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This easy creamy spinach artichoke chicken skillet recipe brings your favorite appetizer to your dinner plate for a tasty weeknight option.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Golden chicken cutlets are smothered in a creamy spinach and artichoke sauce inspired by everyone’s favorite hot appetizer dip. It’s kind of incredible! Especially if you love a good chicken skillet dinner and need a break from the usual rich casserole bake.
My version brings more parmesan than cream cheese to emulate that sharp, bold, slightly nutty flavor in spinach artichoke dip. And with only two tablespoons of cream cheese, we still get that perfect rich and silky texture.
This is an incredibly easy recipe. If you’ve ever made my other chicken skillet meals like my easy chicken piccata or easy chicken marsala, this is very similar in prep time and cooking style. And it’s so yummy!
What to Serve This With
- This chicken is absolutely delicious with this mashed potato recipe because you can smother them with that luscious sauce, though oven-roasted mini potatoes are great too
- A simple Instant pot rice pilaf
- For veggies, we love an easy grilled asparagus, air fryer green beans, and oven-roasted broccoli with nutritional yeast
- Simple salads like Caesar with my homemade Caesar dressing or a simple chopped side salad
Ingredient Breakdown & Swaps
- Boneless skinless chicken. You can use already prepared chicken cutlets or you can use boneless, skinless chicken breasts and turn them into cutlets (here’s how to make chicken cutlets). Or you could leave the breasts as is and increase the cook time. Boneless skinless chicken thighs would also work.
- Flour. For dredging.
- Seasoning. Salt & pepper to season the cutlets, and a little garlic powder and onion powder to kick up the flour dredge.
- Olive oil.
- Butter.
- Garlic.
- Chicken broth.
- Lemon juice & zest. I love adding lemon to this recipe because it really brightens up the flavors.
- Dijon mustard. This adds a little tang to the sauce!
- Cheeses. Parmesan cheese is the ticket to really getting that universal spinach and artichoke dip flavor. You could also use Romano cheese. Then of course a smidgen of cream cheese to add that creaminess and tanginess!
- Baby spinach. Use fresh—it will wilt nicely in the sauce, and quickly! You could use frozen, but be sure to squeeze all of the excess water out of it before adding it to the pan.
- Artichokes. I use marinated artichokes for extra flavor, but you could use artichokes in water instead.
- Heavy cream. Stick with heavy cream; light dairy or milk could curdle from the high heat.
How to Make Spinach Artichoke Chicken
Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then season the flour. Dredge each chicken cutlet in the flour and set aside.
Melt 1 TBSP of butter in a skillet over medium heat, then add the olive oil. Decrease heat to medium-low and cook the cutlets until golden brown and lightly crispy, about 2-3 minutes, then flip and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Do this in two batches to avoid overcrowding the pan.
Remove the cutlets from the pan and set them aside on a plate. In a small bowl, whisk 1/2 cup broth with 1 TBSP lemon juice, the zest of one lemon, and 1/2 tsp of Dijon mustard. Pour this into the hot pan and bring it to a simmer. Deglaze the pan with a spatula, scraping up all of those flavorful browned bits into the sauce.
Add the garlic and simmer for about 30 seconds, then stir in the shredded parmesan cheese and cream cheese. Stir them as they melt to create a nice smooth sauce. Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the cream.
Bring the pan back to the stove over low heat and stir in the spinach and artichokes, stirring as the spinach wilts. Bring to a low simmer.
Nestle the cutlets into the spinach and artichoke sauce. Simmer on low until the chicken is warmed through and registers an internal temperature of 160-165º F.
Hit the cutlets with a little extra cracked pepper, red pepper flakes if you like it spicy, and serve, spooning the sauce over the cutlets when you plate them.
Storage, Freezing, & Reheating
- You can store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- I don’t recommend freezing leftovers because of the cream sauce. Cream sauces often break once they thaw, leaving the texture totally off.
- The easiest way to reheat leftovers is in the microwave, heating it in 25 second increments until it’s warmed through.
Have You Made This Recipe?
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More Easy & Delicious Chicken Dinners
- Mustard & Herb Sheet Pan Chicken Thighs
- Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets
- Chicken Marsala
- Lemon Herb Spatchcock Chicken
- Easy Chicken Piccata
- Chicken Paprikash
Ultimate Spinach Artichoke Chicken Skillet
Ingredients
- 4 chicken cutlets OR 2 breasts cut into cutlets, *See instructions
- Sea salt & cracked black pepper
- Flour for dredging
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tesp onion powder
- 1 TBSP olive oil
- 2 TBSP butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 TBSP lemon juice
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan
- 2 TBSP cream cheese
- 2 cups ribboned or roughly chopped spinach
- 12 oz jar of marinated artichokes, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- If you're using chicken breasts, slice into them to butterfly them, then completely separate them so you have two individual cutlets. Repeat the same with the other two. Place the chicken cutlets into a gallon-sized freezer bag and pound them with a meat mallet until they are even in thickness.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper; set aside. Season the flour with the onion and garlic powders, then dredge the chicken cutlets in the flour and set them aside.
- Heat a skillet over medium heat, then melt 1 TBSP of butter into it. Add the olive oil, and decrease the heat to medium-low. Place the cutlets into the pan and cook until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes. Flip them and cook for another 2-3 minutes, or until that side is golden brown. You'll probably have to cook the chicken in two batches to avoid overcrowding the pan.
- Remove the chicken from the pan; set them aside on a plate. In a small bowl, whisk 1/2 cup broth with 1 TBSP lemon juice, lemon zest, and 1/2 tsp of Dijon mustard. Pour this into the hot pan; bring it to a simmer. Deglaze the pan with a spatula and scrape up all of the flavorful browned bits into the sauce.
- Add the minced garlic to the pan and simmer for 30 seconds. Add the parmesan cheese to the pan followed by the cream cheese. Stir as they melt, creating a nice smooth sauce.
- Remove the pan from the heat. Slowly pour the cream in, stirring as you go. Place the pan back on the stove over low heat. Stir in the spinach and artichokes, and simmer until the spinach wilts.
- Once the spinach wilts, nestle the cutlets into the spinach and artichoke sauce. Simmer on low until the chicken is warmed through and registers an internal temperature of 160-165º F.
- Season the cutlets with a little extra cracked pepper, spoon some sauce over them, and serve.
I’m always looking for new chicken recipes to try. This one is delicious and I can’t wait to make it for dinner again!
I love chicken recipes. Thank you for sharing this, we loved it and I’m adding this to my dinner rotation
Turned out amazing!! Easy to follow instructions and delicious! I’ll be making this dish again asap!
I love the creaminess of the sauce with this chicken, and the spinach and artichoke work so well with it. My family loved it.