30-Minute Chicken Dijon with Creamy Sauce
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Chicken Dijon is an easy, elegant chicken recipe that’s so delicious on a weeknight or date night at home. Tender, juicy chicken thighs are cooked in a pan until golden brown, then simmered in a creamy Dijon mustard sauce seasoned with herbs and chopped spinach or kale. Serve with parmesan orzo pasta for dinner tonight!
Break out your big sauté pan, because this chicken Dijon recipe is a ridiculously easy weeknight meal. If you’re searching for an easy chicken recipe that’s elegant (and low-carb), you’ll 100-percent enjoy this.
“So good! My whole family enjoyed this recipe and asked me to add it to our dinner lineup permanently!”
~Jennifer
Aside from how downright good it tastes, by using bone-in chicken pieces you’ll be on your way to eating dinner in about half an hour.
We’re big fans of uncomplicated chicken dinners, especially those that cook in just one pan. I hope you’ll become inspired to cook chicken thigh recipes more often.
About the ingredients
- Chicken thighs: Chicken thighs are meaty and juicy, part of the chicken with lots of flavor. I prefer to cook bone-in, skin-on pieces (also essential to make oven-baked crispy chicken thighs with bone-in and skin-on), but the recipe will also work with skinless chicken thighs or boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs — scroll down to the recipe below for instructions and cooking times.
- Dijon mustard: Made with yellow mustard seeds and white wine, true Dijon mustard originated in France. It’s a piquant condiment that adds a savory, tangy note to just about any dish (it’s amazing with maple-glazed salmon!) Dijon and chicken are fantastic mates on their own, but with a little bit of seasoning it gets even better. In this recipe, Dijon is paired with dried herbs, garlic, lemon and cream to make a delectable sauce for the chicken.
- Herbs: I often reach for one of my favorite dried herb blends, herbs de Provence when cooking dinner. The perfect word to describe this aromatic herbal mix is mélange (French, of course), which translates to mean a medley or blend. The assorted herbs in the mix are ones you might trample on while cavorting through a field in the South of France. We’re talking thyme, tarragon, basil, marjoram and the lovely-smelling lavender. You can substitute with a mixture of dried thyme and tarragon, or use fresh herbs — if so, increase the amount to about 2 tablespoons.
- Cream: Heavy cream tempers the acidity of the mustard, smoothing the flavor beautifully. It’s rich and fatty and we love it. You don’t need much heavy cream to add unctuous texture to the sauce.
- Greens: A few handfuls of chopped greens like kale or spinach round out the dish, making it more of a one-dish dinner. Add them toward the end of cooking, just until they turn bright green and wilt into the sauce.
Recipe step photos:
1. Combine Dijon mustard, herbs, garlic, lemon juice and red pepper in a bowl. 2. Season the chicken well with salt and pepper, on both sides.
3. Brown the chicken in a large skillet, skin-side down in olive oil, then turn the pieces and cook 2 minutes. 4. Remove the chicken to a plate. Add chopped onion to the fat in the pan and cook until softened.
5. Add 1/4 cup chicken broth, stirring to dissolve any brown bits in the bottom of the pan. 6. Add flour and cook about 1 minute, until it starts to thicken.
7. Stir in the Dijon mixture and remaining broth. 8. Add the chicken back to the pan, skin-side up. Cover and simmer 15 minutes.
9. Uncover the pan and pour in the cream. Scatter the kale or spinach over the chicken. 10. Cover and return to a simmer for 5 minutes, until the sauce is thickened and the greens are wilted.
Cooking and serving tips:
- Be sure to dry the chicken skin well before adding to the hot oil in the skillet (paper towels work great). Dry skin will brown better in a hot pan.
- If you have time, season the chicken with salt and pepper let it sit out for 15 minutes before cooking.
- if you’re not concerned about cutting out carbs, serve this fabulous dish with roasted Parmesan smashed potatoes or egg noodles to capture the rich sauce.
30-Minute Chicken Dijon with Creamy Sauce
Dijon chicken is an easy, elegant chicken recipe that's so delicious on a weeknight or date night at home! Tender, juicy chicken thighs are cooked until golden brown, then simmered in a creamy Dijon mustard sauce with handfuls of chopped spinach or kale.
Ingredients
Creamy Dijon sauce
- 3 tablespoons (85 g) Dijon mustard
- 2 garlic cloves, grated or crushed
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) fresh lemon juice, about ½ lemon
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 2 teaspoons herbs de Provence, or 1 teaspoon each dried tarragon and dried thyme
- ¾ cup (125 ml) chicken broth
- ½ cup heavy cream
Chicken
- 6-8 pieces (900 g) bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, 2½-3 pounds
- Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup chopped onion, about ½ medium onion
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, or brown rice flour/gluten-free all purpose flour
- 2 cups kale or spinach, chopped
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the Dijon mustard, lemon juice, garlic, herbs and red pepper. Reserve the heavy cream and chicken broth.
- Pat the chicken thighs as dry as possible with paper towels (this will help crisp up the skin). Season the chicken generously on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Place a large (12-inch) non-stick saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil and heat until the surface is shimmering. Arrange the chicken pieces skin-side down in the pan and cook without moving them, until the skin turns golden brown, 5-7 minutes. Turn the chicken over and cook 2 minutes on the other side. Remove the chicken from the pan to a large plate. Note: Brown the chicken in two batches if the chicken seems crowded in the pan.
- Add the onion to the fat in the pan, and cook about 2 minutes, stirring, until softened. Pour in ¼ cup of chicken broth, scraping up the browned bits from the pan with a wooden spoon or spatula. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir it in, just until it starts to thicken.
- Stir in the Dijon mixture and remaining ½ cup broth. Add the chicken back to the pan, skin-side up. Cover the pan, lower the heat and cook 15 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer (not boiling).
- Uncover the pan. Pour the cream around the chicken pieces, and scatter the kale or spinach leaves over the top. Bring back to a simmer, then cover the pan and cook about 5 more minutes, until the kale is wilted and the chicken is cooked through (no longer pink at the bone).
- Serve the chicken with the pan juices spooned over. Enjoy!
Karen’s Notes and Tips
- The chicken keeps up to 5 days after cooking. Store in the refrigerator and reheat in a 350 oven until hot, about 15 minutes.
- Chicken browns best when it’s not wet. Be sure to pat the chicken skin well (paper towels work great).
- If you’d like to use boneless, skinless chicken parts (thighs or breasts), reduce the browning time to 2 minutes per side in step 3, and continue with the recipe as written.
- Substitute the dried herbs with 1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs, such as thyme, rosemary, tarragon, or a mixture.
Nutrition
Calories: 143kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Sodium: 213mg | Potassium: 153mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 2587IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 86mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutrition facts are calculated by third-party software. If you have specific dietary needs, please refer to your favorite calculator.
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Hey, I’m Karen
Creator of Familystyle Food
I’m a food obsessed super-taster and professionally trained cook ALL about creating elevated dinners with everyday ingredients. Find simplified recipes made from scratch and enjoy incredibly tasty food! Read more about me here.
I will never understand why those who post recipes are so wildly inaccurate with prep and cook times. I’m an experienced home cook and this dish took at least an hour to prep and cook. This is not 30 minute chicken, not even close.
If you’re not a huge fan of mustard flavor, cut a TB or so out of the recipe; it comes across pretty strongly. Otherwise this was a delicious dish but I’m glad I started making it early.
Tara – “30 minutes” refers to the actual cooking time for the chicken. Yes, when you total in the prep time, it might take longer than you anticipate because everyone’s cooking style and kitchen environment are different. Just like some people can run a mile in 8 minutes and for others it can take an hour! As for cooking the chicken, I’ve tested this recipe many times. Once you sear the chicken over medium-high heat, the pan-braising process shouldn’t take more than 25 minutes. I’m glad you enjoyed the dish after all!
So good! My whole family enjoyed this recipe and asked me to add it to our dinner lineup permanently!! I made spaghetti and put the chicken and sauce on top. Delicious and pretty easy to make.
Oh yes! This is soooo damn good!
This looks so good I think we will make it tonight! Can’t wait!