One-Pan Keto Creamy Tuscan Chicken

Keto date night recipe with chicken thighs

This dish is a perfect choice for a homemade date night dinner meal or a holiday main dish, like for Valentine’s Day or New Year’s Eve. You need less than an hour to prepare it before serving, so you can cook this and a side dish, and enjoy a comforting meal together for a nice night-in.

One-pan keto creamy Tuscan chicken FAQS

Here are answers to commonly asked questions about this dish:

What ingredient substitution options are there?

• Skin-On, Bone-In Chicken Thighs: Chicken breasts will work just fine here, but the resulting dish will have less flavor as breasts are a leaner cut of meat. You can also use skinless and boneless chicken thighs. If you want to altogether not use chicken, pork chops, pork loin, or salmon would be great options; just note that if you go one of these routes, the cooking times and final nutrition information will be slightly different than the original recipe.
• Ghee: Unsalted butter can be substituted for ghee at a 1:1 ratio. I personally prefer ghee here because it doesn’t leave any milk solid sediment in the pan. Coconut oil would also be a viable substitution option.
• Low-Sodium Chicken Broth: Regular chicken broth will work, but you may need to lessen the amount of added salt, so keep that in mind when you’re cooking. Alternatively, beef broth would work here too.
• Fresh Garlic: Jarred minced garlic can be substituted here. To equate to the 2 cloves of fresh garlic this recipe calls for, use 2 tsp minced garlic.
• Italian Seasoning: Make your own Italian seasoning by combining ~1/2 tsp each of dried basil, dried marjoram, dried oregano, dried rosemary, and dried thyme. If you don’t have one of these spices on-hand, just omit and add a little more of the other spices to ensure you have 1 tbsp of homemade Italian seasoning for the dish.
• Grated Parmesan Cheese: Substitute shredded Parmesan cheese or shredded or grated Asiago cheese.
• Fresh Spinach: Use the same amount that the recipe calls for of thawed and drained frozen spinach.

How should the chicken thighs be de-boned?

Follow this method for how to de-bone your chicken thighs.

If you don’t want the hassle of de-boning your chicken, you can choose to use boneless chicken thighs, but I’ve often found that bone-in thighs are the more affordable option, so keep that in mind when you’re shopping.

What should be served alongside this keto Tuscan chicken?

Enjoy this dish on its own or serve with cauliflower rice, mashed cauliflower, steamed, roasted or air-fried broccoli or asparagus.

How many net carbs are in each serving of keto creamy tuscan chicken?

Per serving, this dish contains 4.2 grams of net carbs. The recipe, as written, yields 4 servings. Each chicken thigh in the cream sauce is equivalent to 1 serving.

The full nutrition information for this recipe, including the calorie content, total carbs, protein, and fat per serving, can be found in the nutrition label located below the recipe instructions.

What diets is this recipe compliant with?

• Keto and Low-Carb: One serving contains 4.2 grams of net carbs, making this a great main dish option fo those who follow a low-carb or ketogenic diet.
• Gluten-Free and Grain-Free: This keto one-pot recipe is both gluten-free and grain-free.
• Nut-Free: There are no peanuts, almonds, or other nut ingredients used in this dish.
• Coconut-Free: No coconut products are used in this recipe.
• Egg-Free: This recipe is made without eggs and is an egg-free recipe.
• Primal: This chicken recipe is compliant with a primal diet.
• Refined Sugar-Free and Sweetener-Free: This recipe doesn’t contain any sweeteners or sugar.

How should the cooked dish be stored?

Refrigerator Storage: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

I would not suggest freezing this dish after cooking as thawing the cream sauce will yield a different texture than the recipe intended.

This is how to make easy one-pan keto creamy Tuscan chicken

De-bone chicken thighs. For video instruction on how to do this, follow this method on how to de-bone the chicken.

Then, if some of the thighs are quite thick, transfer them to a storage bag, and, using a rolling pin or meat mallet, roll or pound them a few times to flatten so they cook evenly. For written instructions on how to do this, follow this method on how to pound chicken before cooking.

In a large cast iron skillet or non-stick pan over medium heat, melt 2 tbsp ghee.

Once melted, add chicken thighs skin-side down, increase heat to high, and cook for 2 minutes before reducing heat back to medium and cooking until skin is crisped, about 1-2 minutes.

Flip chicken over and cook until chicken is cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, about 10-13 minutes.

Transfer cooked chicken from skillet to a plate, loosely cover plate with foil, set aside, and allow the chicken to rest. Do not discard cooking fat from the skillet.

To the same skillet with cooking fat in it, over medium heat, add chicken broth, onion, sun-dried tomatoes, white wine (optional), garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.

Bring the mixture to a slight boil, stir, then reduce heat to low to simmer the mixture. Simmer on low heat for 3 minutes before adding grated Parmesan, heavy cream, and remaining 1 tbsp ghee.

Cook for additional 3 minutes on low heat until the mixture thickens.

Carefully taste test to check seasoning and, based on taste preferences, add more salt and/or pepper.

Add spinach and gently stir through until almost wilted, about 1 minute, before adding cooked chicken back to skillet and spooning cream mixture atop chicken. Serve hot.

Want more low-carb lunch/dinner inspiration?

If you love this Keto Creamy Tuscan Chicken, you will love these other comfort food favorites:

• Instant Pot Homemade Keto Beef and Broccoli
• Bell Pepper Sandwich
• Keto Thai Meatballs
• Carnivore Meatballs
• Instant Pot Chicken Adobo