Easy Chicken Fricassee with Mushrooms
Creamy chicken fricassee when you want real comfort without a long recipe.
Make this on a night when you want something warm, creamy, and a little old-school, but you do not have the energy for a fussy dinner. This chicken fricassee keeps the classic feel: browned chicken, mushrooms, a savory pan sauce, and a silky finish. It is faster than a traditional braise, but still tastes like you tried. You will need one skillet and about 40 minutes, so it fits the “I need dinner soon, but I want comfort” moment. Serve it over rice, noodles, or mashed potatoes if you want it extra soothing, or eat it as-is with bread to soak up the sauce.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs — Cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 tsp salt — Plus more to taste
- 0.5 tsp black pepper
- 3 tbsp all-purpose flour — Divided
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 8 oz mushrooms — Sliced
- 1 unit yellow onion — Thinly sliced
- 3 unit garlic cloves — Minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 cup chicken broth
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 0.5 cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley — For serving
Method
- 1 Toss the chicken with 1 tbsp flour, 1 tsp salt, and black pepper. Heat the olive oil and 1 tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, then brown the chicken for 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.
- 2 Add the remaining butter, mushrooms, and onion to the skillet. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the mushrooms release their liquid and the onion softens. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste for 30 seconds.
- 3 Sprinkle in the remaining 2 tbsp flour and stir for 1 minute. Slowly pour in the chicken broth, scraping up any browned bits, then add the thyme. Simmer for 5 minutes until slightly thickened.
- 4 Return the chicken and any juices to the skillet. Simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce looks silky.
- 5 Stir in the cream and lemon juice. Taste and add more salt if needed, then serve hot with parsley on top.
Variations
- Vegetarian swap — Replace the chicken with 2 cups cooked cannellini beans and add them at the end just long enough to warm through.
- Faster swap — Use thin chicken cutlets instead of thigh pieces and reduce the final simmer time to about 5 minutes.
- Easy substitutions — Use half-and-half instead of heavy cream for a lighter sauce, or swap mushrooms for peas if that is what you have.
Notes
If the sauce gets too thick, loosen it with a splash of broth or water. For the best comfort-food finish, serve it over rice, egg noodles, or mashed potatoes.
Equipment that helps
- Large skillet — A wide pan browns the chicken quickly and gives the sauce room to reduce.
- Wooden spoon — It helps scrape up the browned bits that make the sauce taste richer.
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