Description
This creamy sautéed chicken with cheddar cheese sauce is bathed in a luxurious cheesy sauce made with sharp cheddar cheese. Served with mashed potatoes and green beans this chicken in cheese sauce is the perfect family-friendly comfort food dinner!
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1 pound thin sliced boneless skinless chicken breast cutlets
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 cup finely chopped and cleaned leeks
- 1/2 teaspoon dry thyme
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 1 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup non-fat milk
- 4 ounces shredded sharp yellow cheddar cheese (about 1 cup)
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Sprinkle ½ teaspoon salt and pepper all over the chicken cutlets. Place flour in a shallow dish and dredge chicken in the flour, until coated, shaking off excess and setting aside. Reserve 2 tablespoons left-over flour and discard the remainder.
- Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, but not smoking, add chicken to skillet in one layer (do not overcrowd- see note below*) and cook until browned on both sides, 1 1/2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to a plate. Note chicken will continue cooking in step 7.
- Add leeks, thyme and the remaining ½ teaspoon salt to the skillet, and cook, stirring until fragrant and starting to brown slightly, 1 to 3 minutes.
- Add wine, and cook scraping up any browned bits until the wine has almost completely evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Sprinkle the reserved 2 tablespoons flour over the leek mixture and stir to coat.
- Stir in broth and milk and stir until the flour is dissolved. Bring to a simmer, stirring often, and continue cooking until the sauce is thickened slightly about 1 minute.
- Return the chicken and any accumulated juices from the plate to the skillet and return to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, turning the chicken over in the sauce occasionally until the chicken is no longer pink in the center and is cooked through, 2 to 4 minutes longer.
- Transfer the chicken to serving platter. Remove skillet from heat and stir cheese into the sauce until the cheese is melted. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and serve sprinkled with chives.
Notes
*Note: If the chicken does not fit in one layer, cook in two batches and reduce the heat if necessary to prevent it from burning.
Make-Ahead Instructions: To make this skillet sauteed chicken with cheese sauce ahead of time, prepare the chicken according to the recipe instructions (except this time, make sure to cook it all the way through), then store it separately from the sauce in the fridge. Reheat the chicken and sauce in a skillet over medium heat, whisking in extra milk as needed to thin out the sauce, until everything is hot and bubbly.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 ounces chicken and 1/2 cup sauce
- Calories: 420
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated Fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 28 g
- Fiber: 8 g
- Protein: 28 g