Enjoy perfectly tender boneless skinless chicken thighs simmered in a sauce of earthy mushrooms, dry marsala, and tangy balsamic for a restaurant style Italian dinner in around 30 minutes.
Chicken Mushroom Marsala is one of my first catering recipes and it is still a favorite at home. I always make sure to ladle a little extra Mushroom Marsala sauce over the starch and vegetables when I plate it.
Serve with an Easy Rice Pilaf, Thyme and Cranberry Quinoa, or an Italian Chopped Salad.
Make this recipe, because...
Using boneless skinless thighs lets you bypass slicing and pouding breast pieces while still getting the most tender flavorful chicken.
The lightly floured chicken thighs have a delectable brown crust.
The earthy flavors of mushrooms, onions, and garlic add the perfect balance to the tangy sweetness of dry marsala wine and balsamic vinegar.
There is no cream in this version of chicken marsala. You can enjoy the full flavor of the wine reduction.
The marsala reduction is slightly thickened with a teaspoon of flour to make sure the glaze clings to each and every bite.
This dish comes together in right around a half an hour, making it an easy weeknight meal.
Mushroom Marsala Sauce is most frequently served over chicken, but it is also great over pork medallions or even as a stand alone over polenta, pasta, risotto, or mashed potatoes.
Ingredients
Cremini Mushrooms- Often referred to as Baby Bellos because they are just that. Cremini are immature Portobello mushrooms and are very similar with their meaty taste and texture.
Boneless Skinless Thighs- Thighs are mostly dark meat and have more flavor and fat than breast meat. They are much easier to cook because the extra fat makes them hard to dry out. They simmer away nicely in a rich sauce.
Dry Marsala Wine- A sweet fortified wine with tangy sweet notes often used in savory cooking.
Instructions
Step 1
- First, mix together ⅓ Cup of flour with 1 Teaspoon Salt and ½ Teaspoon Pepper to make a dredge.
- Coat boneless skinless chicken thighs in seasoned flour.
Step 2
- Heat a large sauté pan or Dutch oven on medium-high heat and add olive oil.
- Next, brown the coated thighs on both sides for about three minutes. Remove from the pan and set them aside.
Step 3
- Then, turn the heat down to medium-low, and add butter and sliced cremini mushrooms.
- Let the mushrooms cook until they start to soften.
Step 4
- Then add diced onion and minced garlic. Season with salt and pepper. The salt will help draw out the moisture from the onions and mushrooms.
- Cook until the onion is translucent.
- Sprinkle a Teaspoon of flour over the cooking vegetables and let it absorb the fats in the pan.
Step 5
- Next, add dry marsala and balsamic vinegar to deglaze the pan. Use a wooden spoon to get the brown bits off the bottom of the sauté pan.
- Bring the marsala sauce to a low simmer and let cook for 5 minutes.
Step 6
- Then, add the browned chicken thighs to the sauce and simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes.
- Remove the lid, spoon some sauce over the chicken pieces and simmer uncovered for 5 more minutes.
FAQs
Cremini mushrooms add nutty earthy notes to mushroom marsala sauce. These are immature Portobello mushrooms, so naturally, Portobello mushrooms will make a nice substitute if cremini aren't available.
White button mushrooms will also work very well, but double the amount as they tend to shrink away as they simmer in sauce.
Chicken Marsala is the most common meat to serve with mushroom marsala sauce. Pork medallions cook up beautifully in the wine reduction and mushrooms. You can also serve this dish vegetarian by doubling the mushrooms and serving over polenta, noodles, mashed potatoes, or risotto.
Tips for Success
Season this dish by adding salt and pepper a pinch at a time first to the mushrooms, onions, and garlic, and last to the sauce as it simmers. Taste the sauce before seasoning and adjust as needed.
Marsala wine will last up to six months if kept in a cool dark place. If you invest in a bottle you won't have to make this dish every night for a week to make good use of it.
Related Recipes
Dutch Oven Chicken Thighs With Sage Butter Sauce
📖 Recipe
Mushroom Marsala Sauce with Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 2 Lbs Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs
- 4 Cups Cremini Mushrooms sliced
- ½ Yellow Onion diced
- 4 Cloves Garlic minced
- ⅓ Cup Flour plus 1 teaspoon for sauce
- 3 Tablespoons Butter
- 2 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- ¾ Cup Dry Marsala
- 2 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 Teaspoon Salt plus extra to season sauce
- ½ Teaspoon Pepper plus extra to season sauce
Instructions
- First, mix together ⅓ Cup of flour with 1 Teaspoon Salt and ½ Teaspoon Pepper to make a dredge.
- Coat boneless skinless chicken thighs in seasoned flour.
- Heat a large sauté pan or Dutch oven on medium-high heat and add olive oil.
- Next, brown the coated thighs on both sides for about three minutes. Remove from the pan and set them aside.
- Then, turn the heat down to medium-low, and add butter and sliced cremini mushrooms.
- Let the mushrooms cook until they start to soften.
- Then add diced onion and minced garlic. Season with salt and pepper. The salt will help draw out the moisture from the onions and mushrooms.
- Cook until the onion is translucent.
- Sprinkle a Teaspoon of flour over the cooking vegetables and let it absorb the fats in the pan.
- Next, add dry marsala and balsamic vinegar to deglaze the pan. Use a wooden spoon to get the brown bits off the bottom of the sauté pan.
- Bring the mushroom marsala sauce to a low simmer and let cook for 5 minutes.
- Then, add the browned chicken thighs to the sauce and simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes.
- Remove the lid, spoon some sauce over the chicken pieces and simmer uncovered for 5 more minutes.
Notes
Nutrition
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Julie says
This is a perfect weeknight meal for my family. Full of flavor and easy to make.
Tavo says
Marsala is my favorite thing, but I hadn't tried it before with mushrooms! The recipe was absolutely delicious!
Mindee Taylor says
I am a mushroom addict! This dish was so tasty!
Mirlene says
I definitely will be making this soon. Look too good to pass up
sonia says
A very tasty chicken recipe!
Must try!
Ken says
What would I adjust to add cream to this recipe?
Diana Reis says
I would add it after the marsala wine has simmered for a few minutes. I think adding it before you reduce the wine will actually thin the flavor because you'll have added more liquid to evaporate and won't get the full flavor of the marsala. I don't think you need to take anything away or even add more wine. You could start by adding about 2-3 tablespoons of cream and adjust it to taste from there. You will have a bit more volume in sauce, but that's a good thing if you are serving with pasta.
Sharon says
Shouldn't you pound the thighs before dredging in flour???
Diana Reis says
You could, and if you use any kinds of breast meat, I would. Thighs really don't need to be flattened. They are already much thinner and much more tender than breast meat. In fact, using thighs makes this recipe much less work than using breast meat.
Galuk Simminy says
How would I modify this to add cream?
Diana Reis says
You can add cream after the wine has simmered with the heat nice an low. start with a small amount, 2-3 tablespoons and adjust to taste from there.
Barbara says
This was absolutely delicious! So easy to prepare after buying Marsala wine. Highly recommend and will definitely make again.
Diana Reis says
I'm so glad you loved it! It made my morning to see this.
Joy says
This was exactly what I was looking for and absolutely delicious! I wanted to make chicken marsala without dairy and without any pounding/flattening. Plus, I had some boneless, skinless chicken thighs that needed to be cooked. I'm just so pleased with how nicely this turned out and how easy it was to throw together! It's going into our rotation, for sure. Thank you for sharing it!
Sandee says
This recipe is very tasty. I've prepared it twice now. The first time was with Marsala wine and it was delicious.
The second time I thought I had Marsala wine in the pantry, but I didn't! I found this out AFTER I had cut up everything and made the chicken. So, I substituted white wine and it was just as good! Not exactly the same, but good nonetheless! Thought I'd let you all know in case someone doesn't have Marsala wine on hand.
Diana Reis says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I will definitely make a note for those who don't have or can't find marsala wine. Did you you use a chardonnay?
John Vermey says
Best tasting and easy making
Diana Reis says
Thank you for your very kind review. I'm so happy you enjoyed it and so grateful you gave my recipe a chance.
Taunya says
Simple to make and delicious. Using thighs is great cause so moist.
pat says
This was pretty good. Really hit the spot! Although, clarification? when the chicken is first "browned" in the pan, does that mean the outside is cooked and the inside is raw? It was a bit unclear to me what "browned" meant. I didn't know if the chicken was intended to finish cooking later, so I Cooked it to completion in that first step.
Diana Reis says
I'm glad you liked it and I'm glad you asked your question. Browning chicken is just getting good color on the outside of the chicken and sealing in the juices. It is meant to finish cooking in the sauce. I'm sure it was fine. I love chicken thighs because you can't really mess them up and they taste great pan fried. I will look at the recipe instructions and see if I can make this a bit more clear.
Katharine Amin says
This has become a family favourite! Thanks for your clear instructions , including cooking times for each step.
Diana Reis says
Thank you for letting me know you love it. I get truly inspired by my readers and enjoy sharing recipes that bring families together around the dinner table.
Fitz says
‘About to make this for the first time, it looks delicious, reviews are excellent, particularly impressed by your responses to comments. It would be good if more online chefs replied to those following their recipes as you do.
Diana Reis says
I hope it all went well. I love this recipe and have served it to thousands of people over my catering career. Thanks for giving DBD a try!
Claudette says
This worked exactly as written, thanks! Delicious, could Wow guests with this winner...did serve it over homemade pappardelle...
Diana Reis says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it. The pappardelle is the perfect pasta for this dish. It sounds like you knocked it out of the park. What a treat!
Mary Fazekas says
Do you think this dish would freeze well? I would love to take it to a friend who’s recovering from an illness and can’t prepare meals yet.
Diana Reis says
This dish does freeze really well and goes with mashed potatoes that also freeze well. I would recommend defrosting slowly by putting it in the fridge overnight. Reheat in a sauté pan on the stove on low with a few tablespoons of water.