Get my Cookbooks! Chicken Fricassee
This Creamy Chicken Fricassee is a French classic made with tender bone-in chicken that slowly simmers in a rich and savory mushroom cream sauce. It’s easy to make at home and packed with incredible flavor!
Chicken Fricassee
This Chicken Fricassee is one of my favorite cozy recipes of all time, and it’s one of my favorite dishes to serve with creamy mashed potatoes! The two are just a match made in cozy heaven. (Roasted green beans don’t hurt either. 😁)
This classic French dish features tender, bone-in chicken that’s slowly simmered in a savory white wine cream sauce with mushrooms, onions, garlic, and fresh herbs. The chicken becomes incredibly tender while the sauce develops the most amazing rich and savory flavor.
If you love cozy, sauce-filled chicken dinners, you are going to absolutely LOVE this one. Be sure to check out my PRO TIPS below!
How to Make It
Note: This is an overview. See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Season and sear the chicken thighs and set aside. Repeat for the drumsticks. Leave 1 tbsp. drippings in the skillet and sauté the mushrooms, followed by the onions. Add the garlic, thyme, and bay leaf and reduce the wine.
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Add butter and flour. Add the sauce in small splashes. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the chicken back. Cover and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Remove the cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
Spoon the heavy cream into the sauce over low heat. Heat through for 3-5 minutes, or until desired consistency is obtained. Serve with mashed potatoes and roasted green beans!
Pro Tips
- Bone-in/Skin-on Chicken Thighs and Drumsticks are best in this recipe. They’re tender, flavorful, and benefit the most from the extended cooking time, as they won’t dry out. See the notes section of the recipe card for guidelines on how to use chicken breasts instead.
- Season the chicken generously: Don’t be shy with the salt! Season the chicken generously on all sides, including underneath the skin. This ensures that the meat itself is well-seasoned and flavorful, not just the exterior.
- Wine: Chardonnay is the best wine to use in this recipe, followed by Sauvignon Blanc, and then Pinot Grigio. Chicken broth can be used if you don’t cook with wine.
- Fresh Garlic Cloves (vs. jarred minced garlic), are best for this recipe if possible.
- More Chicken Thigh Recipes: For more delicious recipes with chicken thighs, try my Chicken Scarpariello and my delicious Baked Chicken Thighs!
- For Serving: Be sure to serve this over my creamy mashed potatoes with roasted green beans, you can’t beat it!
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Cream-based sauces can change consistency slightly after freezing, but this one reheats well. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat gently over low heat, stirring the sauce occasionally.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links*)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- 3.6 Quart Enameled Cast Iron Braiser– I use this to make this recipe, it gets a nice sear on the chicken and conducts the heat well to cook the pasta.
- Large Measuring Cup with a Spout– This is what I use to combine the sauce ingredients together for this recipe.
- Silicone Spatulas– I have these, they’re gentle on your cookware and are perfect for stirring throughout this recipe.
- Garlic Peeler & Garlic Twister– Makes it really easy to peel fresh garlic.
- Lemon Squeezer– Use fresh lemon juice over bottled if possible.
- Kitchen Tongs– Makes it easy to handle the chicken when searing and the pasta while it’s cooking.
- Measuring Spoons– I have these magnetic ones which stay nice and organized in my utensil drawer.
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Try These Next
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- Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi
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- Boursin Pasta
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- Lemon Chicken Orzo (One Pot!)
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- Copycat Longhorn Parmesan Crusted Chicken
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- Baked Chicken Thighs
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- Chicken Fajita Pasta
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Chicken Fricassee
Ingredients
Sauce
- 2½ cups chicken broth
- ½ chicken bouillon cube
- 1 ½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
Chicken
- 4 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 4 chicken drumsticks
- Salt/pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
For the Fricassee
- 10 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 3 sprigs thyme, or ½ tsp dried
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ cup heavy cream
- Fresh parsley, to garnish
Instructions
- Combine the sauce ingredients in a large measuring cup with a spout and set aside. Measure out remaining ingredients before beginning.
- Pat the chicken completely dry. Season each side with salt and pepper and sprinkle the tops with Italian seasoning.
- Heat olive oil in a large, high-walled skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken thighs skin-side-down for 6 to 7 minutes, until brown and crispy. Flip and sear the bottom and sides for 3 to 4 more minutes. The middle of the chicken will finish cooking in the sauce. Remove and set aside.
- Add the drumsticks and brown on 3 sides for 2 minutes each. Set aside. Leave 1 tablespoon of drippings in the skillet. (Supplement with butter if you don’t have enough.)
- Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are browned and most of the liquid has evaporated.
- Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until softened.
- Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and use a silicone spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the skillet. Reduce by half, about 3–4 minutes.
- Melt the butter and stir in the flour. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until the raw flour smell is gone.
- Add the sauce mixture in small splashes, stirring continuously. Add the thyme and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
- Add the chicken back (skin-side-up for the thighs), along with any juices from the plate. Cover and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Uncover and continue to simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and tender. Bone-in dark meat is especially tender when cooked to 175–185°F.
- Reduce heat to low. Gradually spoon the heavy cream into the sauce, stirring to incorporate. Heat through for 3-5 minutes, or until your desired sauce thickness is obtained.
- Remove the bay leaf and thyme stems and sprinkle with parsley. Serve with mashed potatoes and roasted green beans!
Notes
- Bone-in/Skin-on Chicken Thighs and Drumsticks are best in this recipe. They're tender, flavorful, and benefit the most from the extended cooking time, as they won't dry out. See the notes section of the recipe card for guidelines on how to use chicken breasts instead.
- Season the chicken generously: Don’t be shy with the salt! Season the chicken generously on all sides, including underneath the skin. This ensures that the meat itself is well-seasoned and flavorful, not just the exterior.
- Wine: Chardonnay is the best wine to use in this recipe, followed by Sauvignon Blanc, and then Pinot Grigio. Chicken broth can be used if you don’t cook with wine.
- Fresh Garlic Cloves (vs. jarred minced garlic), are best for this recipe if possible.
- More Chicken Thigh Recipes: For more delicious recipes with chicken thighs, try my Chicken Scarpariello and my delicious Baked Chicken Thighs!
- For Serving: Be sure to serve this over my creamy mashed potatoes with roasted green beans, you can't beat it!
Storage:
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Cream-based sauces can change consistency slightly after freezing, but this one reheats well. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat gently over low heat, stirring the sauce occasionally.
