This recipe first appeared on Real Housemoms, where I am a contributor. With summer here in full force and the kids at home for most of the day, I’m ready to relax into a little less work and a little more play. You know, long afternoons at the pool or playground, lazy weekend mornings in our PJs in the backyard, evenings looking for fireflies and sipping on something delicious. So today I’m bringing you creamy chipotle chicken, a quick and easy dinner that’s big on flavor! It’s ready in 30 minutes so you can spend more time in play mode. This recipe is based on my chicken breasts with jalapeño cheese sauce recipe - it’s the same technique, just a slightly different flavor in the sauce. Can you tell I like some spicy and some smoky flavors?! (Oh and my healthy creamy Italian chicken skillet uses the same technique with new flavors too. Sometimes when you find a winner, you want to tweak it and make it ALL the delicious ways!) This chipotle chicken recipe has tender, juicy chicken breasts that are seared then finished in a rich, velvety sauce.
And oh that chipotle cream sauce; it really takes this dish over the top! It’s smoky, with just a touch of heat, and has such a depth of flavor. Seriously spoon-licking good! (Plus, it’s made with no heavy cream, so it’s a bit lightened up and easy to make anytime. Or maybe it’s just me who never has heavy cream on hand…) Also, it’s really simple to make – but sure doesn’t taste that way! So in addition to being great for an easy weeknight dinner, it’s also a good recipe for company!
Now, I’ve got some notes and tips coming up for this recipe. Just tryin’ to be helpful. If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Notes on this creamy chipotle chicken recipe:
To make things efficient, you can chop your onion, garlic and chipotle peppers while the chicken is searing. I use ⅓ less fat plain cream cheese here. Full fat would work fine, too. You could substitute fat-free cream cheese if that’s what you prefer, but it’ll lose a little richness. Similarly, I use nonfat Greek yogurt, but 2% or 5% are OK too. You can also substitute sour cream if that’s what you have on hand. I use 3 chipotle peppers and 1 tablespoon of the adobo sauce in this recipe and find that to be well balanced. You can increase or decrease that to your liking to adjust the smoky and spicy flavors.
You are in for so much YUM! So let’s talk the details of what to do here.
How to make this chipotle chicken recipe:
- You’re going to season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper then sear them in a pan with olive oil over medium high heat, to create a beautiful golden brown color. This helps flavor the actual chicken on its own.
- Then you remove the chicken breasts from the pan. No, they aren’t finished cooking through. Yes, they will continue to cook in a few minutes.
- In the same skillet, you made the chipotle cream sauce. You sauté the onion, garlic and chipotle peppers over medium heat then add the adobo sauce, chicken broth and cream cheese. Stir until it’s all melty and well combined.
- Return the chicken breasts to the pan, along with any of those great juices that accumulate on the plate. That’s extra flavor so don’t waste it!
- Turn the chicken breasts over in the pan to get them well coated in your yummy sauce. Then cover the pan and cook everything together over medium-low heat until the chicken is all the way cooked through.
- Lastly, after you turn the heat off, stir in the Greek yogurt (or sour cream). This adds a final touch of richness and creaminess, and ensures it won’t curdle.
Last tip: Be sure to serve the chicken with ALL the sauce. You don’t want to skimp on the sauce. (The only exception is if you start spooning the sauce to your mouth before you serve it. Been there. It’s called the cook’s prerogative. ) Ready to round out the rest of the meal?
Serving ideas for chipotle chicken:
- We love serving this over steamed brown rice with plenty of extra sauce! White rice works too.
- You could also try it over quinoa, pasta or mashed potatoes. Even polenta would be great here.
- For a vegetable side, we love this with steamed asparagus (like my steamed lemon butter asparagus) or some steamed or roasted broccoli or broccolini.
- Even just a nice green salad would go well with this. (The chicken has so much flavor, it’s OK for the sides to stay pretty simple.)
Flavor up your next chicken dinner with this easy creamy chipotle chicken! (Some other comforting chicken dishes I plan to try soon: this creamy, garlicky mushroom chicken and this 20-minute cheesy chicken enchilada soup!) Hope you give this recipe a try and hope you get to enjoy some slower days this summer! Happy cooking! XO, Kathryn
To make things efficient, you can chop your onion, garlic and chipotle peppers while the chicken is searing. I use ⅓ less fat cream cheese here. Full fat would work fine, too. You could substitute fat-free cream cheese if that’s what you prefer, but it’ll lose a little richness. I use 3 chipotle peppers and 1 tablespoon of the adobo sauce in this recipe. You can increase or decrease that to your liking. We love serving this over steamed brown rice with plenty of extra sauce! You could also try it over quinoa, pasta or mashed potatoes.
