White Wine Chicken Recipe

If you are looking to get out of your weekly rotation of chicken recipes, my white wine chicken recipe is a great one for switching things up! It’s tender and flavorful thanks to the sautéed mushrooms and shallots and the sauce is delicious when combined with some crusty bread or mashed potatoes!

I find it’s one of the easiest white wine chicken recipes because it doesn’t take many ingredients and can be prepared easily on a weeknight if you plan ahead! This is also ideal if Valentine’s Day or a birthday falls on a weeknight. For more romantic dinner ideas see my 7 Valentine’s Day Dinner Ideas post. 

For another easy chicken recipe try my Lemon Thyme Spatchcock Chicken, an easy sheet pan dinner where the chicken and potatoes roast all on one pan. 

White Wine Chicken Recipe served in a terra cotta dish

What to Serve with This Recipe?

Watch My Video Demo of This Recipe Below

Step #1: Cook The Chicken Breasts

  • For this recipe, I like to use boneless skinless chicken breasts.
  • I find it’s easier to buy them already pounded into cutlets, because not only does it save time but they will also cook quicker than regular chicken breasts.

raw chicken breasts on a plate

Benefits of Sautéing with Butter and Oil?

  • When sautéing chicken breasts I like to use a combination of olive oil and butter.
  • The olive oil has a higher smoke point than butter, so you can heat the oil to a higher temperature than butter.
  • But the butter adds some nice flavor that will eventually contribute to the sauce.

pouring olive oil into a skillet

A Soft Sear Creates Tender Chicken

  • Cooking the chicken gently in oil and butter protects the chicken from scorching and results in a more tender piece of meat.
  • At this stage, the chicken doesn’t need to be fully cooked through, just lightly sautéed on each side.
  • You’ll cook it completely at a later stage. Then you can transfer the chicken to a plate to rest, while you prepare the sauce.

searing boneslles skinless chicken breasts in a skillet

Step #2: Cook the Shallots and Mushrooms

  • I really love the addition of shallots and mushrooms in this recipe. I find it adds a bit more interest and texture to the dish.
  • To begin, you’ll sauté up some shallots on medium-high heat until they are translucent and fragrant. I like to give those a head start before adding the mushrooms, to bring out their best flavor.

cooking shallots in a skillet

Why Slicing Your Own Mushrooms Works Best

  • It’s best to slice the mushrooms yourself, as opposed to buying them pre-sliced, because you can control the thickness that way.
  • Thinner mushrooms will create a better texture with the sauce and is easier to eat that way too.
  • They also cook quicker the thinner they are as well!
  • And if you have leftover mushrooms you can also try my Cream of Mushroom Soup with Crispy Leeks, a great soup recipe for the fall!

Make-Ahead Tip:

  • You can pre-slice the mushrooms and chop the shallots in advance and keep them covered and refrigerated.
  • That way it’s a bit easier to throw together once it’s time to cook.

slicing mushrooms on a cutting board

#3: Create the White Wine Sauce

Once the mushrooms and shallots have cooked down you’ll season them with salt and pepper and then add the white wine.

What is the Best White Wine to Cook With? 

  • When preparing chicken dishes, I find Chardonnay to be the best choice because the flavor is deeper and will create a more flavorful sauce.
  • However crisper white wines like Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc would also work.

cooking mushrooms and shallots in a skillet

Reducing the Wine Sauce

  • Cook your sauce until you’ve reduced the wine to about a third.
  • This will cook off the alcoholic taste and deepen the flavor of the sauce.
  • Then you can transfer this mixture to a bowl to rest while you create the rest of the sauce.

reducing wine and mushrooms with shallots in a skillet

Seasoning the Sauce

  • Once the base of the sauce has been made you will season with garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and some flat-leaf parsley.
  • At this stage, you’ll add back in the mushroom and shallot mixture, stirring to combine and warm the veggies through.

white wine sauce for chicken with mushrooms and shallots

Cooking the Chicken Breasts Through

After the sauce is prepared, you can then add the chicken breasts back in, spooning the white wine sauce over the chicken and simmering until the sauce is thickened and the chicken is cooked through.

spooning white wine sauce over chicken breasts in skillet

Plating this Recipe:

  • I like to serve this recipe in a shallow dish, and garnish with some more flat-leaf parsley.
  • You’ll love this recipe because it’s super easy and delicious and always wows a crowd!

White wine chicken recipe

Please let me know if you make this recipe

by leaving a rating and review below

White Wine Chicken Recipe in a terra cotta bowl

White Wine Chicken Recipe

Yield: serves 4
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

White Wine Chicken is a great chicken recipe for a weeknight meal that's also elegant enough for entertaining too.

Ingredients

  • 4 (1 lb) boneless, skinless chicken cutlets
  • 4 tbsp (60 g) butter, separated
  • 1 tbsp (15 ml) olive oil
  • 1 shallot, mined
  • 1 cup (150 g) white mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • ½ cup (120 ml) dry white wine, separated
  • 2 tbsp (15 g) flour
  • 1 cup (240 ml) chicken broth
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • ¼ cup (60 ml) whole milk
  • 3 dashed Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tbsp (15 ml) fresh parsley, minced
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Season chicken with salt and pepper, both sides. Heat 1 tbsp (15 g) butter and 1 tbsp (15 ml) olive oil in a large skillet. Once sizzling, place chicken in skillet and sauté on both sides until almost cooked through but not completely. Set chicken aside on a plate to rest.
  2. Meanwhile, sauté shallots and mushroom in the pan drippings until soft and tender. Add a little more olive oil if needed. Then deglaze pan with ¼ cup (60 ml) of the wine, scrapping up the brown bits with a wooden spoon. Reduce the mixture by 1/3 and then transfer it to a bowl and set aside.
  3. In a cleaned-out skillet, melt 3 tbsp (45 g) of butter. Once foamy add the flour, cook for 1 minute until a paste forms. Slowly whisk in the chicken broth and remaining ¼ cup of wine and simmer, whisking all the while, until thickened. Then whisk in the garlic, milk, Worcestershire sauce and parsley. Then add in the cooked shallots and mushroom mixture. Season with salt and pepper if needed.
  4. Add the chicken to the sauce, spooning it over the chicken, cover and simmer for 5 minutes, to finish cooking the chicken all the way through.
  5. Transfer chicken to a small platter or shallow casserole dish and spoon sauce over it.
  6. This dish pairs really well with my smashed or mashed potato recipes!

Notes

To save time you could cook the mushroom shallot mixture in advance.

If you don't drink alcohol you could replace the quantity of wine with more chicken broth

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 231Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 71mgSodium: 373mgCarbohydrates: 12gFiber: 1gSugar: 4gProtein: 20g
Brownie cake scooped into a mug with ice cream

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35 Comments

  1. Great Dish Beth! My husband is appreciative of a good meal but he is very picky and he Loved this dish! Nothing I like better than serving a dish he likes. He said the sauce was dreamy!

    Thank you,
    Cheryl

  2. Hello Beth – so loved your chicken recipe with Tarragon so I am anxious to try this one tonight. That said although the mushrooms are an NB part of this recipe could you substitute them with another item? Thanks in advance.

  3. Delicious my husband and i loved it, because it’s just the two of us, we cut the recipe in half, but not the wine or the mushrooms, would definitely make it for company coming! Who knows when that will be 🤷‍♀️ Great recipe 👍😊

  4. This looks so delicious…can’t wait to try it. Just want to thank you for all your great recipes and the videos are exceptional. I save then all and really get excited to try new ones. I just basically cook for myself, occasionally for son, daughter-in-law and grandkids but they live a bit of a distance away and it’s sometimes difficult to transport meals. So looking forward to this one soon.

    1. Aww I’m so glad you enjoy them! This recipe is a favorite of ours, I hope you enjoy it too! 🙂 Happy New Year!

  5. Hi Beth!
    This is wonderful!! I made this with your Smashed Potatoes and it is a beautiful, company worthy dish!!!
    It did take a couple of hours, but tender and delicious!! I am 80 years old, but still love to try new recipes, set a pretty table and WOW my guests!!!

  6. This looks delicious. Can it be made ahead of serving time? If so, how would you reheat it without it drying out?
    Your recipes are great! Thank you for your thorough explanations.

    1. This is a hard recipe to make ahead of time. But I think what I would do is make the whole dish. Place in a casserole that is not too big or shallow (so the sauce doesn’t dry out when reheating) refrigerate, and then add 1-2 tablespoons of water to the sauce to loose (since the cornstarch may thicken too much as it cools) and then cover with foil and reheat at 350F for 20 mins or until the chicken is warmed through. I wouldn’t put it in the microwave for fear of damaging the texture of the chicken. Hope that helps ad so happy yo know you are enjoying the recipes! 🙂

  7. Exceeded my expectations! absolutely delicious. A little time consuming, but worth it. Great depth of flavor. I served it with the smashed red skin potatoes with the garlic butter, yum! I’m printing this recipe and keeping it in my “yum” file.
    Thank you.

    1. Aww YAY! I love it that I made it into the “Yum file!” I’m so honored! 🙂 Yes this one is a bit time consuming, great for a Sunday night dinner, and I’m SO glad you made it with the smashed potatoes that’s the best combo! YOu can also serve those with my Chicken Picatta Recipe too which is a lot quicker to prepare! Hope you enjoy!

  8. As always, Beth, you are the BEST. I love your recipes and have used man6 of them. This one is an absolute keeper, and I will make it as soon as I go grocery shopping again for all the ingredients. Thanks, Beth! (PS. Yes, black print please. 😁

    1. Oh no! So sorry about that! I think it must be a setting somewhere in my blog’s theme? I dig around to see if I can find it to make it darker!

  9. I’ve made this several times substituting when I had to. Yesterday I made it exactly as written because I even had shallots in the crisper. Wadda ya know – those shallots gave this dish a punch that took those chicken breasts to a whole different level. I’ll surely be making this in the future but not until I have everything at hand!

    1. Ha! Don’t they?! Shallots are my secret weapon in the kitchen! They bring so much flavor to anything they are paired with. You know is also good? Sautee a few up in some olive oil and salt and pepper then add them to an omelet with spinach and swiss cheese! SO good! And easy when you need a quick meal!

    1. Unfortunately, the oven would dry out the sauce too much :(. Best to finish on the cooktop! 🙂 Hope you enjoy!

  10. I consider myself a good cook and I’ve made many a version of white wine chicken but this dish really was superb and now one of my favorites!!!

  11. Hi Beth, I love following you. Your recipes are so delicious. I have one question. My husband doesn’t like mushrooms. Do you have any suggestions on replacement of mushrooms or should I just omit them. It would seem the mushrooms would add a lot of flavor to the sauce.

  12. Hi..Very proud following you on all the social media..and posting your recipes to my media…I liked this recipe very much and want to try it at Home..I am Non- Alcoholic how i can replace the white wine and still can enjoy such scrumptious Dish..thanks and best wishes…