This Chicken and Gravy recipe is easy to make and full of homemade flavor. Serve this with mashed potatoes and green beans for a cozy dinner that your family will love!
Chicken and Gravy
There’s nothing cozier than a skillet filled with delicious chicken and savory sauce. This sauce is made from scratch with basic fixings, (including my favorite seasonings and flavor enhancers), which creates the most excellent hand-crafted flavor without taking a part of the time.
Simple Chicken and Gravy Ingredients
Feel free to jump to the full recipe, but here are valuable notes about the ingredients you will need to make this Simple Chicken and Gravy recipe:
- Boneless skinless chicken: Boneless chicken was all that I had thawed out when I decided to make this Simple Chicken and Gravy. You can use thighs if you like, but you might need to extend the cooking time a few minutes longer.
- Chicken broth: Chicken stock is fine. Or vegetable. Water will work, too. Might need a bit more salt.
- All-purpose flour: For building the roux, which will build the gravy. Pretty much any type of flour would be fine.
- Unsalted butter, vegetable oil: Our fats. We use oil to help the seasonings adhere to the chicken and to blend with the butter so it doesn’t burn when you’re searing the chicken.
- Seasoned salt, onion powder, cracked black pepper, celery seed, garlic powder, Green Goddess seasoning: These are just what I pulled out of my pantry and put together on a whim. Feel free to use what you have on hand or want to.
How to Make Simple Chicken and Gravy
Full instructions are included in the recipe below, but here is a basic overview of what you’ll need to do, along with some important tidbits to help you make the most of this Simple Chicken and Gravy recipe:
- Season the chicken. In a small bowl mix together all of the dry seasonings. Once combined separate about one tablespoon of the mixture out into a separate container: you’ll use that to season the gravy. Lightly coat with a teaspoon of vegetable oil the chicken all over, then season it with the mixture you just made (still reserving that single tablespoon). Make sure the chicken is seasoned well all over.
- Sear the chicken. Place a large skillet or saute pan over medium-high heat. Add two tablespoons of butter along with the remaining vegetable oil and stir them together to coat the surface of the pan. When the butter has completely melted and has started to bubble, add your chicken skin side down in a single layer. Don’t crowd the pan – go in batches if you need to. Sear until well-browned, for about 3-5 minutes, then flip and sear the other side. Once all of the chicken is seared, transfer it to a plate or bowl to rest while you build the roux for your Simple Chicken and Gravy.
- Build the roux. Add the remaining butter to the pan and let it melt. Sprinkle in the flour and use a spatula or roux whisk to combine the flour and fat into a roux. Continue stirring until the roux has reached a light caramel color, about 5-7 minutes.
- Make the gravy. Next, begin whisking in the chicken broth one cup at a time. It will seem like the roux sucks up all of the liquid, but it’ll loosen noticeably as we add the final two cups. Just make sure to whisk thoroughly until you see no lumps between each cup of liquid.
- Simmer the Simple Chicken and Gravy. Now, whisk the reserved seasoning blend into the gravy. Taste and adjust with more seasonings if you think you need it. Once you’re happy with the taste, add the seared chicken back to the pan. Cover with a lid and reduce the heat to medium-low. Let simmer, stirring occasionally, for 12-15 minutes, or until the chicken is completely cooked through. Dassit. Enjoy!
Storage of Chicken and Gravy Recipe
- Store in an air closed box and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Leftovers do freeze well!
- If reheating from frozen: Thaw leftover chicken overnight in the fridge (or defrost it in the microwave) and then bake it in a small, lightly greased, covered casserole dish at 350° for 20-25 minutes.
Tips and FAQS Of Chicken Gravy Recipe
- Always cook this recipe until it reaches at least 165 degrees with an internal meat oven.
- I shredded the chicken with two forks right in the pan, but if you are using a nonstick pan be sure to remove the chicken from the pan so you don’t by chance scratch your pot.
- You could also use a hand mixer to shred the chicken if you remove it from the pan and put it in a big bowl.
- Be sure to cut your chicken breasts in half lengthwise to make the chicken small. Using thinner chicken will help cut down on the cooking time.
Recipe!
Homemade Chicken and Gravy Recipe!
This Chicken and Gravy recipe is easy to make and full of homemade flavor. Serve this with mashed potatoes and green beans for a cozy dinner that your family will love!
Equipment
- Mixing bowls
- oven
- Mixing bowls
- Large mixing bowl
Ingredients
Chicken
- 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Salt/Pepper
- ¼ cup flour
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
Gravy
- ½ cup wine
- 4 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ½ cup beef broth
- ½ chicken bouillon cube see notes
- 1 splash heavy cream can sub half and half
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce can sub soy sauce
Seasonings
- ½ teaspoon each: onion powder garlic powder, mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon each: dried thyme ground sage, pepper
Instructions
- In a large measuring cup with a spout, combine the chicken broth, beef broth, chicken bouillon, cream, Worcestershire sauce, and seasonings and set aside.
- Slice the chicken in half lengthwise to create 2-3 thinner slices. Cover with saran wrap and use the textured side of a meat mallet to pound it to ½ inch thick. Pat dry.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken in batches for 4-5 minutes per side, until a golden crust has developed. Set aside.
- Turn the heat off. Add the wine and then set the heat to medium. Use a silicone spatula to clean the bottom and sides of the skillet, the “fond” will add more flavor to the sauce. Bring to a gentle bubble and reduce by half, about 3-4 minutes.
- Melt the butter and add the flour. Stir continuously for 2 minutes, until the flour turns a light brown, and the raw flour smell is cooked off.
- Add the "gravy mixture" (from step 1) in small splashes, stirring continuously. Doing this slowly is necessary to maintain the thickness of the gravy.
- Add the chicken back to the skillet along with any juices from the plate. Spoon the sauce on top. Let it simmer and reduce for 5 more minutes, or until desired thickness is obtained. The longer it simmers, the thicker and more concentrated it will get. Maintain a very gentle simmer to ensure the chicken stays juicy. (A boil will make it tough.)
- Serve with mashed potatoes and roasted green beans!
Notes
Notes
Pro Tips
Storage
- If using smaller chicken breasts, consider using 3-4 instead of 2 large.
- Chicken thighs or pork chops can be used in this recipe instead of chicken breasts.
- Wine: Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, or Sauvignon Blanc are great in this recipe. Chicken broth can be used if you don’t cook with wine.
- Beef Broth: It may seem counterintuitive to add beef broth, but it adds a nice contrast and depth of flavor with the chicken broth and adds a slightly darker color to the gravy. All chicken broth can be used if preferred!
- Bouillon: I add 1/2 bouillon cube for depth of flavor in this gravy. I use Better Than Bouillon for that, and use it to make the broth as well. It takes very little space and makes it easy to measure out customized amounts of broth.
- The Worcestershire Sauce adds umami and also can’t be tasted in this soup. Soy sauce can be used as a substitute if needed.
- For Serving: Be sure to serve this with my creamy mashed potatoes and roasted green beans!
- Beef/Pork Chops: Try my Beef Tips and Gravy and/or my Pork Chops and Gravy recipes next!
- Crock Pot: This recipe is best suited for the stove top due to the techniques used that require various heat levels. It also needs to simmer, reduce, and concentrate to develop the flavor of the gravy and thicken, which requires evaporation.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Leftovers do freeze well!
- If reheating from frozen: Thaw leftover chicken overnight in the fridge (or defrost it in the microwave) and then bake it in a small, lightly greased, covered casserole dish at 350° for 20-25 minutes.