Worth cooking

Insanely Satisfying: The sauce is creamy, garlicky, and to die for! And the chicken is so tender and juicy! Our goal was to make a meal you would expect to get at a 5-star restaurant at home, and we did just that with this Chicken In White Sauce recipe. It is worth making again!
Easy-to-Follow: This recipe is quite easy to follow. Just brown some chicken then make the sauce. It is not complicated at all, qualifying it as a recipe even beginner cooks can make. It is the perfect recipe with a short ingredient list for busy moms!
Versatile: This recipe can be customized to suit your taste buds. Do you want to add vegetables? Feel free to throw some in.
Family-friendly: Our whole family goes crazy for this meal! When we serve it, in no time, plates are cleared! The flavor profile is not complicated at all and even picky eaters would fall in love.

The simple combination of ingredients used brings awesome flavor to this dish. It is quite similar to the French Chicken Fricassee but it is so much easier, requiring fewer ingredients.

If you love easy creamy chicken dinners also try our Chicken Drumsticks in Creamy Sauce and Marry Me Chicken.

You will be going for seconds when you try this! The sauce is rich, and velvety, and compliments the chicken well.

With a baby on the way, we are leaning more towards making dinner recipes that don’t take a ton of time. This Chicken in White Sauce fits right in. It is ready in no time and super tasty! Another winning chicken dinner just like Chicken Yassa!

The Ingredients

For this recipe, you need the following ingredients:

Chicken thighs: Preferable over chicken breasts because they easily turn out juicier and it’s hard to overcook them. But you could use boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken tenders if you like. We don’t recommend using a whole chicken for this recipe.
Onions: Sautéed diced onions create a wonderful flavor base for the sauce.
Minced garlic: Easily mince fresh garlic cloves using a garlic press or grate the garlic with a Microplane zester. You could use store-bought minced garlic if pressed for time.
Chicken bouillon powder: Adds a depth of flavor that is way better than chicken stock or chicken broth. A recommended kitchen staple.
Salt and pepper: Regular ground black pepper will work here but if you happen to have white pepper, use it for a more interesting flavor.
Flour: A little all-purpose flour helps to thicken the sauce.
Butter: For sauteeing the onion and garlic. Butter brings a richer depth of flavor compared to oil.
Heavy cream: this adds creaminess to the sauce. If you can’t find heavy cream you could substitute it with (unsweetened) evaporated milk.
Minced parsley: Sprinkling minced parsley over the sauce gives it a professional finish. You replace parsley with other herbs like chives or basil.

For the full list of ingredients with measurements, check out the recipe card below.

How it comes together

Here are the easy steps involved for making this creamy white sauce:

1. Sear the chicken. Place the chicken thighs in a wide pot or large skillet over medium heat and let them cook in their fat on one side until golden brown. Then, flip them to the other side and cook until done.

2. Sauté onion and garlic. Remove the chicken pieces from the pot, then add butter to the pot. Next, sauté some onion and garlic. No need for olive oil here, as the chicken fat and butter are enough.

3. Make the flour base. Add flour to the pot and stir, then add water, salt, and pepper. Add chicken back to the pot and let it simmer.

4. Add heavy cream to the pot. Add a splash of cream, adjust seasoning and let everything simmer together on medium-high heat until the chicken is fully cooked.

Garnish the chicken with some chopped fresh parsley for a restaurant-quality look.

Recipe FAQs

Leftovers

You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. You might need to add a little water when reheating as the sauce tends to thicken more when cold.

We recommend reheating on the stovetop but putting the sauce in a baking dish and baking on very low heat could work as well.

Yield: 6 servings
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 30 minutes

Ingredients

2-3 pounds chicken thighs, 5-6 chicken thighs
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon white or black pepper, divided
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon flour
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder
½ cup heavy cream
4 sprigs parsley, minced

Method

Season both sides of the chicken with half a teaspoon of salt and a quarter teaspoon of white or black pepper.
Place a wide-bottom pot or large skillet on medium-high heat. Place chicken in the pot (no need to add any oil before placing the chicken – the fat rendered from the chicken will be sufficient) and let it cook on one side for about 7 minutes. Flip to the other side and let it cook for another 5 minutes or until desired doneness. Remove chicken from pot. If the chicken splatters while cooking, reduce the heat and let it cook slowly.
To the same pot, add the butter and let it melt. Add the diced onion and minced garlic and saute until fragrant for about 2 minutes.
Add the flour and stir. Let the flour cook in the butter for 1 minute while stirring continuously.
Slowly add 2 cups of water into the pot and stir.
Add the chicken bouillon powder, remaining 1/4 teaspoon of white (or black) pepper and stir.
Add back the chicken to the pot. Make sure the chicken is completely immersed in the liquid or spoon some of the liquid on top to cover it. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, open and stir.
Add the heavy cream then let it simmer for another 3 minutes. Taste to ensure seasoning is perfect. We like a little more white pepper so we add some more at this point.
Add chopped parsley and stir then turn off the heat.
Serve with boiled rice or pasta. Garnish with more parsley if desired.