If you're looking for a hearty, satisfying meal that's sure to become a family favorite, look no further than this Smothered Chicken recipe. Tender, juicy chicken breasts are fried to perfection and then smothered in a delicious gravy, complete with crispy bacon pieces. This dish is the ultimate comfort food, perfect for a cozy dinner at home or a special occasion.
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🗝️ Recipe's key points
- The chicken breasts are coated in a well-seasoned flour mixture and fried to golden perfection, creating a crispy exterior and a tender, juicy interior that's irresistible.
- The homemade gravy is the star of the show, made with a flavorful roux, chicken broth, half and half, and an aromatic blend of seasonings.
- Crispy, smoky bacon pieces take this dish to new heights, adding a crunch and flavor that perfectly complements the gravy and chicken.
- This Smothered Chicken is the ultimate comfort food, warming your heart and satisfying your cravings with every bite. It's the kind of meal that brings the whole family together around the table.
Once you try this Smothered Chicken recipe, it's sure to become a regular in your meal rotation. The combination of crispy, juicy chicken, velvety gravy, and smoky bacon is simply unbeatable.
🛒 Ingredients
This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.
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- Thick-cut bacon
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Vegetable oil
- All-purpose flour
- Breadcrumbs - plain or Italian
- Seasoned salt
- Black pepper
- Butter-- may use unsalted
- Flour
- Chicken broth - consider using low sodium broth for better control over the dish's saltiness
- Beef bouillon cube or beef-flavored Better than Bouillon
- Half and half
- Low sodium soy sauce - can substitute with Worcestershire sauce
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder
- Dried thyme
- Dried rosemary
- Ground sage
- Kitchen Bouquet - optional, gives the gravy a richer color
- Fresh thyme - for garnish
🗒 Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. Full instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Combine the chicken dredge ingredients on a large plate.
- Fry the bacon over medium-heat until crispy.
- Slice each chicken breast in half lengthwise. Pound to an even thickness, about ¾ inch thick.
- When bacon is crispy, remove it to a plate and set aside. Reserve the bacon grease in heat-safe bowl.
- Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel, then coat it evenly in the flour mixture.
- Add 2-4 tablespoons of the bacon grease back to the pan. Add vegetable oil to cover the bottom of the pan completely.
- Heat the oil over medium-high heat. Once glistening, add the chicken.
- Fry chicken breasts 2 at a time for 4-5 minutes per side until golden brown. Set the chicken aside.
- Drain the oil off, leaving any brown specks on the pan to flavor the gravy.
- Add butter and melt over medium heat, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen the fond.
- Add the broth and half and half in small increments, whisking constantly, until thickened.
- Add the seasonings and stir to combine.
- Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce to a simmer.
- Add the soy sauce and Kitchen Bouquet to give the gravy a richer flavor and color.
- Nestle the chicken in the gravy along with any juice that has gathered on the plate.
- Chop the bacon and add it to the top of the chicken. Cover and cook over low heat for 10-15 minutes. Garnish with thyme and serve with mashed potatoes, noodles, or rice.
🥫 Storage
Making It Ahead: Fry the bacon and chicken, and prepare the gravy up to 1 day in advance. Store them separately in the refrigerator. When ready to serve, reheat the gravy gently and add the chicken and bacon.
Storing Leftovers: Store any leftover Smothered Chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. Reheat gently in a skillet over low heat, stirring occasionally, until warmed through. Add a splash of chicken broth or water if the gravy seems too thick.
📚 Variations
- Substitute the chicken breasts with thick-cut, bone-in pork chops for a hearty variation on this classic dish.
- Add sliced mushrooms to the gravy for an extra depth of flavor and texture.
- Add a pinch of cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to the flour dredge and gravy for a spicy kick.
- Add finely chopped fresh herbs, such as parsley, thyme, or rosemary, to the flour dredge for an extra burst of flavor.
👩🏻🍳 Tips
- Using a meat tenderizing mallet creates a textured surface on the chicken that helps the breading adhere better.
- Ensure the oil is hot enough before adding the chicken to prevent the breading from falling off.
- Add the chicken broth and half and half to the roux slowly and in small increments, whisking constantly to maintain a smooth, thick consistency.
- Use unsalted butter and reduced-sodium broth to control the sodium content in the dish. You can always add more salt if needed, but it's harder to fix an overly salty gravy.
🤔 FAQs
Smothered chicken is usually made with chicken pieces, like breasts or thighs. These pieces are seasoned and fried. Then, they are covered in a rich gravy. This gravy is made with butter, flour, chicken broth, and seasonings.
Smothered chicken is a dish from the Southern United States. It comes mainly from Louisiana and Georgia. This dish is a classic comfort food in the South.
The secret to moist chicken is to avoid overcooking it. Use a meat thermometer to check that the inside temperature is 165°F (74°C). Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before serving. This helps the juices spread evenly.
To make an old chicken juicy, try brining it in a saltwater solution for several hours before cooking. This helps to tenderize the meat and retain moisture. Another method is to cook the chicken using moist heat techniques like braising or stewing.
Velveting is a Chinese cooking method. In this technique, meat, usually chicken or beef, is marinated. The marinade includes cornstarch, egg white, and seasonings. After marinating, the meat is briefly cooked in oil or water. Finally, it is stir-fried with other ingredients. This process helps to tenderize the meat and give it a velvety, smooth texture.
📗 Related Recipes
For more delicious chicken recipes, try our Marry Me Chicken, Chicken Parmigiana, or Monterey Chicken next! Or are you craving a chicken thigh recipe? Try our sautéed then baked Crispy Garlic Lime Chicken Thighs. Their citrusy tank balances out the richness of the thighs, creating a bold and refreshing flavor profile.
Love a recipe with gravy? You'll want to try our Chicken Fried Steak and Swedish Meatballs, too!
Do you love classic Italian pasta dishes? Try this One-skillet Cacio e Pepe Chicken Thigh recipe. You'll fall in love with the golden-brown chicken bathed in a creamy black pepper sauce.
🍽 What to serve with Smothered Chicken
I love to serve smothered chicken with a potato dish like mashed potatoes, roasted rosemary potatoes, or potatoes au gratin.
It also goes great with vegetable sides like oven baked zucchini, cheesy broccoli casserole, or lemon garlic asparagus.
🔪 All Our Way recommends the following
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You’ll need the following items to make this recipe successfully.
- Large skillet or frying pan
- Tongs
- Heat-safe bowl
- Shallow dish or plate
- Meat mallet
- Sharp knife and cutting board
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Whisk
- Wooden spoon or silicone spatula
📞 Chiacchierata (chat)
I know you'll love this Smothered Chicken recipe! The combination of crispy, juicy chicken, savory gravy, and smoky bacon will become a new favorite. So, if you're ready to be blown away by this sensational dish featuring succulent chicken breasts luxuriating in a lip-smacking herb gravy enhanced by crispy, smoky bacon, grab your grembuile(apron), and let's get started!
It's a flavor-packed masterpiece recipe you won't want to miss! Let me know how it turns out!
Tutti a tavolo, è pronto!
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.
What's new? Check out my All Our Way Store on Amazon. We'll be adding more items we love and use or wish we had to make cooking fun and easy.
📖 Recipe
Southern-Style Smothered Chicken With Creamy Herb Gravy
Equipment Needed
Ingredients
- 5 strips thick-cut bacon
- 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ½ cup Vegetable oil for frying.
Seasoned flour for dredging chicken:
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup breadcrumbs plain or Italian
- 1 teaspoon seasoned salt
- ¾ teaspoon black pepper
- Gravy
Gravy ingredients:
- 4 Tablespoons Butter
- 4 Tablespoons Flour
- 2.5 cups chicken broth consider low sodium
- 1 beef bouillon cube or 1 teaspoon beef flavored Better than Bouillon
- ⅓ cup half and half half milk, half cream
- 1 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce can sub Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ¼ teaspoon ground sage
- 2-3 drops of Kitchen Bouquet optional gives the gravy a richer look
- Fresh thyme for sprinkling on top
Instructions
First steps:
- Add chicken dredge ingredients to a large plate and toss to combine. Set aside.
- Measure out gravy ingredients before beginning.
Fry the bacon:
- Fry bacon over medium-low heat until crispy on both sides. Remove from the pan and pour grease into a heat-safe bowl.
- Reserve 2-4 Tablespoons of clear bacon drippings. Wipe any black residue from the pan if needed.
Prepare the chicken:
- While the bacon cooks, slice each chicken breast in half lengthwise to create 2 thinner slices. Place saran wraps over them and use a tenderizer meat mallet to pound them about ¾ inches thick. This will give them a little more texture for the flour dredge to grab.
- Wipe the chicken dry and coat generously in the flour mixture, making sure to get in every nook and cranny.
Cook the chicken:
- Add the reserved bacon drippings to the clean pan and enough vegetable oil to cover the chicken by half. Heat the oil over medium-high heat. Once the fat is heated and glistening, add the chicken. Fry 2 at a time for 4-5 minutes per side until they have a nice golden sear.
- Set aside on a plate. Adjust the heat either up or down while cooking the chicken as needed. You want to keep an even heat and not brown the chicken too quickly.
Make the herb gravy:
- Remove the oil from the pan, use a paper towel to remove any black remnants, and leave any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. These little bits are called ‘fond’ and flavor the gravy.
- Make a Roux by melting the butter over medium heat and use a silicone spatula to scrape up the bits from the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle the flour gradually and whisk continuously until a paste forms.
- Combine the Broth and Half and Half and add the liquid in small increments, whisking constantly. The liquid will thicken in between splashes of liquid. Only add the liquid a little at a time; if you add it all at once, you'll break down the roux, and it won't be thick.
- Slowly add the beef bouillon, soy sauce, and seasonings.
- Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Add a few drops of kitchen bouquet if a darker color is desired.
Finishing the Smothered Chicken
- Add the chicken back to the pan with any juice from the plate.
- Chop up the bacon and add it to the top of the chicken.
- Cover partially and cook over low heat for 10-15 minutes. The internal temperature of the chicken should reach 165 degrees before serving.
- Garnish with thyme and serve with mashed potatoes, noodles, or rice.
Notes
Add the chicken broth/half and half to the roux slowly and in small increments. This is crucial for maintaining a nice and thick consistency.
For thicker gravy: Let it continue to simmer, uncovered.
To thin gravy: Add a splash of half and half, milk, or broth.
Kitchen Pro Tips:
1. Ensure the oil is hot enough before adding the chicken so that the breading stays on.
2. Roughen up the surface of the chicken with a meat mallet. This tenderizing method also gives the breading a surface to cling to. Work the breading into every nook and cranny of the surface.
3. Chicken thighs or pork chops can be used instead of chicken breasts in this recipe.
4. If you want to control your sodium, you can use unsalted butter and reduced sodium broth.
Nutrition
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