Creamy Skillet Pesto Chicken has the most flavorful white cream pesto sauce imaginable covering juicy chicken, and topped with parmesan cheese!
On busy weeknights is there anything better than a quick and easy dinner that your whole family loves? Maybe a pint of ice cream, but my Creamy Skillet Pesto Chicken is a close second! This 30-minute meal takes regular old chicken breasts, loads them with parmesan and basil, and douses them is a luscious creamy pesto sauce that’ll make you weak in the knees. Serve this recipe over some linguine and it’ll become one of your chicken pasta recipes! Or make a green salad with Quick and Easy Italian Dressing to balance out the cream sauce. No matter how you serve it, this pesto chicken recipe never has leftovers.
CREAMY SKILLET PESTO CHICKEN
Like this recipe? Pin it to your DINNER pinboard!
Follower Real Housemoms on Pinterest
Pesto is the food I never knew I needed. It wasn’t until I was probably twenty that I tried it for the first time and you guys, I technically haven’t even reached my mid-twenties yet so basically, I tried pesto for the first time two seconds ago. WHY did no one take me by the hand and tell me that something really amazing was missing from my life long before that I have no idea. If you had an opportunity and missed it, I am blaming you.
As soon as I took the very first bite I was one hundred percent sold. I went home and bought a big jar of pesto and I swear to you that thing disappeared faster than you can say YUMMYLICIOUSNESS. Not long after that though I made it myself for the first time and ohmagosh homemade pesto is seventeen times better than store-bought. Do yourself a favor and pretty please make my favorite easy 5-minute pesto, you will thank me.
Want more pesto recipes?
- Grilled Pesto Chicken Sandwich
- Italian Pesto Pasta Salad
- Pesto Pizza
- Caprese with Pesto Bites
- Quick Pesto and Shrimp Pasta
- More dinner recipes…
Italian inspired favorites!
Tools used to make this Creamy Skillet Pesto Chicken recipe
Mixing Bowl: These mixing bowls are perfect for mixing and serving. I love the varied sizes so I always have to right size bowl for all my mixing needs.
Large Skillet: This skillet is my go-to kitchen tool. It’s large circumference and high sides make it perfect for cooking anything from one pan meals to soups and sauces.
Wooden Spoon:Â Wooden spoons are a kitchen essential. I keep a bunch of them on hand for every meal from breakfast to dinner.
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts pounded to even thickness
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese shredded
creamy pesto sauce:
- 1/3 cup basil pesto
- 1 cup heavy cream
- salt and pepper to taste
- fresh basil or parsley chopped, optional
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together flour, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Dip chicken in, flipping to coat all sides.
- Grease a large skillet and cook chicken over medium heat 5-8 minutes on each side until cooked through and lightly browned. Transfer chicken to a plate, cover with foil and set aside.
- In the pan where you cooked the chicken, add pesto and saute for 1-2 minutes over medium heat until fragrant. Add heavy cream and stir until hot throughout and combined with pesto. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Add chicken to pan, sprinkle parmesan cheese on top, and cook until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with freshly chopped basil or parsley and serve hot.
Nutrition
Easy 5-Minute Pesto (& 15 Genius Ways to Use It)
Sam says
This recipe was great! Will 10/10 make again. I don’t think mine looked as yummy as yours did but it tasted great! Thank you!
Margarita says
I absolutely love this recipe. It is a HUGE hit in our home. Thank you!!
Laura Farnell says
I use this recipe quite a bit! So tasty! I often use half and half since we’re more likely to have that on hand, and it’s also delicious.
Amanda M says
This is the best pesto chicken recipe ever!!!! I used a little more pesto than called for but everything else was the same. The sauce was so creamy, perfect. I served mine over egg noodles and it was great. This is my official go-to recipe.
Chris says
I NEVER comment on recipes until now! I make a wonderful lasagna with pesto sauce (James Beard) and always have leftover pesto sauce and don’t know what to do with it. I did a search on cream, pesto, chicken and this recipe came up! OMG.. followed it religiously and served over penne pasta. So easy and so good! Definitely a keeper. An excellent quarantine find, thank you!
Kelly says
So good! I made a recipe last week that called for some basil pesto, so I had half a jar left that I didn’t want to go to waste. I searched for a recipe to incorporate it, and this one popped up. It was super simple and so yummy…even husband and 4-year old approved! I served with some cheese filled tortellini (this creamy sauce was delish on top) and some roasted broccolini. I love when last-minute dishes turn out this wonderful!
Joanne says
Very good!!
I would double the recipe to have more sauce!
Sara says
This was excellent. I used evaporated milk because I didn’t have heavy cream. Worked out perfectly!
Aubrey Cota says
Excellent! Thank you, Sara.
Sherry Sharpnack says
Could this be prepared w/ half and half instead of heavy cream?
Aubrey Cota says
Sure, just know that it may change the consistency slightly.
April M says
I LOVE this recipe! I’ve added it to our regular recipe rotation. The kids and my husband love it!
I have added mushrooms to the sauce, sauteing them in the chicken drippings before adding the pesto. So good!!
Thanks so much for the easy recipe!
Geri says
Soooo delicious! Thank you very much
yolanda metott says
This was a bit my house with the kids as well! Thank you. I will try with Shrimp next time!! This is a keeper!
Dee says
In what section of the store do I find Basil Pesto??? Thanks
yolanda metott says
Make they 5 min easy pesto…the link is on this page…it’s fantastic!!
Denise says
My grocer has Basil Pesto in little jars, about 1/3 the size of a spaghetti sauce jar, on the spaghetti sauce aisle. Hope that helps!