This creamy sun dried tomato chicken is a one-skillet dinner that takes about 30 minutes. I season boneless, skinless chicken thighs with Italian seasoning and thyme, brown them in a cast-iron skillet, then make the sauce in the same pan with chicken broth, heavy cream, sun-dried tomatoes, and Parmesan. The chicken goes back into the sauce and finishes in a 500°F oven. Garlic powder and red pepper flakes give the sauce a little warmth, and the sun-dried tomatoes make it sweet and tangy. The recipe makes 6 servings.
I serve it on its own or alongside buttery roasted cauliflower or lemon garlic spinach.
Drain the oil from the jarred sun-dried tomatoes before they go in. Oil and cream together can make the sauce break.
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💛 Why you’ll love this recipe
- The sauce is made in the same skillet the chicken browned in, so it picks up the browned bits from the pan.
- Can be cooked and ready to serve in only 30 minutes.
- Works for date night or a family dinner.
- Easy to change up with spinach, mushrooms, or capers.
➡️ Ingredients
⏲ How to make creamy sun dried tomato chicken
This is an overview of the recipe’s instructions. The full instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Preheat Oven: Preheat oven to 500°F.
- Prepare Chicken: Season your chicken thighs on each side with Italian seasoning, ground thyme, salt, and pepper.
- Begin Cooking Chicken: In a large (12-inch) cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, heat the avocado oil. Place your seasoned chicken thighs in an even layer and cook until they’re lightly golden on each side, about 2-3 minutes per side (note that the chicken will not yet be cooked throughout). Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.
- Prepare Sauce: Reduce the stovetop temperature to medium then add in some chicken broth, heavy cream, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Bring that to a light simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring regularly. Stir in sun-dried tomatoes and shredded Parmesan and simmer for an additional 1 minute.
- Finish Cooking Chicken: Return chicken thighs to the cast-iron skillet and then transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and cook until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F, which should take about 6 to 8 minutes.
- Serve: Remove the skillet from the oven, garnish the dish with shredded Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, and freshly cracked pepper, then serve.
👉 Ingredient substitution suggestions
- Chicken Thighs: You can use boneless skinless chicken breasts here.
- Avocado Oil: Olive oil can be substituted here.
- Low-Sodium Chicken Broth: Any reduced-sodium or salt-free broth will work here. If you only have regular broth, I would suggest decreasing the amount of salt you add to the dish, taste, and then adding more from there.
- Heavy Whipping Cream: Swap in half-and-half for the heavy cream at a 1:1 ratio. If you do this, note that your sauce will not be as creamy as if you used heavy cream.
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes In Oil: You can use sun-dried tomatoes that aren’t jarred in oil, but you will need to rehydrate them first.
- Shredded Parmesan Cheese: Grated Parmesan cheese can be subbed in here.
✨ Variations
- Season chicken thighs with dried oregano and/or dried basil before cooking.
- Sprinkle pine nuts into the sauce at the same time you add the sun-dried tomatoes for added flavor and texture.
- Spoon in 1 Tablespoon of jarred capers for some tanginess and added saltiness.
- Add a handful or two of fresh spinach when adding in the sun-dried tomatoes.
- Include some roughly chopped fresh mushrooms. Add them in when you add in the sun-dried tomatoes.
〰️ How to serve
- Serve alongside veggies like these buttery roasted cauliflower, lemon garlic spinach, maple roasted Brussels sprouts on the stalk, or green bean casserole with cream cheese.
- Plate the chicken with some cheesy breadsticks or vegan corn fritters.
- Serve it with creamy mashed potatoes or mashed cauliflower.
- After the dish finishes cooking, slice the chicken into bite-sized pieces and serve the chicken and sun-dried tomato sauce atop fettuccine pasta noodles or, for a low-carb option, atop Miracle Noodles or hearts of palm pasta. If you do decide to serve it over noodles, I’d suggest adding some extra broth and heavy cream to the sauce so that you have enough sauce for the pasta.
➜ Cooking and recipe tips
- If you can only find bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, you’ll want to remove the bone and the skin before cooking.
- Be sure to choose a large skillet. A 12-inch skillet holds 1 ½ pounds of thighs in one layer. If the pan is crowded, the steam cannot escape and the chicken steams instead of browning.
- Don’t forget to drain the oil from the jarred sun-dried tomatoes. If you don’t drain it, you risk your sauce breaking due to the combination of oil and cream in the sauce.
💬 FAQs
How should the prepared chicken be stored?
Store the dish in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
How should the dish be reheated?
Reheat in a skillet on the stovetop over medium heat until warmed throughout. Or, microwave for 30-90 seconds, depending on the wattage of your microwave.
📚 More chicken dinner recipes
🍽 Recipe
🍴 Make This Next
- Creamy Broccoli With Sun-Dried Tomatoes – Same sun-dried tomatoes, buttery and rich.
- Mac and Cheese with Cream Cheese – Cream cheese makes this mac unforgettable.
- Parmesan Garlic Chicken Bites – Crispy parmesan bites with garlic butter.
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Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Chicken
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs seasoned with Italian seasoning and thyme, browned in a cast-iron skillet, and finished in the oven in a sauce of chicken broth, heavy cream, sun-dried tomatoes, and Parmesan. It all cooks in one skillet in about 30 minutes and makes 6 servings.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon ground thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2 Tablespoons avocado oil, 30 milliliters
- ¾ cup low-sodium chicken broth, 180 milliliters
- ⅓ cup heavy whipping cream, 80 milliliters
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¾ cup sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil, drained and roughly chopped, about 125 grams
- ⅓ cup shredded Parmesan cheese, 37 grams
Optional Garnishes and Pairing (Not Included In Nutrition Info):
- Shredded Parmesan cheese
- Italian seasoning
- Freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat oven to 500°F.
- Prepare Chicken: Season chicken thighs on each side with Italian seasoning, ground thyme, salt, and pepper.
- Begin Cooking Chicken: In a large (12-inch) cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. Place chicken thighs in an even layer and cook until lightly golden on each side, about 2-3 minutes per side (note that the chicken will not yet be cooked throughout). Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside.
- Prepare Sauce: Reduce stovetop temperature to medium and add in chicken broth, heavy cream, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a light simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring regularly. Stir in sun-dried tomatoes and shredded Parmesan and simmer for an additional 1 minute, until the Parmesan melts into the sauce.
- Finish Cooking Chicken: Return chicken thighs to skillet and transfer skillet to preheated oven and cook until internal temperature reaches 165°F, about 6 to 8 minutes.
- Serve: Remove skillet from oven, garnish with shredded Parmesan, Italian seasoning, and freshly cracked pepper, then serve.
Video
Recipe Notes
Refrigerator Storage: Store the dish in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Reheating Instructions: Reheat in a skillet on the stovetop over medium heat until warmed throughout. Or, microwave for 30-90 seconds, depending on the wattage of your microwave.
Nutrition
Calories: 301kcal (15%), Carbohydrates: 6.3g (2%), Protein: 26.4g (53%), Fat: 19.8g (30%), Saturated Fat: 6.6g (41%), Sodium: 554mg (24%), Fiber: 1.4g (6%), Sugar: 3.7g (4%)
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