Chicken Marsala is one of the most delicious recipes that we love making any time of year. It has big flavor, and although it is not a very heavy dish, it certainly tastes like delicious Italian comfort food. At its heart, Chicken Marsala is quite a simple dish with the two main ingredients being chicken and marsala wine. However, most versions include mushrooms and onions as well. This Chicken Mushroom Marsala will impress and satisfy while being quite easy to make in less than 30 minutes and is a perfect weeknight meal!
Looking for more classic Italian recipes like this? You’ll love our Chicken Piccata with Caper Lemon Butter Sauce or Oven Braised Chicken Cacciatore.
Jump to:
- Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- What is Chicken Marsala?
- Ingredients
- Substitutions
- How to Make Chicken with Mushroom Marsala Sauce
- Equipment
- Step-by-Step Instructions
- Variations
- Storage
- Top tip
- Troubleshooting
- What to Serve with Chicken in Mushroom Marsala Sauce
- What Wines Pair with Chicken Mushroom Marsala
- Mangiamo Cookbook
- FAQ
- Related
- Pairing
- 📖 Recipe
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- A delicious and rich sauce over tender pieces of chicken
- Very easy to make in about 30 minutes
- You can easily double the recipe for a crowd.
- The marsala mushroom sauce is great with other meats such as veal, pork, or steak!
What is Chicken Marsala?
Chicken Marsala, or Pollo al Marsala, is named after the wine, marsala, which is produced around the port city of Marsala, in far Western Sicily. In the 1700s, the city of Marsala was a port that was visited by many different nationalities, making this area very international, especially related to its cuisine.
Marsala wine is an Italian fortified wine, somewhat similar to sherry, and also in the same family as port, madeira, and other wines that have been fortified with a spirit. This was done to keep the wines stable when transporting via ship centuries ago. Nowadays, drinking and cooking with marsala wine has spread throughout the world. In fact, chicken marsala is as popular in the United States as anywhere else in the world! It was popularized in America by Italian immigrants and is now considered an Italian-American classic and one of our Italian restaurant favorites!
Chicken Marsala is generally flour-coated chicken breasts that are cooked in a pan, and the residual flour when combined with the wine creates a thicker pan sauce. The sauce base is marsala wine, and usually mushrooms, onions and some herbs are added for flavor. The result is tender cutlets of chicken in a rich marsala wine sauce.
Ingredients
Here is what you need to make this chicken mushroom marsala recipe
- Chicken Breasts: We use boneless, skinless chicken breasts and slice them in half lengthwise for a nice, thin chicken cutlet.
- Kosher Salt and Black Pepper
- All Purpose Flour: All purpose flour to dredge the chicken breasts, which will ultimately help thicken the sauce
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: The olive oil is used to pan fry the chicken
- Cremini Mushrooms: Sliced cremini mushrooms are our choice for both flavor and texture
- Yellow Onion: We use yellow onion, but any variety will work in this recipe without changing the flavor too much.
- Dry Marsala Wine: There are two main varieties of marsala wine, dry and sweet marsala wine. For this dish, use the dry version.
- Chicken Stock: We like to use a quality unsalted chicken stock so we can control the sodium. The stock adds flavors to the delicious sauce.
- Dried Oregano: The dried version works perfectly here, but fresh oregano is equally as good.
- Unsalted Butter: The butter makes the sauce silky and rich! We do not use heavy cream in this recipe so the butter adds a nice richness and gives the sauce some body for a beautiful creamy mushroom marsala sauce.
- Fresh Parsley: Use a little or a lot, but Italian parsley brightens up the dish and balances the flavors
See recipe card below for quantities and the full recipe.
Substitutions
Here are a couple of common substitutions for the ingredients in this recipe:
- Oregano: Dried oregano can be replaced with dried or fresh herbs of your choice. Thyme, rosemary, sage and others work very well
- Chicken Stock: You could use a vegetable stock, or even water if desired. The stock gives the sauce some additional flavor.
- All purpose flour: If you want to avoid using flour, you can omit it or replace it with a gluten free flour if needed. If you omit it and want to thicken the sauce, add a small amount of cornstarch and water (a slurry). Start with a teaspoon of cornstarch and a tablespoon of cold water. Add the slurry to the sauce and whisk in to thicken.
- Cremini Mushrooms: You can use a different variety of mushrooms. We recommend hen of the woods mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, or shiitake mushrooms for a slight variation in flavor.
- Yellow Onion: You can use white or red onions if you prefer. You could also use a shallot in place of the onion.
- Marsala Wine: This is a key ingredient in this dish. There isn't a good substitution for marsala in this recipe since it is the base of the sauce and has a unique flavor. See the Variation section below for other fortified wines or red and white wines you can use to change up the recipe.
How to Make Chicken with Mushroom Marsala Sauce
This recipe is quite easy to make and takes about 30 minutes. The chicken is pan fried before making the creamy mushroom sauce with the marsala wine. Everything is cooked in the same pan, so you won't have a ton of dishes to clean up after!
Equipment
Here is what you need to make this dish
- Large skillet/frying pan
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Prepare the Chicken
- Slice the chicken breasts lengthwise to create four thin pieces of chicken, aka chicken cutlets. If the thickness is uneven, you can flatten the thickest part of the chicken cutlet by pressing down on it with your hand or pounding it lightly with a meat mallet. Season the chicken cutlets with salt and pepper and dredge in flour, lightly covering all sides.
Step 2: Sauté the Chicken
- Heat your large frying pan over medium high heat, then add half of the olive oil to the pan. Add the chicken cutlets and sauté until you get some browning on both sides - about 2 minutes per side. Remove the chicken to a plate, cover and set aside.
Step 3: Cook the Mushrooms and Onions
- Add the mushrooms, onions and the remaining olive oil. Sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt and continue to sauté mushrooms for about 4 minutes, until the mushrooms have soaked up the liquid and started to release their juices. Stir frequently.
Step 4: Finish the Sauce
- Add the Marsala wine, chicken stock and oregano to the mushrooms and cook on medium high for about 6 minutes or until the sauce has reduced and thickened some. It may take longer depending on your stove temperature, so continue to reduce until you achieve the desired consistency. Once reduced and thickened, turn the heat to low and whisk in the butter.
Step 5: Add Back the Chicken, Finish and Plate
- Add the chicken and their juices back into the pan with the marsala mushroom sauce, and cook on low for a few more minutes (about 3-4 minutes) or until the chicken is warmed throughout and cooked completely. Remove the chicken and sauce to a platter and serve with the parsley.
Variations
Here are a couple of ways to change up this recipe:
- Use a different protein. Veal, pork or even beef cutlets will work here as the flavors are versatile
- You could make a giant variation by using a different fortified wine such as port, sherry, or madeira instead of marsala. They all work fantastically, but this is a major departure from from chicken marsala and will give the dish a very different flavor! You could also use a bold red wine (merlot, cabernet sauvignon, or zinfandel) or even a dry white wine (pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc or chardonnay) to make a red or white wine pan sauce here as well.
Storage
How to store leftover chicken mushroom marsala:
- Leftover chicken marsala can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This makes delicious leftovers, so feel free to make extra!
How to reheat leftover chicken marsala?
- Gently reheat leftover chicken marsala in a covered pan over low heat until warmed through.
Can you freeze leftover chicken marsala?
- Chicken marsala can be frozen but it won’t taste as good and isn’t really recommended since this dish is so incredibly easy and quick to make.
Top tip
If you have time, gently salt the chicken breasts after slicing, place on a wire rack over a sheet tray and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. This will add flavor to the chicken and dry brine it to make it more tender in the finished dish. If you do this, omit using the salt before dredging in flour and just use the black pepper.
Troubleshooting
The main issue you will encounter is finding that the sauce is too thin or thick. If it is too thick, simply add a small amount of chicken stock or water to thin it out right after whisking in the butter. If it is too thin, you can either cook a little longer or add a small amount of cornstarch and water (a cornstarch slurry). Start with a teaspoon of cornstarch and a tablespoon of cold water. Add the slurry to the sauce and whisk in to thicken.
What to Serve with Chicken in Mushroom Marsala Sauce
This dish classically pairs with pasta. Spaghetti or a long pasta of your preferred thickness is perfect, and our choice with this dish. Level up this dish by making homemade pasta!
Other great options include serving it with creamy mashed potatoes or potato puree, or a creamy polenta. A nice green salad with a balsamic vinaigrette, a steamed vegetable, such as broccoli, or sautéed green beans are also nice sides. We love it with balsamic asparagus as well!
What Wines Pair with Chicken Mushroom Marsala
We have three preferences - all of the red variety. First is a Chianti Classico, which is a great pairing with mushrooms, as well as this dish. Secondly, a red Burgundy or other pinot noir is spectacular. We especially like pinot noir from California (Russian River Valley) or Oregon to pair with this dish. Finally, a Spanish Rioja is a fantastic pairing. Of course, a dry marsala could be served with this dish. Although common in Sicily, this is probably not something you are accustomed to drinking in this way, but it is delicious.
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FAQ
This dish is always made with chicken and marsala wine - of course. But usually onions, mushrooms, and some herbs are included for flavor.
There are some similarities, but chicken piccata will have lemon juice as its main flavor, is often accompanied by capers, and if wine is used to cook it, it will be a dry white wine. Whereas chicken marsala has marsala wine as the base of the sauce and often contains mushrooms, onions and herbs for flavor. Both dishes are classic Italian recipes and are famous throughout the world, but gained popularity in the United States in Italian restaurants owned by Italian immigrants. Both dishes are usually made with chicken cutlets, but you can find versions of these dishes with veal and pork as well.
As noted in “variations” you could use another fortified wine. Sherry, madeira, and port wine are all options. Dry sherry and madeira would be more similar to using marsala wine than port would be. Additionally, you can use a red or white wine. All of these substitutions will change the flavor of the dish, but they will all be very tasty.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are our favorite side dishes to serve with chicken mushroom marsala:
📖 Recipe
Chicken with Mushroom Marsala Sauce (Pollo al Marsala)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 Tablespoons olive oil divided
- 10-12 ounces cremini mushrooms cleaned and sliced
- ½ medium onion diced medium to small
- 1 ½ cup dry marsala wine
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup finely chopped Italian parsley
Instructions
- Slice the chicken breasts lengthwise to create four thin pieces of chicken, aka chicken cutlets. If the thickness is uneven, you can flatten the thickest part of the chicken with your hand or a meat mallet. Season the sliced chicken breasts with salt and pepper and dredge in flour.2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, ½ teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Over medium high heat, add half (2 Tbsp) of the olive oil to the pan. Add the chicken and sauté until you get some browning on both sides - about 2 minutes per side. Remove the chicken to a plate, cover and set aside.4 Tablespoons olive oil
- Add the mushrooms, onions and the remaining 2 tablespoon of olive oil. Sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt and cook for about 4 minutes, until the mushrooms have soaked the liquid up and started to release their juices. Stir frequently.10-12 ounces cremini mushrooms, ½ medium onion, 4 Tablespoons olive oil
- Add the Marsala wine, chicken stock and oregano to the mushrooms and cook on medium high for about 5-6 minutes or until the sauce has reduced and thickened some. It may take longer depending on your stove temperature. Turn the heat to low and whisk in the butter.1 ½ cup dry marsala wine, ½ cup chicken stock, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- Add the chicken and their juices back to the sauce, and cook on low for a few minutes. Remove the chicken and sauce to a platter and serve with the parsley.½ cup finely chopped Italian parsley
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