Creamy Lemon Chicken

Our easy Creamy Lemon Chicken is coated in a luscious creamy lemon sauce and can be ready in 30 minutes! Perfect for a weeknight meal or company!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword Creamy Lemon Chicken, creamy lemon chicken recipe, how do I make creamy lemon chicken, how to make creamy lemon chicken

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 25

Total Time 30

Servings people

Calories 508kcal

Author Kathleen

Remove chicken from packaging and dry with paper towels.
Add 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag. Add chicken, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat, shaking off excess flour as you remove it from the bag.
In a 12-inch skillet, melt butter (1/4 cup). Add the coated chicken pieces and cook over medium heat for 7-9 minutes per side or until chicken is cooked and an instant-read thermometer reads 170ºF (77ºC). Remove chicken to a plate and loosely cover with aluminum foil to keep it warm.
Add the chicken broth (1 cup) to the pan drippings. Bring to a boil over medium heat and stir well, lifting up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, about 8 minutes.
Add lemon slices, pushing them to the bottom of the skillet and continue simmering another few minutes or until the broth is reduced to about 1/3 of a cup. Remove the lemon slices to the plate of chicken.
Stir in 3/4 cup cream and then slowly add the lemon juice (3 tablespoons). Simmer over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of flour and the remaining 1/4 cup of cream to the skillet and whisk until smooth.
Bring sauce to a boil; cook for 1-2 minutes or until sauce has thickened.
Slip the chicken back in the sauce and flip it over once to coat. Garnish with caramelized lemon slices, lemon zest, and parsley as desired.

Don’t overcoat the chicken. You want just a light dusting of flour, not a heavy crust. Too much flour can make the sauce feel pasty instead of silky.
Brown the chicken well. That golden color adds flavor and helps build a better sauce in the skillet.
Add the lemon gradually. Stir the lemon juice in slowly rather than dumping it all in at once. That gives you more control over the flavor and helps keep the sauce smooth.
Keep the sauce at a gentle simmer. Once the cream is in the pan, avoid boiling it hard. A low, steady simmer gives you the smoothest texture.
Taste before serving. Some lemons are sharper than others. Taste the sauce at the end and adjust with a touch more cream, broth, or salt if needed.