Chicken and Potatoes with Garlic Parmesan Cream Sauce
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A complete meal in one! Baked crisp-tender chicken with potatoes and spinach, so good!
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I have been using this recipe for years! At least 5! I have tried this with all sorts of chicken (boneless skinless thighs are our favorite, but mostly for ease of cutting with 4 younger kids), but what I came here to say is TRY THIS WITH SWEET POTATOES! We like it with regular, but we substituted one time because it’s all we had and we never went back! Sooo yummy. We dice ours into smaller cubes and layer at the bottom of the dish, making sure chicken and sauce cover/coat the potatoes, and we don’t have a problem with undercooked. It’s delish!
why i love this recipe
- Complete meal-in-one. This hearty chicken dinner has it all! And the potatoes and spinach (or any other leafy greens) are baked right in, soaking up all the flavors of liquid gold (aka pan juices).
- Includes the most heavenly, dreamy garlicky Parmesan cream sauce. This is a cream sauce of dreams – rich, silky and just so so good, coating the chicken and potatoes oh-so-perfectly.
- Impressive and budget-friendly. Using bone-in chicken thighs is inexpensive and so impressive for weekend company or visiting family (added bonus: dark meat is much more flavorful and juicier than white meat).
- Plenty of leftover sauce. The gift of leftover sauce can only mean one thing – you can toss with pasta, toss with rice, toss with all of the things. Or sop with all the crusty bread (my personal favorite).
how to make this impressive yet easy peasy chicken and potato dinner
- Make the garlic parmesan cream sauce until the desired consistency is reached (note: heavy cream will yield a richer sauce)
- Season the chicken and sear until the skin is golden brown and crispy
- Cook the spinach until wilted in the pan juices
- Add everything to a baking dish, roasting until both the chicken and potatoes are cooked through and tender
- Serve, spooning over some of that leftover sauce on anything and everything
tips and tricks for success
- Bone-in is ideal. While boneless, skinless chicken thighs can be used with a shorter cooking time, bone-in will be juicier and have extra flavor.
- Brown the chicken first. This will add all the extra, deeper flavors here, sealing all the juices inside, and keeping the chicken nice and crisp while baking.
- Add in leafy greens. This is a great recipe to sneak in leafy greens for those picky eaters. Spinach, kale, collard greens, swiss chard, or arugula are all great options.
- Make it richer (or lighter). Heavy cream will have a higher fat content than half and half or milk, yielding a thicker consistency. Swap out the half and half for heavy cream for a richer sauce, or whole milk for a lighter sauce.
- Freshly grated Parmesan goes a long way. Pre-packaged shredded cheese contains anti-caking agents that can hinder their ability to melt smoothly. Freshly grated cheese is always best, melting more smoothly and evenly, and creating a far superior cream sauce.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
pro tip
Use baby potatoes.
Baby potatoes are ideal here to ensure that they cook through at the same rate as the chicken, yielding evenly cooked, crisp-tender potatoes. Baby potatoes also require minimal prep time and do not require peeling. If using larger potatoes, cut into smaller, uniform pieces to ensure even cooking until soft and tender.
what to serve with Chicken and Potatoes with Garlic Parmesan Cream Sauce
Chicken and Potatoes with Garlic Parmesan Cream Sauce: Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use fresh herbs instead?
Absolutely! But because dried herbs are often more potent/concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. The correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs to 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
What is half and half?
Half and half is equal parts of whole milk and cream. For 1 cup half and half, you can substitute 3/4 cup whole milk + 1/4 cup heavy cream or 2/3 cup skim or low-fat milk + 1/3 cup heavy cream.
What can I substitute for the spinach?
Kale, cabbage, swiss chard and collard greens are all great subs.
How can I store leftovers?
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Chicken and Potatoes with Garlic Parmesan Cream Sauce
A complete meal in one! Baked crisp-tender chicken with potatoes and spinach, so good!
Ingredients
- 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 3 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 16 ounces baby Dutch potatoes, halved*
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
For the garlic parmesan cream sauce
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup chicken broth, or more, as needed
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ cup half and half*
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly oil a 9 x 13 baking dish or coat with nonstick spray.
- Season chicken with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper, to taste.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken, skin-side down, and sear both sides until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side; set aside.
- Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in the skillet. Stir in spinach and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to wilt, about 2 minutes; set aside.
- Place chicken in a single layer into the prepared baking dish. Top with potatoes, spinach and garlic Parmesan cream sauce.
- Place into oven and roast until completely cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 25-30 minutes.
- Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
For the garlic parmesan cream sauce
- Melt butter in the skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
- Gradually whisk in chicken broth, thyme and basil. Cook, whisking constantly, until incorporated, about 1-2 minutes.
- Stir in half and half and Parmesan until slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes. If the mixture is too thick, add more half and half as needed; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
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Greasy, soupy mess, though I followed the recipe precisely. I had to up the cooking time, though I cut my potatoes into 1/8ths. Decent flavor but probably won’t make again. My 4 & 7 year olds liked the flavor of the chicken, but the soupy cream sauce (which was perfect on the stove top) was a huge turn off for us all.
Next time I will probably just cook the chicken separate from the potatoes & top with the cream sauce at the end so it’s not broken
I made this last night, it was a hit . So much flavor. I just kept making everything in the same pan to keep all those juices for cream sauce.
AMAZING!!!!!
I would love to make this dish but I do not understand what half and half is, or am I being thick.
Hope someone can help.
Thanks
Anne in the UK.
The UK equivalent seems to be half cream or single cream. You can read more about it here. Hope that helps!
This recipe was amazing!! I doubled it for 8 people, with 16 thighs,used my large electric skillet to do the whole thing, the
bottom of the pan was scraped clean! This one is a keeper! Thanks!
I added a large onion and it was great!!! Thanks for the recipe!!!
I made this last weekend and it was oh so good and delicious!!! I had some green beans with it to make a complete meal. Might try with skinless chicken and half butter to see if that will be just as tasty. Very easy to prepare and not much clean up. I gave numerous copies to my friends and will be making this again tonight! Thank you so much for this recipe!!!!!
I want to make this so badly but I am not a fan of parmesan cheese. I don’t like the smell. Can I substitute it?
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
Just made this today and it was great. I never seem to do a recipe without changing something. I omitted the Italian seasoning and just added more basil, more pototoes and fresh mushrooms. The variations were good
Prepared this one over the weekend. YUMMY! Everyone enjoyed it and said it is a repeater! Thank you again! Looking for the next one to try! So many GREAT choices!! I’ve been asked to do the salmon with sriracha sauce again. 🙂
I made this chicken dish tonight OMG first I made some bacon this morning so I saved my bacon grease to cook the chicken in and then I followed the recipe step by step except for spinach I used fresh green beans cooked them like the recipe called for the spinach what an amazing dish I can not wait for my husband to try this tomorrow. This will be a monthly dinner dish for us .
I made this yesterday and my family loves it. Thanks for your amazing recipe which has high success rate and so easy to follow.
I made this tonight and it was a big hit with my family of 5! It was damn delicious! I used boneless skinless breasts, which cooked in 20 minutes. I parboiled the potatoes and they came out perfectly. And I’m not sure why some commenters say the sauce has no flavor. It is outrageously flavorful! I did have to add salt and pepper to taste, of course. Great recipe! Going on Our Favs board.
This is a STUNNING looking recipe – the browned chicken is very prominent once the dish is cooked. This is a time consuming recipe however. Any tips for make ahead? Or can you make ahead and simply reheat? Respectfully yours…..
Yes, you can reheat as needed.
Delicious!!!! Was a hit with the family, I had no left-overs. Will make again soon. Thanks for the recipe!
Can you use all fresh herbs for this recipe or do you have to use the dry ones specified?
Yes, you can absolutely use fresh herbs! The ratio for fresh to dry herbs is typically 3:1.
Thanks for the reply. My family loved it. We took suggestions above and added mushrooms when see sautéed the spinach.
Made this twice and it’s been a hit! Made a couple of substitutions / edits: (1) used chicken stock instead of broth (richer flavor); (2) subbed whole milk for the half and half (sauce is a bit thinner but still very good); (3) added some rosemary to the chicken; (4) pre-roasted potatoes in a little olive oil and italian seasoning for 10 min in oven while preparing rest of dish — helps make sure they’re fully cooked. Could also par-boil as some comments have suggested. Also, I use the bagged Kraft parmesan cheese since that was all i had available — and it still tasted great!
What an amazing simple dish! I bought boneless by accident but turned out great! Just had potatoes night before so made rice on the side& spooned sauce on after, yummy! Thanks so much for turning every day boring chicken into heaven!!
I have made this twice now, and it is absolutely delicious! My husband said it is the best chicken dish he has ever eaten. I used very small gourmet Dutch potatoes as called for in the recipe, so they were cooked through fine. I did use heavy cream instead of half and half, that’s the only thing I did differently.
I have all of ingredients BUT half and half /heavy cream. I do have whole milk. Due to the weather situation we’re having in Louisiana right now, flooded..curfews, I can not leave my home. What can I do/use?
I REALLY want to cook this for supper tonight/NOW.
HELP
You can substitute whole milk.
I made an extra pan of sauce to drizzle over the finished product on our plates. (My husband is a “smothered and covered” kind of guy.) Will definitely make again as well as revisit for more awesome recipes as I’m new to Chungah’s magic!