. Lay in the cutlets with space between them. Do not move them for 3 to 4 minutes, until the underside is deep golden.
- Flip and cook 2 to 3 minutes more. Check the thickest piece with an instant-read thermometer: you want 165°F. Move the chicken to a plate. If your skillet is smaller than 12 inches, cook in two batches rather than crowding.
- Turn the heat to medium. Add the sliced garlic and the red pepper flakes to the pan and stir for about 30 seconds, just until the garlic smells sweet. Do not let it brown.
- Pour in the broth and lemon juice. Scrape the browned bits off the bottom with a wooden spoon and let it bubble for 2 to 3 minutes, until it reduces by about half and coats the back of the spoon.
- Take the pan off the heat. Swirl in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter until the sauce turns glossy, then stir in the parsley. Taste it and add salt if it needs it. Return the chicken and any juices from the plate, turn each piece in the sauce, and serve right away.
Three sauce swaps using the same method
Everything through step 4 stays identical. Only the liquid changes, which is how this stays interesting on a Tuesday.
Honey mustard
Whisk 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard and 1 tablespoon honey into the broth before it goes in the pan. Skip the lemon or cut it to 1 tablespoon. This is the one my kids ask for, and it is good over egg noodles.
Creamy parmesan
Use 1/3 cup broth instead of 1/2 cup, then add 1/3 cup heavy cream and 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan off the heat. Stir until smooth. Hold back the lemon juice until the end and add it by the teaspoon so the cream does not tighten.
Soy garlic ginger
Replace the broth and lemon with 3 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon honey, and 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger. It reduces faster, so pull it at about 90 seconds. Skip the parsley and use sliced scallions.
Sides that are ready at the same time
The chicken is the fast part. The side dish is where 30-minute dinners fall apart, usually because someone started rice at the wrong moment.
Couscous is my default: pour boiling water over it, cover, and it is done in 5 minutes. Ten-minute microwave rice pouches are the next best thing and I keep two in the pantry for exactly these nights. For a vegetable, throw a pound of frozen green beans or broccoli florets into the empty skillet while the chicken rests, with a splash of water and a lid, for 4 to 5 minutes. You lose a little of the browned fond, but you also lose a pan to wash.
Where this goes wrong
The most common problem is a crowded pan. If the cutlets touch, they release steam faster than it can escape and you get pale, gray chicken with no crust and no browned bits, which means no flavor in the sauce. Two batches take four extra minutes and are worth it.
Second: wet chicken. Straight from the package, the surface is damp, and damp chicken steams before it sears. Dry it properly.
Third: a sauce that stays thin. That is almost always heat. The broth needs to actually bubble, not simmer politely, and the final butter has to go in off the heat. If you add butter to a boiling pan it splits and turns greasy instead of creamy.
Substitutions
Boneless skinless thighs work, and honestly they are more forgiving, but they are not a 6-minute ingredient. Cook them 5 to 6 minutes per side to an internal temperature of 175°F, which is where the connective tissue in dark meat softens. Add about 8 minutes to the total time.
No fresh lemon means bottled lemon juice, which is fine here, or 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar. Powdered garlic instead of fresh: use 1/2 teaspoon and stir it into the broth rather than the hot pan, since it scorches in seconds. Gluten-free flour blend or a light dusting of cornstarch both stand in for the all-purpose flour. Water plus a bouillon cube covers the broth.
Storing and reheating
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container within two hours of cooking. Cooked chicken keeps 3 to 4 days in the fridge. Store the chicken sitting in its sauce if you can, since that is what keeps it from drying out.
To reheat, put the chicken and sauce in a skillet over medium-low with a splash of broth or water, cover, and warm for 4 to 5 minutes until heated through. The microwave works at 50 percent power for 60 to 90 seconds. Full power turns lean breast meat rubbery in about 30 seconds, so it is worth turning down.
I do not freeze the cream version, because it separates and never comes back together. The lemon, honey mustard, and soy garlic versions freeze for up to 2 months in a flat freezer bag. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then reheat in a covered skillet and whisk in a small piece of cold butter at the end to bring the sauce back together.