Restaurant-Style Chicken Marsala-Impressive, easy, and tasty recipe!

Chicken Marsala is a very popular dish in many Italian restaurants all over the world. This recipe is incredibly easy to prepare at home and you will be very proud of yourself for doing so. Chicken Marsala is best descried as chicken cutlets in a creamy mushroom sauce made with Marsala wine. It is then served over pasta, usually angel hair, or a side of your choice.

Why I love this this Chicken Marsala Recipe:

1. Tastes like a dinner from a 5 star restaurant
2. It requires one pan- less clean up time
3. It will be ready in as little as 45 minutes

The Marsala Wine:

Marsala wine is wine fortified in the city of Marsala located in southern Italy. Although Marsala wine is great to sip on, its distinct flavor makes it great for cooking. Marsala gives a lovely aroma along with a nutty, brown sugar flavor. For this recipe, I recommend dry Marsala wine because sweet Marsala gives off more of a caramelized flavor rather than nutty.

Can I substitute Marsala Wine?

The uniqueness of this recipe Chicken Marsala recipe is certainly the Marsala wine. The closest substitute to Marsala wine is Madiera wine. The second best choice to substitute the Marsala wine with Sherry. Much of the alcohol content evaporates while cooking you you will only be left with the flavor of the wine. Due to this, I do not recommend skipping the wine in this Restaurant Style Chicken Marsala recipe.

Preparing the Chicken: 

This recipe will make 4 serving, each serving being one chicken cutlet. You can either purchase already tenderized chicken cutlets, or you can make your own. I make my own chicken cutlets but slicing the chicken breast down the center. Then, place each slice in a plastic back, or cover it with plastic. Once covered, flatten each chicken slice with a meat tenderizer and season well with salt and pepper. Once the chicken is seasoned,  cook in a a frying pan, about 5-7 minutes on each side on medium low heat.

Making the best part- the creamy Marsala mushroom sauce:

I know it sounds like a fancy meal that only a professional chef can make but the truth of the matter is that anyone can make this, including you. :) I will briefly list the steps below and you can see for yourself...

1. In the frying pan used to cook the chicken in, sauté your already sliced mushrooms.
2. Add onions and garlic to the mushrooms.
3. Add 2 tablespoons of  butter and flour (we're still in the one and only frying pan)
4. Add the liquids and seasonings.
5. Let it simmer.
6. Add chicken.

Don't worry- I won't leave you hanging here- the detailed instructions are below but I wanted to show you how quick this Restaurant Style Chicken Marsala comes together.

Truth about chicken broth and its substitute. 

If you don't have chicken broth at home and that's the only ingredient you are missing, worry not! Just use water. You already cooked the chicken in the frying pan, leaving lots of chicken flavor in there. Once you add the water, all flavors in your frying pan from the chicken will get released. Do not get rid of your chicken bits after cooking your chicken. Those chicken bits will leave so much flavor in your dish whether you use water or chicken broth. The only thing I recommend when using water instead of chicken is to double the seasonings (salt, pepper, and parsley). Believe me, no one will ever notice if you choose water over chicken broth.

What is Chicken Marsala paired with?

Restaurant Style Chicken Marsala is usually paired with angel hair pasta however I think it goes great with lots of other side dishes. If you don't want to take the pasta route, other great options to explore are baked potatoes, rice, roasted vegetables, cauliflower rice, or mashed potatoes. 

Making ahead and freezing instructions:

Although this recipe works great being made ahead of time, I (don't hate me) don't recommend freezing it. Freezing Chicken Marsala strongly compromises the texture of the chicken as well as the flavor and consistency of the mushroom Marsala sauce. On the bright side, you can definitely make it ahead of time (up to 3 days) and store it in the refrigerator. Reheating is easy!  Stick it in the microwave for a couple of minutes and you're good to go. If you find that your sauce is not as creamy enough when reheated in the microwave, add a teaspoon of heavy cream or milk, mix it, and stick it in the microwave for another couple of minutes. A little goes a long way here so you don't want to go overboard with the milk!

Ingredients:

•2 chicken breasts, cut along the middle to make 4  cutlets
•2 Тbs olive oil, more if needed
•2 cups bella mushrooms, sliced medium thick⠀
•1/2 large chopped onion⠀
•1-2 garlic cloves, grated⠀
•2 Tablespoons butter

•1/2 tablespoon all purpose flour⠀
•3/4 cup chicken broth 
•2/3 cup marsala wine, dry⠀
•1/4 cup heavy cream (or whole milk)⠀
•1/2 Tablespoons parsley⠀
•salt and pepper ⠀ ⠀

Directions:

1. Slice the two chicken breasts down the center so that you are left with 2 thinner slices. Cover the slices with plastic wrap and flatten them with a meat tenderizer.
2. Season both sides of all 4 cutlets with salt and pepper.
3. Place the chicken in a large skillet with heated oil and  cook the chicken breasts for about 5-7 minutes on each side on medium low heat, adding more oil if needed. Once fully cooked, remove chicken from the frying pan and set aside.
4. In the same frying pan used to cook the chicken, drizzle more oil if needed and add the sliced mushrooms. Sauté the mushroom until softened.
5. Add chopped onions and garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes until the onions are translucent.
6. Add butter and once it melts, add flour and whisk quickly.
7. Pour in Marsala wine, chicken broth, heavy cream and let it simmer on low heat for 2-3 minutes.
8. Add chicken to the sauce and season with salt, pepper, and parsley. Let the sauce cook for another 3 minutes with the chicken in it.
9. Remove from heat and enjoy over pasta!