Copycat Carrabba’s Chicken Bryan

You don’t have to leave the house to enjoy sit-down quality dining with this mouth-watering Copycat Carrabba’s Chicken Bryan!

EXACTLY LIKE THE REAL THING

We’ve all fallen victim to copycat recipes that don’t exactly live up to the hype, but that is definitely not the case with this Copycat Carrabba’s Chicken Bryan recipe! This recipe focuses on each important detail, so with a little patience, you can sit down to your favorite dinner tonight without having to tip the server!

If you love this popular copycat recipe then you have to try Copycat Carrabba’s Cavatappi Amatriciana or Copycat Alice Springs Chicken!

OTHER RECIPES TO SERVE WITH COPYCAT CARRABBA’S CHICKEN BRYAN

• Crock Pot Spaghetti Sauce – This super easy sauce is delicious and has a robust flavor perfect for dressing up a simple pasta dinner.
• Ricotta Parmesan Garlic Bread – Hands down my favorite garlic bread recipe for Italian dinners!
• Quick and Easy Italian Dressing – This is the perfect dressing for a simple side salad!

INGREDIENTS

Chicken: This recipe calls for 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts seasoned with Carrabba’s Grill Seasoning.

Carrabba’s Grill Baste: In order to achieve true copycat perfection you’ll start this grill baste by sautéing butter, onions, and garlic and sprinkling it with flour. Then you’ll whisk in olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, dijon mustard, and sugar before you finish it off with fresh parsley.

Carrabba’s Lemon Butter Sauce: This simple and delicious sauce is made with unsalted butter, yellow onion, minced garlic, dry white wine, lemon juice, and salt and pepper.

Toppings: Once you’re all done, you’ll top off this amazing chicken dish with goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and fresh chopped basil.

HOW TO MAKE COPYCAT CHICKEN BRYAN

STEP ONE: Make the Carrabba’s grill baste by melting the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook for about 2-3 minutes until they’re softened and then add the chopped garlic and 2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and garlic and stir to combine. Cook for another 2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Whisk in the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, dijon mustard, and sugar and bring everything to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, add in the parsley, and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the grill baste from the heat and set it aside. (The baste will separate as it cools so be sure to whisk it before using.)

STEP TWO: Time to make Carrabba’s Lemon Butter Sauce. Place a medium non-stick skillet over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of butter. Once the butter is melted, add the finely chopped onion and minced garlic. Stirring frequently, cook for about 3 minutes until the onions are translucent. Then stir in the white wine and lemon juice before bringing the sauce to a boil over high heat. Cook the sauce for about 3-5 minutes or until the liquid is reduced to about 1/4 cup.

STEP THREE: Once the lemon butter sauce has been reduced, reduce the heat to low and add 3 tablespoons of butter at a time, whisking each addition of butter until it has completely melted. The trick is to slowly soften the butter into an emulsified sauce. Once the last few tablespoons of butter have melted, season the sauce with salt and pepper and remove it from the heat. Keep the sauce warm over low heat, stirring it often while preparing the chicken.

STEP FOUR: Preheat your grill (or grill pan) to medium-high heat, then cut each chicken breast in half like a book so you have 8 thin-cut breasts. Season each piece all over with Carrabba’s Grill Seasoning. Before placing the chicken on the grill, brush each piece with 3 tablespoons of grill baste. Once basted, add the chicken to the heated grill, close the lid, and cook for 5 minutes.

STEP FIVE After 5 minutes, flip the chicken and cook the other side for an additional 5 minutes, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. During the last minute of cooking the chicken top each piece with one slice of goat cheese. Close the lid to help the cheese soften, and then remove the chicken from the grill and place it on a platter.

STEP SIX: To serve Carrabba’s Copycat Chicken Bryan, place two pieces of chicken onto a plate. Spoon as much lemon sauce over each serving as you’d like. Sprinkle the chicken with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil and serve immediately.

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

• If the lemon sauce separates, remember the sauce will taste the same, but it will look more like melted butter. The key to avoiding this is cooking the sauce on low heat and whisking occasionally while you’re keeping it warm.
• You can cook the chicken on a grill or in a grill pan on the stovetop.
• I’ve made this with chicken thighs before (because they were on sale) and it was really good too.

HOW DID CHICKEN BRYAN GET ITS NAME?

I’m always super curious about the stories behind anything named after a person so I did a little research. As it turns out, this fan-favorite chicken dish isn’t actually named after a person at all! The Carrabba family actually came to America from Sicily in the 1890s and settled in the town of Bryan, Texas. Thus, Chicken Bryan is named after a town and not someone named “Bryan.”

HOW LONG IS GRILLED CHICKEN GOOD FOR?

This delicious Copycat Chicken Bryan recipe probably won’t result in leftovers unless you’re cooking for just yourself. If you do have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To reheat the lemon butter sauce, place it in a microwave-safe container and reheat it at 20-second intervals. Stir the sauce after each interval and heat until it is warmed through or reheat it on the stovetop.

OTHER IMPRESSIVE COPYCAT RECIPES

• Air Fryer Chick-Fil-A Chicken Nuggets
• Slow Cooker Copycat Wendy’s Chili
• Trader Joe’s Cowboy Bark
• Starbucks Pink Drink
• Fish Fillet Sandwich
• Cosmic Brownies

*This post was originally posted on 08/17/2015.