Italian Chicken Marsala Recipe

Bring your favorite Italian restaurant to your own house with this very easy-to-make delicious Italian Chicken Marsala Recipe.

We obviously love Italian food because I’m clearly Italian, see Parisi.  If you are looking to try out some new dishes from my beloved ancestorial country, then try out my gnudi recipe or Sicilian style grilled swordfish.

Chicken Marsala

Chicken marsala is a classic Italian dish that has been served since the 19^th century.  Since marsala wine was first produced in Sicily, the creation story of this recipe is a little muddy, but rest assured it is still Italian.  It’s a combination of lightly floured and fried chicken scallopini that is served with a delicious mushroom, marsala wine, and chicken stock gravy. 

There are also some variations that use veal as the main protein, but it seems to feature lightly pounded and tenderized chicken breasts most commonly.  This traditional recipe is still served on Italian restaurant menus across the world.

How to Make Chicken Marsala

Follow along with these step-by-step instructions for making this delicious chicken marsala recipe from scratch:

Prepare all the mushrooms and vegetables ahead of time and set them aside.

Slice the chicken breasts in half width-wise.

Lightly pound each chicken breast with a mallet.

Gently dredge the pounded seasoned chicken breasts in some seasoned all-purpose flour.

Brown the chicken in a large frying pan over medium heat with olive oil until almost cooked through and browned.  Set aside.

Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook until well caramelized, about 10-12 minutes.

Put in the shallots, garlic, and butter and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes.

Deglaze with marsala wine and cook until it is reduced by ½.

Pour in the chicken stock and cook over high heat until it becomes slightly thick and is reduced by ½.  Feel free to thicken with a little roux.

Season the sauce with salt and pepper and add in the chicken breast and heat for 1 minute before garnishing with chopped parsley and serving.

What is Chicken Marsala Served With?

There are so many things that you can serve up with Chicken Marsala.  I’m not overly picky when it comes to pairing up side dish recipes with main dish items, but here are a few things you could do:

• Risotto
• Baked Potato
• Fettuccine Alfredo
• Gnocchi

Make-Ahead and Storage

Make-Ahead: This recipe is meant to be served right away, but you could leave the cooked chicken breasts in the sauce covered in a pan and over very low heat for up to 20 minutes ahead of time.

How to Store: Cover and keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.  Cover and freeze for up to 3 months.  Thaw in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating and serving.  Feel free to store the sauce separately from the cooked chicken breast.

How to Reheat: Add the desired amount of chicken and sauce to a medium size pan and heat over low heat until warmed.  You can also heat in the microwave.  Feel free to add ¼ cup to 1/3 cup of chicken stock to the sauce to help loosen it up more.

chef notes + tips

• You can also use chicken thighs or drums in this recipe.
• Feel free to use assorted wild mushrooms.
• If you want the sauce to be a little thicker, add a small amount of roux.
• You will most likely need to cook the chicken in batches.

More Chicken Recipes

• Chicken Salad
• Coq Au Vin
• Drunken Noodles
• Jerk Chicken
• Chicken Tinga

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Italian Chicken Marsala Recipe

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5 from 101 votes

Bring your favorite Italian restaurant to your own house with this very easy-to-make delicious Italian Chicken Marsala Recipe.

Servings: 8

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes minutes

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

• 4 7-9 ounce boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 4 cups sliced cremini or baby bella mushrooms
• 1 peeled small-diced shallot
• 2 finely minced garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup dry marsala wine
• 2 cups chicken stock
• salt and pepper to taste
• finely chopped fresh Italian parsley for garnish

Instructions

• Slice the chicken breasts in half width wise and then gently pound each sliced breast between two pieces of plastic wrap using a mallet. Maybe 15 to 20 gently pounds.
• Season each chicken breast on each side with salt and pepper and set aside.
• In a medium-size bowl mix together the flour and salt, and pepper until combined.
• Next, lightly dredge each chicken breast in the seasoned flour and knock off any excess. Set aside on a plate, platter, or cookie sheet tray lined with parchment paper.
• Heat the olive oil in a very large frying pan over medium heat to 350° F. Add a sprinkle of flour to the oil and if it turns light brown quickly, then you are good to go.
• Add in the chicken breasts and cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until browned. Flip over and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
• Set the chicken breasts aside and then add the sliced mushrooms to the pan and turn the heat up to high.
• Brown the mushrooms very well on all sides, which takes about 10 to 12 minutes while occasionally stirring.
• Push the mushrooms to 1 side of the pan and in the other side of the pan add in the shallots, garlic, and butter and cook while stirring for 1 minute or until lightly browned.
• Mix all of the ingredients together and then remove the pan from the burner.
• Deglaze with the marsala wine and then return the pan to the heat and cook until the amount of liquid is reduced in half.
• Add in the chicken stock and cook until the amount of liquid is reduced in half.
• Season the mushroom sauce with salt and pepper and then add the chicken back to the pan and cook for 30 to 45 seconds or until it is warmed.
• Garnish with parsley and serve.

Notes

Chef Notes:

Make-Ahead: This recipe is meant to be served right away, but you could leave the cooked chicken breasts in the sauce covered in a pan and over very low heat for up to 20 minutes ahead of time.

How to Store: Cover and keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Cover and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating and serving. Feel free to store the sauce separately from the cooked chicken breast.

How to Reheat: Add the desired amount of chicken and sauce to a medium size pan and heat over low heat until warmed. You can also heat in the microwave. Feel free to add ¼ cup to 1/3 cup of chicken stock to the sauce to help loosen it up more.

You can also use chicken thighs or drums in this recipe.

Feel free to use assorted wild mushrooms.

Course: Main

Cuisine: Italian

Author: Chef Billy Parisi