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.
Video
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This was AMAZING! always looking for quick and easy things to fill my hubby. I boiled the potatoes for about 20 minutes before and it was perfect. Definitely keeping this in rotation and next time I might try boneless chicken thighs just to get that same delicious meat without cutting around the bone.
This was so easy and oh so delicious! Will definitely become a staple in my home!
WOW! This is sooooo good. One of our regular meals. Fam loves it!!!!
This was a fairly easy recipe to follow and wow! It delivered on the taste! I’ll be adding this into my regular rotation.
Super tasty and easy to make but, I hate to say, my potatoes didn’t cook either. I read the reviews so I cut them smaller and covered with foil but they still didn’t cook in 30 minutes. Will DEFINITELY make again, just plan accordingly. Thank you for sharing such a yummy recipe!
This is a delicious recipe. My family loved it. I made it with chicken breasts. Next time I think I will parboil the potatoes before putting the chicken in the oven. I also may make more sauce.
It was SO delicious! The only thing I would do differently next time is use skinless chicken thighs. You can make the skin nice and crispy before they go into the sauce but as soon as they do it gets soggy from soaking it in.
Ive made this recipe over 7 times now.. with a few alterations, and it is one of the top 10 recipes my whole family really loves.
I first recommend to boil potatoes (we add carrots as well to substitute the spinach) for about 5 to 10 min prior to baking to ensure soft tots amd carrots. My hubby likes it that way like his pot roasts. I also double the chicken stock and use 1.5 cups of heavy cream to add more sauce – since that is basically my favorite part . Which probably calls for a little added flour and butter to make the roux in order to ensure the same consistency of said yummy sauce. We eat it with buttered bread, preferably dipped in that amazing sauce. Lol. Thanks a bunch for this wonderful recipe that my 2 little picky eaters can enjoy without a single fuss!
This has actually become a staple at my home! When I let others people try it they absolutely love it! I’ve been asked toake this countless times since my first time finding this recipe. I actually made this last night for a new years party lol. This is amazing.!!! We are lactose intolerant so we sub the 1/2 &1/2 for lactose free milk but it tastes so good still. Or possibly even better since it doesn’t upset my stach
This dish is easy to make and so darn delicious. Once the weather changes and it cools off from summer, this is always added to our dinner rotations. The sauce rich and has great depth of flavor with the spinach, garlic and cheese. I also deglaze the pan with a bit of white wine before melting the butter for the sauce. Soooooo good!
My husband and I made this…OMG… sooo good! Will definitely make again! Made a few things different, worked out perfect .
Chicken was very tender and the sauce was delicious. If I make it again, I would use skinless, boneless chicken thighs and skip the step of searing as the skin didn’t get as crispy as I anticipated. I would also roast the potatoes for at least a half hour before adding them to the chicken as they weren’t cooked through. Otherwise, very tasty!
I made this !! So yummy,, I triple the sauce
This was delicious! I added mushrooms and covered the dish with foil, so had no problem with the potatoes being uncooked.
Question
Can I use chicken breasts?
Yummy. Will do it again!
This was absolutely delicious! It’s barbecue season here in the Northeast but, after grilling all week, I was ready for a comfort dinner and this was IT! Wow!
I used 4 small chicken breasts instead of the thighs. Everything else was the same and it was fantastic! My hubby and I were licking the sauce up!
We had 2 leftover breasts so, for the second night, I parboiled the potatoes and browned them up in a frying pan. I removed them, added the butter and cooked the spinach with the garlic, I removed the chicken from the bone and shredded it a bit. I made another batch of the sauce because there wasn’t much left…AND… at the end, I tossed in some Boursin Garlic and Fine Herb and let that melt right in. Oh. My. Goodness!
This is going onto our dinner rotation!!
I have been making this dish for quite a few yrs now and everyone in my home loves it. I do add mushrooms to the dish as well when I have them and cook my chicken in a Dutch oven with a little chicken or vegetable broth and olive oil, for about an hour before I make the rest of the dish an throw the chicken in. Yes ik it takes longer but the chicken is super soft. I only do this because I personally don’t like big cubes of meat, so making it melt is much more pleasing to my palette.
Thanku for posting this awesome recipe! 🙂
Soo good! Used chicken breast tenderloin and I boiled potatoes first . My 3 boys love it!
That was my plan, as well. How long did you boil the potatoes? Also, how long in the oven overall?
Thanks!
Tracy
I’ve been making this recipe for years now and it’s a favorite by far.
I making it again however and the temperature in the recipe is not what it has been. And according to the recent reviews, everyone is using this new temperature. The video still says 400° for 25-30 minutes. Do that and your chicken and potatoes will cook perfectly!!