This Epic Whole30 Creamy Garlic Chicken Recipe is the perfect weeknight dinner for the garlic lover! Juicy pan seared chicken smothered in a dairy free garlic cream sauce for the ultimate bite – all in just 30 minutes.
Table of Contents
- Whole30 Creamy Garlic Chicken
- What is creamy garlic sauce made of?
- Ingredients you’ll need:
- Should I season chicken before cooking?
- How to make Creamy Garlic Chicken?
- What to serve with Whole30 Creamy Garlic Chicken?
- Additional Add-ins:
- Do you have to use Chicken Breast?
- More Chicken Breast Recipes you need to try:
- Get the Recipe
Whole30 Creamy Garlic Chicken
Creamy. Garlicky. And oh so savory. This recipe will seriously blow your mind. How do I know? Because it blew my mind. I impressed myself with this one. Pan seared chicken with pan roasted garlic, fresh herbs, lemon and a cream sauce that is mouthwatering!
Who knew whole30 recipes could taste so good? Sorry if you’re a whole30 lover out there. I’ve never done whole30, so this arena is a little knew to me. But honestly I’m starting to love it. We served this with roasted potatoes and asparagus. Let’s just say it was divine and devoured!
What is creamy garlic sauce made of?
Garlic sauce is typically a pungent sauce made with lots of fresh garlic for a strong garlic flavor. Then mellowed out with ingredients like butter, cream and fresh herbs. Some people emulsify it so the cloves of garlic are pureed and others leave the cloves of garlic whole.
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Ingredients you’ll need:
This recipe is whole30, so you’ll be using things like ghee and coconut milk to make a dreamy creamy sauce. Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this whole30 creamy garlic chicken recipe.
- Chicken: I use boneless skinless chicken breasts. However, you could use chicken tenders or even chicken thighs if you’d like.
- Ghee: Instead of butter, we use ghee in this dish.
- Yellow Onion: I’m an onion lover, I add it to most everything I make. But if you’re not, you can omit this from the recipe.
- Garlic: You’ll need a whole head of garlic. I know it sounds like a lot, but trust me the garlic doesn’t overpower in this dish. In fact, if you’re a garlic lover you could add 2 whole heads of garlic. The garlic mellows out and gets sweeter as it’s pan seared and turns into the best bite you’ll ever have. If you don’t want the whole cloves of garlic, slice them in half for smaller pieces.
- Lemon Juice: This helps cut through the sweet and fat from the coconut milk.
- Chicken Broth: I use low sodium chicken broth or stock to further emphasis the savory flavor of the chicken.
- Coconut Milk: Buy the full fat canned coconut milk. You will find this in the international aisle of your grocery store. Do NOT use the carton that you’ll find buy the milk, it will be too liquidy.
- Thyme: Fresh is best. This flavorful lemony herb brightens up the dish.
- Salt & Pepper: This is a must for seasoning any and every dish.
Should I season chicken before cooking?
Absolutely. I season every protein before I cook it. Salt and pepper are flavor. Don’t skip on that. The seasoning will also carry through to the sauce of this while you’re cooking. Meaning you won’t have to add as much salt at the end.
How to make Creamy Garlic Chicken?
Not only is the garlic chicken dish bursting with flavor in every bite. It’s all done in under 30 minutes. Here are the simple instructions on how to make this dish a reality in your house.
- Season Chicken: Lay chicken breast on a cutting board. With your hand on top, carefully slice the chicken in half. You’ll have a top and a bottom have. (essentially cutlets) Season your 4 chicken breasts with salt and pepper on both sides.
- Sear Chicken Breast: Heat a large skillet to medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of ghee. Then add chicken breast to skillet. Pan sear chicken breasts for 4-5 minutes per side. Next, remove chicken from pan and let rest.
- Pan Sear Garlic Cloves: Reduce heat to medium, then immediately add remaining tablespoon of ghee and whole garlic cloves to the pan. Saute cloves for 3-4 minutes, stirring around the pan occasionally to brown the outside.
- Add Aromatics: Once garlic is slightly browned, add yellow onion to pan. Saute for 1-2 minutes, until translucent.
- Pour in the flavor: Next, add in chicken broth, lemon juice and fresh thyme. Stir and bring to a simmer, reduce by the mixture by half.
- Make it Creamy: Slowly add in coconut milk and stir until combined. Season with salt to taste.
- Back in the Pan: Add chicken breast pan to pan and simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped parsley or basil and serve!
What to serve with Whole30 Creamy Garlic Chicken?
You can’t go wrong with a simple and classic. Some of our favorite dishes to serve with this whole30 chicken recipe are listed below:
- Everyday Go-to Salad
- Oven Roasted Balsamic Brussel Sprouts
- Best Spinach Salad with Apples, Pecans & Gorgonzola
- Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes
- Crispy Baked Fries with Garlic Aioli
- Grilled Asparagus with Lemon Zest
Additional Add-ins:
In my opinion, this recipe is perfect just as it is. But if you want to “amp it up” a bite. Here are a few things I thought about adding in.
- Vegetables: The more veg you can add into recipes the better. I thought about adding spinach, cherry tomatoes, sweet peas or broccoli.
- Cheese: This recipe is whole30 which is why didn’t add in cheese. But I totally thought about adding grated parmesan cheese.
- Noodles: Turn it into an epic pasta dish by adding in elbow, penne or spaghetti noodles!
Do you have to use Chicken Breast?
No. If you don’t have chicken breasts on hand you can substitute with chicken tenders, chicken thighs or even salmon if you really wanted. This recipe is super flexible.
More Chicken Breast Recipes you need to try:
- Cilantro Lime Chicken with Avocado Salsa
- 5 Flavorful Chicken Marinades
- Keto Pecan Crusted Chicken Recipe
- Chicken Parmesan Zucchini Boats
- 30 Minute Creamy Tuscan Chicken
- Baked Chicken Parmesan with Zucchini Noodles
Epic Whole30 Creamy Garlic Chicken
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Whole30
- Method: Stove
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This Epic Whole30 Creamy Garlic Chicken Recipe is the perfect weeknight dinner for the garlic lover! Juicy pan seared chicken smothered in a dairy free garlic cream sauce for the ultimate bite – all in just 30 minutes.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs of boneless skinless chicken breast (usually 2 large chicken breasts)
- 2 tablespoons ghee
- 1 cup yellow onion, diced
- 1 whole head of garlic, peeled
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 15 oz. can of full fat coconut milk, unsweetened
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Lay chicken breast on a cutting board, with your hand on top, carefully slice the chicken in half so you have a top and a bottom have. (essentially cutlets)
- Season your 4 chicken breasts with salt and pepper.
- Heat a large skillet to medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of ghee and add chicken breast to skillet.
- Pan sear chicken breasts for 4-5 minutes per side. Remove from pan and let rest.
- Reduce heat to medium, then immediately add remaining tablespoon of ghee and all of your whole garlic cloves. Saute cloves for 3-4 minutes, stirring around the pan occasionally to brown the outside.
- Once garlic is slightly browned, add yellow onion to pan. Saute for 1-2 minutes, until translucent.
- Next, add in chicken broth, lemon juice and fresh thyme. Stir and bring to a simmer, reduce by the mixture by half.
- Slowly add in coconut milk and stir until combined. Season with salt to taste.
- Add chicken breast back to pan and simmer for an additional 5 minutes.
- Garnish with chopped parsley or basil and serve!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 chicken + sauce
- Calories: 392
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 240 mg
- Fat: 20 g
- Saturated Fat: 16 g
- Carbohydrates: 10 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 38 g
- Cholesterol: 129 mg
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31 comments on “Epic Whole30 Creamy Garlic Chicken Recipe”
Could I do this in the crock pot?
Hm… you could try. You’d have to roast the garlic ahead of time and then through it in the crockpot to cook
Fast, easy and delicious! This was a meal that everyone in my family enjoyed…even my pickiest eater, who didn’t appreciate the Miracle Noodles and broccoli I made with it, lol.
So glad this recipe was a hit for the entire family!
Definitely worth making. The coconut milk makes this dish not a heavy meal. Light and lovely. Worth the time.
Thanks, Vanna! I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe.
THIS WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!
I am so so happy you enjoyed this recipe!
As a working mom of 4 children, it is difficult to find healthy meals that please everyone’s tastebuds. This one is a big hit in my house. I love that it also fits in with my low-carb diet! I made noodles and steamed broccoli on the side for the kids. They gobbled it up and off to practice we went!
This is why I do this! Thank you so much; your comment makes my heart so happy!
Love this recipe! Do you crushed or slice your garlic after peeling?
Neither, I actually leave them whole.
I am going to try this, but do you have a recipe for the yellow potatoes in the picture?
Yes! Here is the link! https://www.joyfulhealthyeats.com/easy-garlic-ranch-potatoes/
misleading. not creamy at all. good but just not cream 🙁
Hmm.. I’m sorry you feel that way. You could always add more coconut milk or heavy cream if you like it extra creamy.
Takes my cooking to a different level
Agree! It looks so fancy but so easy!
Thanks For Sharing this amazing recipe. My family loved it. I will be sharing this recipe with my friends. Hope the will like it.
I am thrilled this recipe was a hit! Thank you so much for the 5-Star review!
Great recipe but note to self-do not use cream of coconut. It makes it VERY sweet. I couldn’t find coconut milk so I used cream of coconut and it came out way different than I anticipated. Almost like a sweet chicken. It was still good lol
If you can’t find Coconut Milk – you can dilute the Cream of Coconut with water to cut the richness!
This was SO good. It feels so fancy when you’re eating it, but it’s so easy! My husband and I both gave it 5 stars and decided this will be one of our new go-to dinners! Thank you so much for this recipe.
Thank you Elizabeth! Fancy & delicious doesn’t have to be complicated! So glad this dish was a hit!
This looks so good!! Cannot wait to try!! So creamy!!!
It is delicious! I can’t wait for you to try it!
Fantastic site. Your love of food shines through. I will try some of your recipes soon. Thanks!
Thank you! I love that you love it! I can’t wait for you to try out a few recipes!
Do you think I could substitute Greek yogurt for the coconut cream?
*coconut milk
Hmm… I think you could do that. Maybe a cup. You could also use regular milk, heavy whipping cream or half and half.