How to Make a Pan Sauce for Chicken

Spooning pan sauce of cooked chicken on plate.

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5 from 6 votes

How to Make a Pan Sauce for Chicken

This is a simple blueprint for a key, adaptable pan sauce recipe for a great (definitely not boring) chicken dinner.

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Total Time30

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free

Servings: People

Author: Katie Workman

Ingredients

4 8-ounce boneless chicken breasts
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup minced shallots or onions
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken broth
Juice of one lemon (or 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard or both)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Instructions

Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken breasts and sauté until done, about 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken breasts to a plate and set aside; tent them with foil to keep them warm. Do not wipe out the skillet!
Add the shallots or onions to the skillet and sauté over medium heat for 4 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender. Add the white wine, bring to a simmer, and stir to scrape up all the little flavorful bits that may be stuck to the bottom of the skillet. Add in the broth and return to a simmer, stirring occasionally for another 4 minutes until the mixture reduces slightly, by about a third. Then add the lemon juice and/or mustard and butter and stir until the butter is melted.
You can slice the chicken breasts or leave them whole. Transfer them to individual plates and spoon the sauce over the chicken breasts. You can also slice them all up and serve them with the sauce spooned over on a serving platter.

Video

Notes

Ideas for Add-Ins

Hot peppers, citrus juice, citrus zest, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, vinegar, capers, Dijon mustard, chopped tomatoes, soy sauce, fresh herbs, minced anchovies, hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, whatever you have, whatever you like. Add any of these at the end.

Nutrition