Chicken Florentine is thin, golden pan-fried chicken in a garlic, white wine and cream sauce with fresh baby spinach and parmesan, all made in one skillet. The wine and broth reduce first, the cream bubbles into a sauce, the spinach wilts in at the end and the chicken finishes right in the pan. It’s ready in about 30 minutes and serves 4.
How to make it: Halve the chicken breasts lengthwise, season, dredge in flour and sear until golden. In the same pan, cook the garlic, reduce the wine and broth, add the cream for 2 minutes and stir in the spinach. Return the chicken, simmer until it reaches 165°F, and finish with parmesan.
What Is Chicken Florentine?
It’s chicken in a garlic, white wine and spinach cream sauce, cooked in a single skillet. The chicken is floured and browned first, then the sauce is built in the same pan, so the browned bits flavor it. Spinach and parmesan are what make it Florentine-style.
Why You’ll Love It
- One skillet, 30 minutes: the chicken and the sauce share a pan.
- Thin, tender chicken: halving the breasts lengthwise gives quick-cooking cutlets.
- Silky cream sauce: garlic, wine, cream and parmesan with just-wilted spinach.
- Easy to serve: over pasta, with potatoes or with bread to soak up the sauce.
Ingredient Notes
Chicken breasts: Two large boneless, skinless breasts, cut in half lengthwise to make 4 thinner pieces.
Coating: Garlic powder, salt and pepper, then a light dredge in all-purpose flour.
Fat: A tablespoon of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter, divided between the chicken and the sauce.
Sauce: Three cloves of minced garlic, 1/2 cup of dry white wine, 1/4 cup of chicken broth, 1/4 teaspoon of Italian seasoning and 1 cup of heavy or whipping cream.
Spinach and parmesan: Two cups of loosely packed fresh baby spinach and 1/2 cup of freshly grated parmesan.
Ingredients
- 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half lengthwise
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- All-purpose flour, for dredging
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter, divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 cups fresh baby spinach, loosely packed
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
How to Make Chicken Florentine
1. Cut, season and coat the chicken. Cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise so you have 4 thinner pieces. Season both sides with the garlic powder and salt and pepper, then coat the pieces in flour.
2. Sear the chicken. Add the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken 4 to 5 minutes per side, until golden. Take the pan off the heat and move the chicken to a plate.
3. Cook the garlic. Return the pan to the heat and add the rest of the butter and the minced garlic. Cook for about 30 seconds.
4. Reduce the wine. Add the wine, chicken broth and Italian seasoning to the skillet. Cook 3 to 5 minutes, until the liquid is noticeably reduced.
5. Add the cream and spinach. Stir in the cream and let it bubble for 2 minutes, then stir in the spinach.
6. Finish the chicken in the sauce. Return the chicken to the pan and cook over medium heat 4 to 5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and reads 165°F on a food thermometer, and the sauce thickens a bit.
7. Add the parmesan and serve. Sprinkle the parmesan over the chicken and sauce. Season with extra salt and pepper if needed and serve.
How to Build the Sauce, Step by Step
The order matters here. Each step sets up the next:
| Step | What to look for |
|---|---|
| Sear the chicken | Golden on both sides; leave the browned bits in the pan |
| Garlic in butter | About 30 seconds, just fragrant |
| Wine and broth | 3 to 5 minutes, until noticeably reduced; scrape up the browned bits |
| Cream | Bubbles for 2 minutes |
| Spinach | Stirred in last, just until it wilts |
| Chicken back in | 4 to 5 minutes, to 165°F; the sauce thickens a bit |
| Parmesan | Sprinkled on at the end |
Don’t wipe out the skillet. The browned bits left from the chicken give the sauce its depth.
Add the spinach last. It only needs a few seconds to wilt. Cooked longer, it turns dull and soft.
Check the chicken. Golden color doesn’t mean done. USDA FSIS says poultry is safe at 165°F, so check the thickest piece.
What Is Florentine Sauce Made Of?
Here it’s butter, minced garlic, dry white wine, chicken broth, Italian seasoning, heavy cream, baby spinach and grated parmesan. For an even thicker sauce, stir a little cream cheese in with the cream.
Variations
- Thicker sauce: stir 2 ounces of softened cream cheese in with the cream until it melts.
- More vegetables: add sun-dried tomatoes, sautéed mushrooms or canned artichokes along with the spinach.
- Different aromatics: cook a minced shallot with the garlic.
- Herbs: use dried basil and oregano, or a pinch of nutmeg with the spinach.
- Almond flour coating: dredge the chicken in almond flour instead of all-purpose flour.
Storage & Reheating
Refrigerator: Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow covered containers. USDA FSIS says to eat them within 3 to 4 days.
Freezer: You can freeze it for 3 to 4 months, but cream sauces don’t freeze well; the cream can separate and look curdled after thawing.
Reheat: Reheat covered until the chicken reaches 165°F and the sauce comes to a boil. Don’t reheat it in a slow cooker.
What to Serve With It
Serve chicken Florentine over pasta like bow ties or penne, with bread for the sauce, or with potatoes such as garlic Parmesan mashed potato cups or baked garlic Parmesan potato wedges. More creamy chicken skillets: Marry Me chicken, chicken, spinach and mushroom skillet, smothered chicken with creamed spinach, bacon and mushrooms and chicken bacon spinach penne.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a chicken Florentine?
Pan-fried chicken in a garlic, white wine and cream sauce with spinach and parmesan, made in one skillet.
What is Florentine sauce made of?
Butter, garlic, white wine, chicken broth, heavy cream, baby spinach and parmesan.
Why cut the chicken breasts in half?
Halving them lengthwise makes thinner pieces that brown and cook through in a few minutes.
When does the spinach go in?
Last, after the cream has bubbled for 2 minutes. It only needs to wilt.
What should I serve with chicken Florentine?
Pasta, potatoes or crusty bread, anything that soaks up the sauce.
Final Notes
Have everything measured before the chicken hits the pan, because the sauce comes together fast. If you make it, tell me in the comments what you served it with.
Chicken Florentine
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Ingredients
- 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in half lengthwise into 4 thinner pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- all-purpose flour for dredging
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter divided
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 cup heavy cream heavy or whipping cream
- 2 cups fresh baby spinach loosely packed
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese freshly grated
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise so you have 4 thinner pieces. Season both sides with the garlic powder and salt and pepper, then coat the pieces in flour.
- Add the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken 4 to 5 minutes per side, until golden. Take the pan off the heat and move the chicken to a plate.
- Return the pan to the heat and add the rest of the butter and the minced garlic. Cook for about 30 seconds.
- Add the wine, chicken broth and Italian seasoning to the skillet. Cook 3 to 5 minutes, until the liquid is noticeably reduced.
- Stir in the cream and let it bubble for 2 minutes, then stir in the spinach.
- Return the chicken to the pan and cook over medium heat 4 to 5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and reads 165°F on a food thermometer, and the sauce thickens a bit.
- Sprinkle the parmesan over the chicken and sauce. Season with extra salt and pepper if needed and serve.
