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This healthy chicken marsala is made of crispy pan-seared chicken breast covered in a light and creamy marsala sauce. It’s gluten and dairy free and you’ll have enough sauce to serve it with pasta or potatoes.
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What is chicken marsala?
Chicken marsala is an Italian dish made of pan-fried chicken with mushrooms and tossed in a creamy marsala wine sauce. It gets its name from the marsala wine used in the creamy sauce, which usually consists of the wine, mushrooms and heavy cream.
We’re using coconut cream in this this healthy chicken marsala recipe to keep it dairy free.
Best marsala wine to use
Marsala wine is a fortified wine from Sicily that’s often used in sauces to deepen the flavor. A dry marsala is best for savory recipes like this one.
- Dry sherry
- Medeira wine
Most of the alcohol evaporates during the cooking process, but if you choose to not use alcohol in yours, here’s a good alcohol free option: chicken broth and sherry vinegar.
Recipes tips:
- Pan fry the chicken over medium-low so the outsides don’t burn before the chicken is cooked all the way through.
- You may need to work in batched with pan-frying, depending on the size of your pan. Remove any burnt bits between batches to avoid ruining the second batch.
- Don’t forget to tenderize your chicken! This helps develop flavor and also ensures even cooking.
What to serve with healthy chicken marsala
This recipe makes a tons of rich and creamy sauce, perfect for topping angel hair pasta or potatoes. You could also serve it with your favorite roasted veggies!
If you make this recipe, I’d love for you to give it a star rating ★ below. You can also tag me on Instagram so I can see it!
More healthy chicken dinners:
Healthy Chicken Marsala
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Ingredients
For the chicken
- 3/4 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup tapioca flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 4 5-6ounce boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons ghee
For the sauce
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter or ghee
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms washed and thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic
- 3/4 cup marsala wine or 3/4 cup chicken broth + 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
- 1/4 cup coconut cream
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the almond flour, tapioca flour, salt and pepper and whisk quickly to combine. Place a few pieces of paper towels on a large plate near the stove.
- Place the four chicken breasts in a large, gallon-size, plastic freezer bag or between two pieces of plastic wrap and use a large meat mallet or rolling pin to tenderize the chicken and pound it to 1/4 inch thickness. If you haven’t already, place the chicken breasts in the bag and add the prepared flour mixture inside. Close the bag and shake well to dredge the chicken.
- In a deep saute pan, melt 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil begins to ripple, add 2 tablespoons of ghee, allow it to melt then add 2 chicken breasts to the pan. Fry for 3-4 minutes on each side (6-8 minutes total) until the outsides are golden brown and the inside reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Remove the chicken breasts to the paper-towel lined plate and repeat with the other two pieces of chicken. Cooking too much chicken at once could result in a soggy/steamed breading rather than crispy. When all the chicken is cooked and transferred to the plate off the heat, cover with foil and set aside to make the sauce.
- Add one more tablespoon of ghee to the pan and then add the mushrooms, cooking them over medium-high heat. Stir frequently for 3-4 minutes until the juices start to release. Add the minced garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for 1-2 minutes until the garlic is fragrant.
- Add the marsala wine (or the chicken stock and sherry vinegar) and use a spoon to scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pan to deglaze it. Simmer for 15 minutes or until the sauce has reduced by half or more. The liquid will evaporate resulting in a thicker sauce. Add the coconut cream to the reduced sauce and stir well to combine. Return the chicken to the sauce and stir well to coat the chicken in the sauce. Cook on low for a few minutes to ensure the chicken is warm.
- Serve with your favorite angel hair pasta (I like chickpea or brown rice pasta) or potatoes and fresh chopped parsley.
Equipment
- https://rstyle.me/+ADF49Jz6GMI-9zhZrq_hUA
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made this recipe with Myokos butter and chicken broth with vinegar and it came out DELICIOUS! Highly recommend this recipe.
How is this DF when you use ghee? It’s made from butter!
Hey Whitney! Thanks for pointing this out. I tend to lump ghee into dairy free because it’s missing the milk solids that tend to cause inflammation or irritation for people who are sensitive to dairy. You can definitely make this with a vegan butter too. I love the Myokos brand. Thanks!