Creamy Chicken Skillet Dinner

You would never guess that my super creamy chicken skillet dinner with mushrooms is actually dairy free! The secret ingredient is soaked and blended cashews, which form the base of this silky smooth sauce, which coats boneless skinless chicken thighs and tender button mushrooms. This is an excellent weeknight recipe, as it comes together in under 30 minutes.

I like using button mushrooms, because they are mild, cook evenly, and are widely accessible, but you can use any variety or combination of mushrooms you like. Here, I cook the mushrooms whole, so those in my family who do not care for mushrooms can easily pick them out of the dish. The mushrooms do not affect the flavor of the dish at all.

I serve this dish over fluffy jasmine rice, but it would also be delicious on top of mashed potatoes or on its own as well. If you like this easy creamy chicken skillet, leave me a review and be sure to let me know what you did differently instead.

Creamy Chicken Skillet Dinner

The Modern Nonna

This is an excellent weeknight recipe that comes together in under 30 minutes. The secret ingredient is soaked and blended cashews, which form the base of this silky smooth sauce, which coats boneless skinless chicken thighs and tender button mushrooms.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Servings 3 servings

Ingredients

Chicken

• 2 tablespoons avocado oil
• 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (see notes below)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 8 ounce container button mushrooms (cleaned with a damp paper towel) (250 grams)
• ⅓ cup white wine (see notes below)
• chopped parsley for garnish

Cashew Cream Sauce

• ½ cup raw unsalted cashews
• salt to taste
• 1 clove garlic
• ¾ cup hot water for blending

Instructions

 

Cashew Cream Sauce

• Soak the cashews in hot water for 30 minutes. Drain.
• Add the soaked cashews to a blender with a pinch of salt, a clove of garlic, and the 3/4 cup hot water. You can always taste and adjust for salt so don't add too much at first.
• Blend until creamy and smooth. Set aside.

The Chicken

• In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat.
• Add the chicken thighs (make sure they sizzle) and season with salt and pepper on one side. Brown the chicken until golden all over, about 5 minutes per side.
• If the chicken is giving resistance when you try to flip it and getting stuck, it means it's not ready to be flipped and needs more time cooking. Once the chicken loosens up from the bottom, flip it over and season the other side as well.
• If the heat is too high you can always lower it to medium-low depending on the stove.
• Once the chicken has browned on each side, remove it from the pan and reduce the heat to low. I like to discard a few tablespoons of the fat if there's too much, but this is optional.
• Add the onions, mushrooms, and white wine and let cook, while stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the chicken back in and cover the pan with a lid for 10 to 12 minutes, letting it simmer on low heat.
• After 12 minutes, pour in the cashew cream and stir. If the sauce is too thick add a touch more water to thin it out. Take the pan off the heat, garnish with parsley, and enjoy over rice, mashed potatoes or on its own.

Video

Notes

You don’t have to use cashew cream if you don’t want to. If you are allergic to nuts you can use any other creamy alternative such as coconut cream or heavy cream instead. 

I like using skinless-boneless chicken thighs as they cook much faster but you can use chicken breast cutlets as well. If you use chicken breast make sure it’s cut into thin cutlets or pounded so that it can cook evenly. 

You can use ANY mushrooms in this dish and leave them whole, like I did, if you have anyone in the family that doesn’t like them. This way, the mushrooms can be easily separated from the rest of the dish. You can also leave them out completely or use another veggie of choice in here. 

Season the chicken with your heart and use any seasoning YOU enjoy. I use only salt and pepper as the sauce will give us LOTS of flavor. 

If you can’t use wine, use unsalted broth instead to deglaze the pan. If you use a white wine, use one that you would actually drink for best results. 

The skillet that I use is an enameled skillet from Amazon which I will link below. I have the white one but it’s not always available so please keep checking back in both of my Amazon Stores. Amazon Basics Enameled Cast Iron Covered Casserole – 3.3-Quart, Matte Navy : Amazon.ca: Home

Link for the pan for USA is here Amazon.com: Amazon Basics Enameled Cast Iron Covered Casserole Skillet – 3.3-Quart, White: Home & Kitchen

Tried this recipe?Mention @themodernnonna or tag #themodernnonna!