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A much-loved chicken recipe popularized by Italian-Americans, chicken marsala is tender chicken breasts bathing in a rich and glossy marsala wine sauce with golden mushrooms. A restaurant quality dish, worthy of white tablecloths, that can be put together in 25 minutes and enjoyed by the whole family.
If you don’t cook with wine but love a chicken and mushroom flavour combination, my chicken with garlic mushroom sauce will deliver! Just check the recipe notes to make the wine substitution.
Marsala wine is the standout ingredient in this recipe, so if you don’t cook with alcohol, this one is probably not for you! Although wine is obviously alcoholic in its store-bought form, the alcohol evaporates during cooking so there is no bitter boozy taste.
Only the wine’s flavourings remain, and it is safe for children. This recipe has always gone down well with mine!
What is Chicken Marsala?
The dish consists of tender chicken breasts swimming in a slightly sweet and deliciously savoury Marsala sauce with a distinct earthy flavour of chestnut mushrooms.
The dish is a combination of French techniques and Italian ingredients, notably the Marsala wine, which comes from a Sicilian city of the same name. French residents of Sicily wanted a dish they recognised, and chicken marsala was created to meet this need.
That was a couple of centuries ago, though, and the dish is now mostly associated with Italian-American cooking. Brought over and popularised by the many immigrants from Sicily, it is now a mainstay found in countless restaurants.
Although a bit retro, it’s a dish worth rediscovering. We all love a tender piece of chicken, which is only improved by the hearty, rich Marsala sauce. It packs a flavourful punch that’s hard not to love.
Chicken in marsala wine
Just to be clear, we are talking Marsala wine, not masala spice! That’s a whole other blog! Marsala wine is a fortified wine from Sicily, its roasted nuttiness and toffee notes are what give this Italian chicken recipe its unique, unforgettable flavour profile.
Adhering to the traditional method, the best chicken marsala recipe will tenderise chicken breasts with a meat mallet for melt-in-the-mouth softness. It will then seal them by lightly frying inside a flour coating for ultimate succulence.
The sauce is made with sweet shallots, earthy mushrooms and of course, Marsala wine. The result is an oaky, burnt caramel-flavoured gravy in which to further simmer the chicken.
Flavour making tips
Marsala wine is both sweet and acidic, so the addition of mushrooms roots the dish in earthiness. I’ve used chestnut mushrooms in this recipe as they were available to me at the time.
However, be daring! Get wild with your mushrooms and choose something you wouldn’t usually, it will bolster the flavour impact.
You can stick with chestnut, like me, or packs of mixed mushrooms can be bought from big supermarkets. Or select one or two interesting looking ones; fruity chanterelles and woodsy porcini are my absolute favourites and contrast beautifully.
I’ve used delicate shallots in place of onions. I find they bring a welcome hint of garlic, you’ll notice that there isn’t any in this recipe as it clashes with the wine.
Marsala wine might be tricky to track down, but you can substitute with any other sweet and syrupy, fortified wine. You could use Madeira wine or an amber-coloured sherry, which will be neither too dry not too sweet.
Recipe Tips and Notes
- I cut the chicken breasts in half lengthways and then pound them with a meat mallet. The thinner cutlets cook quicker and more evenly resulting in a super tender bite.
- Traditionally, the chicken breasts are dredged in flour. The coating does 3 things; turns the chicken a pleasant golden colour when fried; seals in the meat’s juiciness; creates a smooth consistency to the sauce.
- That being said, feel free to skip that step if you’re pushed for time.
- For caramel-coloured, slightly crisp mushrooms, don’t overcrowd the pan. Too many mushrooms cooking at once will steam them and leave them soggy and flavourless.
- Experiment with mushrooms! Be adventurous and try a new variety or two, mixing it up will greatly enhance the complexity of this dish.
- If you can’t source Marsala, don’t panic! You can easily substitute with Madeira (another fortified wine), or even a sweetish sherry.
- The original chicken marsala recipe doesn’t include cream and I haven’t in this one, but you totally can! 120ml / 1/2 cup will double the indulgence of this luscious dish.
Serving suggestions
Any of your favourite carbs will accompany chicken marsala; pasta, rice or mashed potatoes, herb and garlic mashed potatoes, especially. I like this dish with crunchy green vegetables too; lemon butter green beans or roasted Tenderstem broccoli with lemon garlic vinaigrette.
Or if you’re feeling fancy, honour your dinner guests with a decadent Italian multi-course meal:
Antipasto – bruschetta recipe trio
Primo – pasta e fagioli soup
Secondo – chicken marsala
Dolce – salted caramel affogato
Storage and leftovers
For the most succulent chicken and perfectly silken sauce, eat on the day. Any leftovers can be kept in the fridge for 2-3 days. Reheat on the stovetop with a little water to loosen the sauce.
The simplest way to reheat the any leftovers is in a microwave, but I prefer using the stovetop. Add it to a pan over medium-low heat, adding a splash of water or stock to keep the sauce loose.
Cover with a lid or foil so it doesn’t dry out and let it heat for approximately 15 minutes or until it is hot enough to enjoy.
More recipes with marsala wine
- Creamy Mushroom Marsala Sauce
- Filet Mignon with Mushroom Marsala Sauce
- Meatballs with Marsala Cream Sauce
- Turkey Marsala Pot Pie
- Strawberry Marsala Cobbler
Best Chicken Marsala
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts
- salt and pepper
- 1/2cup / 60g flour
- 2 tbsp This is an affiliate link.olive oil
- 3 small shallots, chopped
- 1 cup / 100g chestnut mushrooms, sliced
- 1 tbsp flour
- 1/2 cup / 125 ml marsala wine
- 1 cup / 250 ml This is an affiliate link.chicken stock
- flat leaf parsley
Instructions
- Cover the chicken breasts with a cling wrap and pound them with a meat mallet until they are no thicker than 1/2 inch. Sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides and dredge in flour.
- Fry in olive oil until golden over medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes. Do not over cook as the chicken breasts will be quite thin and will cook fast. Remove to a separate plate and set aside.
- To the same pan add chopped shallots and cook over low heat for 2-3 minutes, then add sliced mushrooms, salt and pepper and saute for 5 minutes, then add 1 tbsp of flour, stir and cook for a minute longer, then add marsala wine and turn the heat up to medium, add chicken stock and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and return the chicken to the pan, let it heat through in the sauce, simmer for a few minutes to allow the sauce to thicken to a desired consistency.
- Serve sprinkled with chopped parsley and a side dish of your choice.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hello.In step 2 is it 5 minutes total frying 2 1/2 min ea side?
Hello Jeff, yes it is 5 minutes total time, 2.5 minutes each side. You will put them back in the sauce to finish cooking.
1st time I made a Marsala sauce, my wife loves Marsala sauce and has tasted a lot of Marsala sauce at different restaurants, she was really impressed with the taste and flavor of your recipe, it was easy, spent more time prepping than I did cooking it, will make it again, thank you for sharing your recipe with me.
So glad you enjoyed it, Keith!
Hi. Can I use boneless skinless chicken thighs? How much? Do I still pound them out?
Thank you
Hi Laura, yes you can. You don’t need to change anything else from the recipe as written.
I make only your version! Been cooking my entire life, and your peeps may be interested that I serve it over puréed celery root, the sauce soaking into it, and it’s so darn delicious! An option other than mashed potatoes?
That’s a great option, Lynn! Thank you for your tip. 🙂
Delicious and very easy. I used sweet Vidalia onions instead of shallots and doubled the sauce/mushrooms.
Love the recipe – but my sauce was a little bitter & used sweet Marsala – how do I fix it?
Hi Patty, step 2 when you fry the chicken dredged in flour could leaves some burnt flour in the pan and it can contribute to a bitter taste. To avoid that make sure you shake off excess flour before adding it to the pan. Another reason could be the the wine itself. Some people are very sensitive to the taste of alcohol in the sauce, which could be a little bitter.
Excellent recipe! I don’t like heavy Marsala sauces with cream so this was the perfect chicken Marsala for me. Served it with wild rice & salad with light vinaigrette….so good!
Excellent recipe! I don’t like heavy Marsala sauces with cream so this was the perfect chicken Marsala for me. Served it with wild rice & salad with light vinaigrette….so good!
I did what I could. Should have listen! I use a sweet Marsala wine, way too sweet. But it was what I had. I should have been more selective I. My mushrooms. I used button mushrooms I would like something woodsy portobello maybe. So thank you! You have taught me that there is a big difference in the wine and also the mushroom’s. This as very easy to assemble. Thanks for my lesson
It was ok. Didn’t have onions so had to do without. Chicken was nice and tender but not too much Marsala flavor.
Hello. This looks like a quick and delicious dish and I am looking forward to trying it soon. After viewing the recipe and watching the video, I do have one quick question. If the chicken breasts are large and I cut each vertically and then again horizontally, as shown in the video, resulting in 8 pieces, will there be enough sauce to cover all of that chicken, or should I adjust the recipe to make more sauce?
Thanks.
Joe
Hi Joe, you can definitely double the sauce if your chicken breasts are very large.
I’m a little late to the party but I used this recipe tonight and it was WONDERFUL! I had yellow/orange peppers leftover from another meal that I needed to use and added them just for flavoring during the last stage of simmering. Served with garlic mashed potatoes. 😍 I was trying to save some for lunch tomorrow…not sure if there will be any leftover!
What a great outcome! Yellow and orange peppers always bring something special, don’t they! Glad you enjoyed it, Monique!
Made this many times and it’s always a hit! Perfect as is, and still great when making substitutions for whatever is on hand (I’ve tried this with white, red, even brandy!).
Wow, I am so excited to hear this, Jay! I agree this recipe works with a variety of alcohol. Dry sherry would be another good substitution.
This is very good, I substituted Marsala cooking wine instead of the regular wine and perfect.