This creamy caramelized onion chicken is my go to when I want a flavorful, cozy dinner without leaving the house. Golden chicken breasts simmer in an umami-packed caramelized onion cream sauce. One reader told me her family literally licked their plates, and honestly, same.
Quick Summary: Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken
- ⭐️ What It Is: Creamy caramelized onion chicken is golden, pan seared chicken cutlets simmered in a jammy onion, garlic, and parmesan cream sauce with a kick of chili oil.
- 👍 Why Make This Recipe: A little sugar and water speed up the onions, so you get deep caramelized flavor in about 20 minutes.
- ⏰ Total Time: 45 minutes.
- 🧂 Key Ingredients: Chicken breasts, yellow onion, heavy cream, parmesan cheese, chili oil, and smoked paprika.
- 🚫 Skip This: No wine or roux needed, since the light flour dredge on the chicken thickens the sauce.
- 🫢 The Secret: Let the onions go fully golden brown before the cream goes in.
- ❓ Can I make it without chili oil? Yes, skip it for a mild, kid friendly version and add red pepper flakes to the grown ups’ plates.
- 🍽️ Best For: Weeknight dinners, date night at home, and feeding picky eaters.
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- Quick Summary: Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken
- What is Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken?
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Customizations and Substitutions
- How to Make Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken
- Herman's Expert Tips
- Storage
- Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken FAQs
- What to Serve with Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken
- Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken
What is Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken?
Creamy caramelized onion chicken is a one pan dinner of thin, flour dusted chicken breasts seared until golden, then simmered in a luscious cream sauce with sweet, golden brown onions, garlic, and parmesan.
My twist is chili oil. Growing up cooking Cantonese food in San Francisco, I learned a spoonful makes almost anything taste better. Love that low and slow onion flavor? Try my French onion melting cabbage or marry me melting cabbage.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Big Flavor, Weeknight Effort: It’s one pan using pantry staples, just like my creamy lemon garlic chicken.
- Made for Rice: The sauce is perfect spooned over rice, the same way I eat my chicken adobo with coconut milk.
- Picky Eater Approved: Readers say their pickiest kids clean their plates, and the chili oil is easy to skip.
Key Ingredients
- Chicken Breasts: Cut horizontally in half to get thin cutlets so they cook fast and stay juicy.
- Yellow Onion: Cooked down until sweet and jammy to build the base of the sauce.
- Chili Oil: My secret ingredient, which adds a bit of heat, depth, and a rich reddish brown color.
- Heavy Cream: Makes the sauce creamy without needing a roux.
- Parmesan Cheese: Adds salty, nutty flavor and helps thicken the sauce.
- Smoked Paprika: Gives the flour dredge a warm, subtle smokiness.
Customizations and Substitutions
- Swap the Protein: Boneless chicken thighs work great too.
- Add Mushrooms or Spinach: Sauté mushrooms before the onions, or stir in spinach right before the cream.
- Make It Dairy Free: Use coconut cream instead, similar to my coconut curry chicken.
- Turn It Into Pasta: Toss the sauce with fettuccine or go all in with my chicken fettuccine alfredo.
- Tone Down the Spice: Skip the chili oil and finish with parsley or a squeeze of lemon.
How to Make Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken
Butterfly the chicken
Slice the chicken breasts in half horizontally into ¼ inch cutlets and lightly salt both sides.
Dredge the chicken
Mix the flour, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper on a plate, then dredge each cutlet and shake off the excess.
Sear the chicken
Sear the chicken in olive oil over medium heat for 4-5 minutes per side until golden, then set it aside.
Caramelized the onions
In the same pan, cook the butter, onion, sugar, and water for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown.
Make the sauce
Stir in the garlic and chili oil for 30 seconds, then add the broth, cream, parmesan, and a pinch of salt and bring to a simmer.
Simmer the chicken
Return the chicken, spoon sauce over the top, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes until cooked through.
Garnish and serve
Garnish with cilantro and extra chili oil, then serve over rice, potatoes, or pasta.
Herman's Expert Tips
- Don’t Rush the Onions: Low and slow is key to making this caramelized onion chicken recipe. Lower the heat and add a splash of water to ensure it turns jammy and browned.
- Your Chili Oil Changes Everything: I use Fly By Jing, which makes a darker sauce, while lighter chili oils turn it more orange. My homemade lemongrass chili oil adds a fragrant twist.
- Grate Your Own Parmesan: Bagged shredded cheese can make cream sauces grainy, the same reason I grate fresh for my garlic parmesan chicken pasta.
Storage
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days, and reheat gently on the stove with a splash of broth. I don’t recommend freezing, since the cream sauce can separate.
Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken FAQs
Half and half works but makes a thinner sauce, so keep it at a gentle simmer. For dairy free, use full fat coconut cream.
Give the onions the full 15-20 minutes to brown, and check your chili oil, since darker brands make a richer brown sauce.
Yellow onions give the best balance of sweet and savory. Sweet onions work too but make a sweeter sauce while red onions can turn the color muddy.
The thickest part should read 165°F on an instant read thermometer. Thin cutlets get there quickly, so check after the 3-5 minute simmer.
What to Serve with Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken
If you loved this Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken recipe or any other recipes on my site, please leave a ⭐️ rating and let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Creamy Caramelized Onion Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts boneless and skinless
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 tablespoon butter
- 1 large yellow onion thinly sliced
- ½ teaspoon granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoon water
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon chili oil
- ¾ cup chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ⅓ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Pinch of salt
Garnish
- Chopped cilantro
- Chili oil
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts in half horizontally - each piece should be about ¼ inch thick. Lightly salt chicken breasts on both sides.2 chicken breasts
- In a plate, add flour, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and black pepper. Dip the chicken breasts in flour mixture and shake off excess flour.¼ cup all purpose flour, ½ tsp garlic powder, ½ tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp salt, Freshly cracked black pepper
- In a large pan over medium heat, heat olive oil then add chicken breasts. Cook for about 2-3 mins per side until golden but not fully cooked through. Transfer chicken to a plate.1 Tbsp olive oil
- In the same pan, add butter, sliced onions, sugar, and water. Lower the heat to medium-low, then cook the onions for about 15-20 mins, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden brown. Add additional splash of water as needed to help the onions cook down.3 Tbsp butter, 1 large yellow onion, ½ tsp granulated sugar, 2 Tbsp water
- Add garlic and chili oil and stir for about 30 seconds. Add chicken broth, heavy cream, parmesan cheese, pinch of salt (to taste) and bring to a simmer. Add back chicken breast, spoon sauce on top, and simmer the chicken in the sauce, covered, for 5 mins until chicken is cooked through and sauce is slightly thickened.4 cloves garlic, 2 Tbsp chili oil, ¾ cup chicken broth, 1 cup heavy cream, ⅓ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, Pinch of salt
- Garnish with cilantro and more chili oil if desired. Serve chicken with a side of rice, potatoes, or veggies.Chopped cilantro, Chili oil
Notes
- Don't rush the onions. Low and slow is key to making this caramelized onion chicken recipe. Lower the heat and add a splash of water to ensure it turns jammy and browned.
- I use Fly By Jing chili oil for a richer, darker sauce while lighter chili oils may not get as dark of a color.
- Freshly grate your own parmesan cheese for best flavor and texture in the sauce.
JANET says
Yum! It all comes together perfectly. Serve with rice and broccoli.
Herman Chan says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Clara says
Absolutely delicious! We served with pasta and fresh basil! Perfect.
Herman Chan says
so good, glad you enjoyed it!
Poly says
Love love loveed it
Herman says
thank you!
Vanessa ventura says
Tasty and easy to prepare and cooked most of all not too expensive
Felix says
This came out soooooooo good!
I don’t EVER sign up for mailing lists but I will just to give this a great review. I will be making this again and again and again and am looking forward to making more of your recipes.
Herman says
That means a lot that you are willing to do that for me, so glad you loved this one and I'm working on new recipes like this soon 🙂
Emma says
Delicious combination of flavours. Chicken was lovely and moist. Especially liked the flour and spice idea. Thanks!
Herman says
I need to create more recipes just like this then, thank you!
Ashley E says
so creamy, so good!
Herman says
thank you!
cinda J coe says
This was delicious! I swear my family licked their plates 😜
Herman says
Haha, that makes me so happy to hear, thank you!
Jon McMindes says
Tried this recipe. Great, like most everything you do. Just curious, I followed it exactly, twice, and I never achieved the color in your pictures
Herman says
Thanks Jon! Did you brown the onions for about 15-20 minutes until caramelized? Also, I used Fly by Jing chili oil which has a darker color and creates more of a brown sauce
Christina Blake says
Wonderful dish, thank you for sharing! Two of my picky kids ate the chicken with the caramelized onions-I was floored! I omitted the chili oil partly because my kids do not tolerate any spice, and also because I didn't have any. I think the chili oil would have added a great complex flavor to the dish. It was still delicious-the onions are the star.
I had fresh chanterelle mushrooms, which I flash sauteed in the pan by themselves before making the sauce. I served the chicken and sauce over mashed potatoes and mushrooms on top. The mushrooms really made a difference as they cut through the heavy dish. This took me a long time to make, but the process was soothing and didn't require hard skills. It might have taken me longer since I have a large family and had to fry the chicken in several batches. I also peeled my potatoes after boiling them since my kids won't eat the skin. Adding some fresh chopped parsley or a squeeze of lemon would add a welcomed brightness to the dish. My kids will not eat cilantro, so I skipped on it. Family loved-will make again!
Herman says
Wow thank you for taking the time to share your experience with this recipe! I love your customizations and delighted to hear your picky kids enjoyed this as well. If you do get a chance, add a bit of chili oil / chili crunch as it does add some more complex flavors to the dish. I am going to steal your idea and make this with homemade mashed potatoes and mushrooms next time. Thanks for the kind review!
B says
My family of picky eaters loved this, so full of flavour!
Herman says
thank you so much! Glad your family loved this one
Nikki says
So good! Will be on my regular meal schedule. Added extra chilli oil for more of a kick!
Herman says
yesss, I like my chili oil too (though not everyone likes as much heat)!
Noel says
My whole family loved it. I left out the chili oil because my littles don’t like heat. Will definitely be adding it to my dinner rotation.
Herman says
makes sense, so glad you loved it!