Creamy Tuscan Chicken Sun-Dried (Printable)

Tender chicken cooked in a rich creamy sauce with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh spinach.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Chicken

01 - 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (approximately 1.3 to 1.5 pounds)
02 - 1 teaspoon kosher salt
03 - 0.5 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
04 - 1 tablespoon olive oil
05 - 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

→ Creamy Sauce

06 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
07 - 0.5 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and sliced
08 - 1 cup heavy cream
09 - 0.5 cup low-sodium chicken broth
10 - 0.33 cup grated Parmesan cheese
11 - 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
12 - 0.25 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
13 - Salt and black pepper to taste

→ Vegetables and Finish

14 - 2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
15 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, plus extra for garnish

# How-To:

01 - Pat chicken breasts dry with paper towels. Season both sides generously with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
02 - Heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat until the butter foams. Add chicken and sear for 5 to 6 minutes per side until golden brown and cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove chicken and set aside, loosely covered with foil.
03 - Reduce heat to medium. In the same skillet, add minced garlic and sun-dried tomatoes; sauté for 1 minute until fragrant.
04 - Stir in heavy cream, chicken broth, grated Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, and crushed red pepper flakes. Mix thoroughly and bring to a gentle simmer.
05 - Add chopped spinach and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until wilted. Stir in fresh chopped basil.
06 - Return seared chicken and any accumulated juices to the skillet. Spoon sauce over chicken and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes until heated through.
07 - Garnish with additional fresh basil. Serve immediately over pasta, rice, or mashed potatoes.

# Expert Hints:

01 -
  • Ready in 40 minutes but tastes like you've been simmering it all afternoon.
  • The sauce is so silky and flavorful that even people who say they don't like cream-based dishes will ask for seconds.
  • It feels fancy enough for company but casual enough that you won't stress about the outcome.
02 -
  • If your cream starts looking broken or separated, you've likely overheated it—this is why simmering gently matters far more than you'd think, and why I learned to trust low and slow over high heat.
  • Don't skip patting the chicken dry; it genuinely changes whether you get a proper sear or just steam the chicken in its own moisture, and that difference is everything.
03 -
  • If you prefer a lighter sauce without sacrificing creaminess, substitute half-and-half for the heavy cream and nobody will notice the difference except in how they feel afterward.
  • Fresh basil makes a genuine difference here—dried basil will make your sauce taste more like Italian seasoning than like a restaurant dish, so save the dried herbs for the initial sauce base.
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