Chicken Scallopini With Mushroom Cream Sauce Recipe

If you're looking for a dish that strikes that perfect balance between weeknight simplicity and dinner party-worthy elegance, this chicken scallopini with mushroom cream sauce recipe is just the solution. Scallopini, or scaloppine, describes a classic Italian method for preparing and cooking thin pieces of meat. While many scallopini recipes involve pork, in this recipe, butterflied, lightly dredged, and perfectly browned chicken breasts are the star of the show. They make for an ideal savory yet neutral base for an absolutely luscious, umami-rich mushroom cream sauce.

Although this recipe is a little more involved than your average chicken breast dinner, it still comes together relatively quickly — we're talking just 30 minutes — and you'll build most of the meal in a single pan. I love how the final dish is well-suited for family dinners and fancier occasions alike, and it pairs beautifully with all sorts of sides. When I serve chicken scallopini, I gravitate towards something like garlic mashed potatoes to soak up all of that extra mushroom sauce, or consider serving the chicken and sauce with fettuccine to round out the meal. A simple side of steamed veggies or a bright arugula salad would pair nicely as well. 

To make chicken scallopini, start with boneless, skinless chicken breasts. If your grocery store sells chicken breast cutlets, you can use those instead and skip the butterflying step in the recipe. Next, you'll need flour, salt, and pepper to lightly dredge the chicken, along with avocado oil for pan-frying.

Once the chicken is done cooking, you'll build the mushroom cream sauce in the same pan with butter, cremini mushrooms, shallots, garlic, dry white wine, chicken stock, and heavy cream. Finally, minced parsley serves as garnish for the final dish.

To butterfly the chicken breasts, place a chicken breast on the cutting board. Place one hand on the chicken breast, put the knife into the middle of the thickest part, and cut horizontally, almost to the other side, then open it flat. Repeat with the remaining 3 chicken breasts.

Place a piece of plastic wrap over the chicken and pound it with the smooth side of the mallet until the chicken is ¼ inch thick.

Mix the flour with 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of pepper.

Dredge the chicken on both sides in the flour and shake off the excess.

Pour the avocado oil into a large saute pan and place it over medium high heat.

When the pan is hot, add the chicken and cook it for 2 minutes until golden brown, working in batches if necessary.

Flip the chicken and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover with foil. If cooking in batches, repeat the steps with the remaining chicken.

Turn the burner down to medium. Melt the butter in the pan.

Add the mushrooms and saute until browned, approximately 4 minutes.

Add the shallots and garlic and saute for 2 minutes.

Add the wine to the pan and stir, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom. Simmer for 2 minutes.

Add the chicken stock and simmer for 3 minutes.

Add the cream and simmer for 3 minutes until slightly reduced and thickened.

Add the remaining ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper to the sauce.

Add the chicken to the sauce and heat for 3 minutes, flipping once. Garnish with parsley and serve.

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As written, this recipe follows a very classic and relatively minimalist approach to making chicken scallopini with mushroom cream sauce. There are plenty of ways to switch things up, though, especially when it comes to that cream sauce. To start, if you'd like to add even more richness to the mix, consider adding cubed pancetta to the pan while sauteing the mushrooms. Or, swap out the creminis for wild mushrooms for a more rustic feel.

There's also lots of room to change up the seasoning in the recipe by incorporating herbs for a slightly earthier flavor profile. Tarragon would add an interesting lemony anise flavor note, and it would especially work well if paired with sharp Dijon mustard in the cream sauce. Fresh thyme is another great option here, and I'd especially recommend using it if you go the wild mushroom route (though it would be great with the creminis as well). Dried chiles, like crushed red pepper flakes, would easily introduce a little heat to the mix. Another easy way to add a little brightness to an otherwise rich sauce would be to squeeze in lemon juice or mix in some zest right at the end of the cooking time. Finally, when it comes time to serve, add a little cheesy goodness by way of Parmesan cheese.

Chicken breasts can be tricky to cook perfectly since they're so lean, meaning that they're especially prone to drying out quickly. This potential problem only intensifies when you're cooking thin chicken breasts, but if you take precautions to avoid overcooking the butterflied breasts, your dish will turn out rich, succulent, and not at all dry. 

Since the chicken we're working with here is both butterflied and pounded, keep in mind that it doesn't need to cook long at all during the initial pan fry. Make sure the pan is nice and hot when you first add the chicken, then cook it for just a few minutes on each side, until it's deeply golden-brown and about 150 to 155 F internal temperature. It's totally fine and actually ideal that the chicken isn't all the way cooked through from the initial sear, since you'll be adding it back in with the sauce towards the end of the cook time. Just a final 2 to 3 minutes of simmering in the sauce will bring the chicken to the perfect temperature of 165 F, and it will help all the flavors of the dish meld together before serving. When in doubt, it's always useful to keep a digital thermometer handy so you can keep an eye on the chicken's temperature and know exactly when to remove it from the heat.

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