Try this easy One Pot Creamed Spinach Chicken for a tasty and no-fuss meal prepared with shallots, wine, and creamy spinach, all cooked together with boneless skinless chicken thighs. Quick to make, you can have everything cooked in one pot in less than 30 minutes!
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are not only delicious but also incredibly easy to cook. Their forgiving nature means they always turn out tender and juicy with minimal effort. Paired with a fabulous creamy spinach pan-sauce, they make an excellent choice for a weeknight meal. This dish is particularly ideal for those times when you want something tasty yet quick to prepare without extensive prep work.
Why You Should Make This Recipe
- Quick & Easy: Ready in around 30 minutes, perfect for a fast and fuss-free meal.
- Flavorful Twist: Shallots, wine, and cream transform simple chicken thighs into a gourmet delight.
- One Pot Wonder: Minimal cleanup is required, as everything cooks in a single pot.
- Versatile & Satisfying: Ideal for both weeknights and special occasions, satisfying every palate.
Ingredients For Creamed Spinach Chicken
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs: You’ll need about 6 thighs or around 1.5 pounds.
- Dried Herbs: You can use 1 teaspoon of your dried herbs of choice. I usually mix oregano and basil or use an Italian Seasoning blend.
- Garlic Powder, Paprika, Salt, and Pepper: Smoked paprika and sweet paprika are suitable; each will add its own special touch.
- Olive Oil: For sauteing.
- Fresh Shallots: Thinly sliced.
- Fresh Garlic: Two cloves garlic. It should be minced or put through a garlic press.
- White Wine: You can also substitute chicken broth.
- Sour Cream: I like to use sour cream without stabilizers or gums when possible.
- Heavy Cream & Butter: For added creaminess.
- Fresh Spinach: I use baby spinach.
How to Make One Pot Creamed Spinach Chicken
- Season the Chicken. Pat the chicken thighs dry with paper towels. In a small bowl, combine the herbs, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Rub the spice mixture all over the chicken thighs.
- Cook. Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook the chicken thighs in the heated oil for about 7 minutes per side or until the internal temperature registers at 165˚F. Remove chicken thighs from the pan and set aside.
- Make the Sauce. Set the pan back over medium heat and stir in the sliced shallots; cook for a minute. Stir in the garlic and cook for 20 seconds. Add the wine or chicken broth, and whisk in the sour cream & heavy cream, bringing the mixture to a boil. Cook for 2-3 minutes, whisking continuously so that the sour cream doesn’t curdle and the sauce thickens.
- Add the Spinach and Chicken to the Sauce. Stir the spinach into the simmering sauce and cook for a minute until the spinach is wilted. Then add the cooked chicken back to the pan and cook for 1 minute, just to heat through.
Recipe Tips And Variations
- Spinach Substitute: Feel free to use frozen spinach in this dish. Just remember to thaw it completely and remove all the excess water.
- Choosing Your Chicken: While this recipe is great with boneless chicken thighs, you can also use boneless breasts or chicken tenders, adjusting the cooking time accordingly. Note that this recipe isn’t suitable for bone-in chicken, as it requires more cooking time and is better suited for oven cooking.
- Heavy Cream: Ideal for this recipe due to its high-fat content, ensuring a thick sauce, but a decent alternative is Half & Half. Milk can be used when combined with a roux or cornstarch to help thicken the sauce.
- Whisking the Sauce: Whisk continuously and gently when adding sour cream and heavy cream to prevent curdling. If the sauce seems too thick, you can thin it with a little more wine or broth.
Serving Suggestions
Bread is always a nice accompaniment to a creamy, saucy dish like this. You can make this no knead skillet cheese bread, quick butter swim biscuits, or whip up a batch of delicious no knead dinner rolls! I love serving this dish with pasta, but if you really want to put it over the top, try it with garlic butter parmesan rice! For dessert, my easy fruit salad is a really nice contrast to the creamy, savory flavors of the chicken.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
- Cover leftovers tightly or store them in airtight food storage containers. This dish will last for up to 3 days in the refrigerator or for up to 3 months in the freezer.
- To reheat, thaw leftovers completely in the refrigerator (if frozen). Then place leftovers in a covered skillet over medium-low heat, bringing just to a simmer and cooking until completely heated through, about 5-10 minutes.
Easy Chicken Recipes
- Apple Cider Glazed Chicken Thighs
- Pineapple Barbecue Chicken Thighs
- Yogurt Marinated Chicken
- Pecan Crusted Chicken
One Pot Creamed Spinach Chicken
Ingredients
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 teaspoon dried herbs of choice, I use a mix of oregano and basil, or I use 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon sweet or smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves shallots, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup white wine or chicken broth
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon butter
- salt, to taste
- 6 ounces fresh baby spinach
Instructions
- Using paper towels, pat dry the chicken thighs.
- In a small bowl, combine dried herbs, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Rub this spice mixture all over the chicken thighs.
- Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet set over medium heat.
- Add chicken to the heated oil; cook for 6 to 7 minutes per side, or until chicken is cooked through. Use an Instant Read Thermometer to check for doneness. Chicken is done when internal temperature registers at 165˚F.
- Remove the chicken thighs from the pan and set aside.
- Set the pan back over medium heat and stir in the sliced shallots; cook for a minute or until tender.
- Stir in garlic and cook for 15 seconds, or until fragrant.
- Add chicken broth or wine; whisk in the sour cream and bring the mixture to a boil. Make sure to whisk continuously so that the sour cream doesn’t curdle.
- Whisk in the heavy cream and whisk until well combined.
- Stir in butter; stir until it melts. Continue to cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the sauce is slightly thickened.
- Add in the spinach and cook for a minute or until the spinach is wilted. At this point, if the sauce is too thick, add a little liquid (chicken broth or wine) at a time or until you reach the desired consistency.
- Add the chicken back to the pan and cook for 1 minute, just to heat through.
- Remove from the heat and serve.
47 Comments
Kathryn Doherty
Oct 29, 2020 at 8:37 pmThis sounds like the perfect combo – love spinach and always up for a new chicken dish!
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 2, 2020 at 4:38 pmThank YOU! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Sara Welch
Oct 29, 2020 at 9:20 pmGave this a try for dinner last night and it didn’t disappoint! So flavorful and perfect for busy weeknights!! Easily, a new favorite recipe in our home!
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 2, 2020 at 4:37 pmThat’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Dorothy Reinhold
Oct 29, 2020 at 10:15 pmThat sauce looks amazing! I love that this is is quick and easy for a busy night. Winner for sure!
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 2, 2020 at 4:37 pmThank you so much! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Amanda
Oct 29, 2020 at 10:26 pmI love one pot dinners and this is definitely getting added to the list, looks fantastic!
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 2, 2020 at 4:36 pmThank YOU! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Beth
Oct 30, 2020 at 1:53 pmYummy! This looks so delicious and tasty! I can’t wait to give this a try!
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 2, 2020 at 4:35 pmI hope you enjoy it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 2, 2020 at 4:36 pmThank you so much! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Haley Williams
Oct 30, 2020 at 2:19 pmCreamed spinach is one of my favorite comfort foods. Love that it’s paired with chicken here!
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 2, 2020 at 4:35 pmThank YOU! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Catalina
Oct 30, 2020 at 9:52 pmMy kid will go crazy over this dish! Love how creamy is!
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 2, 2020 at 4:34 pmThank YOU! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Debra
Dec 8, 2020 at 2:40 pmMade this 2 nights ago & had leftovers last night. Fantastic recipe. I also made the Garlic Parmesan Rice to go with it and also a great recipe. The only changes for both recipes was I used less spinach for both. I had a 6 oz bag of baby spinach & probably used 5 oz between the two & it was enough spinach for both of us. Both recipes are definitely keepers & will make again.
Katerina Petrovska
Dec 8, 2020 at 5:00 pmThat’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed both recipes!! Thank YOU! 🙂
Robyn Forsyth
Jan 10, 2021 at 11:07 pmMade as directed and was fantastic with egg noodles! Thanks for the recipe.
Katerina Petrovska
Jan 12, 2021 at 4:04 pmThat’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Beth
Feb 22, 2021 at 3:30 pmHi. I’m wondering if you could use red wine instead of white? Thank you!
Katerina
Feb 22, 2021 at 3:34 pmHi!
Technically, I guess you could, but white wine is normally used (and drank) with white meat, whereas red wine is mostly used in red meat dishes.
Dina
Jul 18, 2021 at 6:40 pmI made a few changes, but it was yummy! I added some celery and mushrooms. I used Greek yogurt instead of the creams. It was very good.
Katerina
Jul 24, 2021 at 12:25 pmI’m glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for chiming in! 🙂
Tara
Aug 26, 2021 at 2:14 pmHad some baby spinach and chicken breasts to use up – we really enjoyed this one skillet dish. Thank you for a delicious recipe!
Tara
Aug 26, 2021 at 2:17 pmHad some baby spinach and chicken breasts to use up – we really enjoyed this one skillet dish. Thank you for a delicious recipe!
Oops… I forgot to rate
Katerina Petrovska
Aug 27, 2021 at 10:53 amThat’s great! I am very glad everyone enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Char
Sep 2, 2021 at 9:55 amIm doing Keto. I was looking for a recipe for chicken thighs and I’m so happy I came across this recipe. This was amazing. I did double on everything in the recipe because I had a couple extra thighs. I used white wine and also added mushrooms! Love one skillet dishes. Will definitely be making this again.
Katerina Petrovska
Sep 2, 2021 at 1:21 pmThat’s great! I’m very happy you loved it! Thank you for chiming in! 🙂
Susan
Sep 7, 2021 at 6:48 pmVery good!!!
Katerina Petrovska
Sep 9, 2021 at 11:19 amThank YOU! I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Susan
Nov 13, 2021 at 8:02 pmExcellent, cut back on red pepper a bit, just a little for flavor….family likes more than I do. But was easy and tasty. Just made some Near East rice and perfect! Wine really suits it!
Katerina Petrovska
Nov 15, 2021 at 10:37 amThat’s great! I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Karen Dougherty
Dec 12, 2021 at 6:48 pmEasy and delicious. I will add more garlic next time and am thinking about adding mushrooms. Thanks for a great recipe.
Katerina Petrovska
Dec 13, 2021 at 2:35 pmI’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Shaina
Feb 10, 2022 at 3:20 pmThis chicken was SOOOOO good! I made some for my family today. It was so good and I received many complements on it! Thank you!
Katerina Petrovska
Feb 13, 2022 at 11:56 amThat’s great to hear! I’m very happy everyone loved it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Adela
Feb 24, 2022 at 6:31 pmThis was ready and delicious! I didn’t have shallots so I substituted onions and still had a great flavor! Definitely will be making this again!
Katerina Petrovska
Feb 25, 2022 at 1:51 pmThat’s great! I’m really glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Nikki
May 30, 2022 at 5:49 amDelicious-Some recipes on pintrest are hit and miss but this is one one the best chicken dishes I have had.
Katerina Petrovska
May 30, 2022 at 8:33 amThat’s great to hear! I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Kara
Jun 6, 2022 at 7:36 pmVery tasty! Only used thyme as my herb of choice, which really complimented the shallots and garlic. Also, only used cream as I don’t usually have sour cream on hand, but the sauce was perfect. Will definitely be making it again!
Bonnie
Jul 9, 2022 at 1:04 pmHi. I really love your website. Great recipes. Can I use boned and skinned chicken breasts instead of thighs? What adjustments do you recommend. Thank you. Bonnie
Amy
Jul 26, 2023 at 9:49 pmThis was a real hit tonight! I did use coconut milk instead of heavy cream, and I added sweet yellow peppers to the shallots. We served it over mashed potatoes, and it was delicious! Will definitely make again!
roma
Aug 10, 2023 at 5:15 pmThis recipe was easy to make and full of flavor, and goes with any sides.
Laurie
Sep 29, 2023 at 5:50 pmMade this tonight and let me tell you was not disappointed! It was delish!!
Mary
Mar 19, 2024 at 8:44 pmTHIS IS DELICIOUS!!!!! Came across the recipe when I was looking for some new chicken recipes. Super easy and quick. Did not disappoint! Thanks for sharing!
Katerina
Mar 24, 2024 at 2:48 pmI’m so glad to hear it hit the spot and added something new to your chicken recipe collection! It’s great when a recipe is both easy and delicious. Thank YOU! 🙂