These Creamy Bacon Chicken Breasts are dreamy, ultra creamy, quick and easy. Better still, it’s all made in one pan!
Chicken and bacon are a match made in heaven, and we’re here today to celebrate that fact. This is the cosiest food you’ll ever make and the perfect addition to your dinner rotations! Follow me…
Preparing Chicken Breast (tips)
First thing you’ll want to do is bring your chicken close to room temperature. I find that frying meat straight out of the fridge causes it to seize up and start releasing a lot of moisture. This, in turn, causes the meat to come out tough and dry. Alongside this, you won’t be able to brown the chicken properly because of the excess moisture, meaning you lose out on flavour.
Chicken Cutlets
Another tip when prepping chicken breast is butterflying each breast in two to double the quantity. This not only gives you a 2-for-1 kinda deal, but also means the chicken will cook through quicker and more evenly.
Dredging through flour
I like to coat the chicken in a thin layer of flour before frying it. This will ensure the chicken builds up a nice golden crust. In turn, the crust absorbs the sauce and helps it cling to the chicken, as opposed to just sliding off.
In terms of seasoning, I keep this one really simple. The sauce itself is loaded with flavour and clings to the chicken really nicely. As such, salt and black pepper work just fine for the chicken seasoning.
Process shots: slice chicken (photos 1&2), dredge through flour (photos 3&4).
Crispy Chicken and Bacon
When I originally uploaded this recipe, I began by frying the chicken and removing it from the pan, then frying the bacon and leaving it in as I made the sauce. In recent times, I’ve moved to frying the bacon first and then the chicken. This is for 2 reasons:
- Excess fat – frying the bacon first means you can fry the chicken in the leftover bacon fat. This reduces waste and adds flavour to the chicken/sauce.
- Crispiness – removing the bacon and adding it in at the end will keep it nice and crispy.
When it comes to frying the chicken, I like to use butter alongside the bacon fat, you know, because butter makes everything better! The chicken won’t take long – just a few minutes on each side until golden (it’ll carry on cooking slightly as it rests and when added back to the pan).
Process shots: fry bacon then remove (photos 5&6), fry chicken then remove (photos 7&8)
How to make Creamy Bacon Chicken
The sauce itself is an even split of chicken stock and cream. The flavour is deepened by freshly grated parmesan and a mild hint of thyme as well.
Lemon Juice
I like to add a very gentle squeeze of lemon juice to the sauce. The sauce itself, as you can imagine, is fairly rich. The lemon juice helps cut through the richness without altering the flavour too much. This is optional, but in all cases, only 1/2-1tsp is needed.
Shallots vs Onion
I use shallots here, just because they’re a little sweeter than onions. This sweetness helps balance out the salty/richness of the sauce. The difference is minimal though, so just use a regular white onion if that’s what you have. Just gently sweat them down to bring out their natural sweetness.
Process shots: fry onion and garlic (photo 9), add stock, cream, parmesan, lemon juice & thyme (photo 10), simmer then stir in bacon (photo 11), add chicken (photo 12).
Creamy Bacon Chicken FAQ
I like thick-cut streaky bacon. Choosing a thicker cut helps bulk out the dish a little more. Also opt for fattier cuts of bacon (i.e not medallions and definitely not turkey bacon). The fat helps create the base for the sauce.
So long as you’re using double/heavy cream, just keep simmering and stirring and it’ll naturally thicken – no additional thickening agent needed! The parmesan and lemon juice help thicken the sauce too.
This isn’t suitable for making in advance – fresh is best!
Serving Creamy Bacon Chicken
Once you’ve added the chicken back into the pan, just give them a good basting in the sauce then serve up! Here I’ve served with Salt & Vinegar Potatoes and Garlic Green Beans. Lemon Potatoes also go nicely, both are nice and vibrant/acidic, which complements this sauce really nicely.
You could also use Roasted Baby Potatoes for something more herby (all Potato Recipes Here). Roasted Broccolini would also work as a great sub for the green beans!
Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for this creamy bacon chicken shall we?!
How to make Creamy Bacon Chicken (Full Recipe & Video)
Creamy Bacon Chicken
Equipment
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Large Shallow Dish (for dredging chicken in flour)
- Large Pan & Tongs
- Wooden Spoon
- Jug (for stock & Cream)
Ingredients
Chicken
- 2x 250g/9oz Chicken Breasts, brought close to room temp
- 35g / 1/4 cup Plain Flour
- 1 tsp Salt, plus more to taste if needed
- 1 tsp Black Pepper, plus more to taste if needed
- 1 tbsp Butter
Sauce
- 150g / 5oz Streaky Bacon, chopped (preferably thick-cut)
- 2 small Shallots, finely diced
- 2 cloves of Garlic, finely diced
- 180ml / 3/4 cup Chicken Stock
- 180ml / 3/4 cup Double/Heavy Cream
- 20g / 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 2-3 sprigs of Fresh Thyme
- 1/2 – 1 tsp Fresh Lemon Juice (see notes)
Instructions
- Add the bacon to a large pan over medium heat and fry until crispy with the fat rendered down (start with a dash of oil if needed). Remove the bacon and place to one side, leaving 1 tbsp fat behind (just eyeball it – top up with oil if needed).
- Butterfly your chicken breasts right through the centre to make 4 even-sized breasts. In a large shallow dish, combine the flour, salt and pepper. One by one take a cutlet, coat it in the flour, give it a shake then place to one side.
- Turn the pan heat up slightly to medium-high, then melt the butter in with the bacon fat. Add the chicken and fry both sides for a few minutes until golden on the outside and just about cooked through the centre. Remove from the pan and place on a plate to one side.
- Lower the heat back to medium and fry the shallots in the leftover fat until soft and golden. Add the garlic and fry for 30 seconds or so, then add the stock and cream. Stir in the parmesan until it melts, then stir in the thyme and a gentle squeeze of lemon juice. Don't go overboard with the lemon, this is just to cut through the richness of the sauce.
- Simmer for a few minutes until the sauce starts to thicken, then stir most of the bacon (save some to garnish) and any resting juices from the chicken. Check for seasoning then add the chicken and baste in the sauce to warm it back through.
- Serve up with the extra crispy back then tuck in and enjoy.
Video
Notes
Your Private Notes:
Nutrition
Looking for more?
You’ll find plenty more delicious comfort food like this in my Debut Cookbook ‘Comfy’
For more similar recipes check out these beauties:
Creamy Chicken Recipes
- Creamy Garlic Chicken
- Creamy Honey Mustard Chicken Thighs
- Creamy Tarragon Chicken
- Creamy Boursin Chicken
- Creamy Garlic Mushroom Chicken
Chicken and Bacon Recipes
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
- Leftover Chicken and Bacon Pasta
- Ground Chicken Burgers with Bacon
- Bacon Wrapped Chicken Tenders
- Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, Bacon & Rice
This is basically chicken. Portofino
Very tasty and well named
Thanks Scott!