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This creamy tomato basil chicken recipe has tender chicken and plenty of garlic in a delicious fresh tomato and basil cream sauce. It’s ready in about 30 minutes!

creamy tomato and basil chicken in a skillet

The fresh tomatoes and basil add such a nice and summery flavor that lightens up the cream sauce. Fresh tomatoes and cream are such a good combination, in my opinion. I have a Fresh Tomato Salmon Pasta that many readers love… it’s a wonder that I haven’t done a chicken version yet.

This recipe is also similar to my Creamy Tuscan Chicken, but I swapped the sun-dried tomatoes for fresh ones since I know some people don’t like them, and I also left out the spinach. You could, of course, add a handful (or two) of fresh spinach to this recipe, but I kept this one pretty simple.

Recipe notes & tips:

  • I don’t recommend subbing the cream for something else (e.g. half-and-half or milk) because the tomatoes are likely to curdle the sauce.
  • Try swapping the chicken broth for dry white wine if you’ve got an open bottle!
  • I always like to thin out the chicken breasts (cut then in half lengthwise) so they cook faster and more evenly. That way, they stay tender!

a white plate with tomato basil chicken breasts in a creamy sauce

Love the tomato & basil flavor combo? Try my 15 Minute One Pan Creamy Sun-dried Tomato and Basil Gnocchi.

What to serve with creamy tomato & basil chicken:

Try it over pasta or mashed potatoes. Roasted potatoes would also be delicious as would my Simple Parmesan Arugula Salad.

Other easy skillet chicken recipes:

close-up of creamy tomato basil chicken

I hope you will love this easy chicken recipe! Made this recipe? Questions? Leave me a comment below. 

creamy tomato and basil chicken in a skillet
5 from 18 votes

Creamy Tomato Basil Chicken

This creamy tomato basil chicken recipe has tender chicken and plenty of garlic in a delicious fresh tomato and basil cream sauce.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 30 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients 

  • 2 large chicken breasts cut in half lengthwise
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • Flour for dredging
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/4 cup chicken broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 3/4 cup heavy/whipping cream
  • 1 medium tomato chopped
  • 1 dash Italian seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons fresh basil sliced thin/chopped

Instructions 

  • Cut the chicken in half lengthwise so you have 4 thinner cutlets. Sprinkle them with the garlic powder and salt & pepper. Coat the chicken in flour.
  • Add the oil and butter to a skillet over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the chicken and cook it for about 4-5 min/side until the chicken is nice and golden. Remove the pan from the heat, and take the chicken out of the pan and set it aside.
  • Add the garlic, Dijon mustard, and chicken broth to the pan and return it to the heat. Let it bubble for about 30 seconds, while stirring to scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan and incorporate the mustard.
  • Add in the cream, tomatoes, Italian seasoning, and basil. Once it starts to bubble, add the chicken back in and cook it for another 5 minutes or so (sauce will thicken up a bit and the chicken will cook through). You may need to reduce the heat if it's boiling too furiously. Season with extra salt & pepper as needed. You can serve this dish with some parmesan cheese grated over top if you wish.

Notes

  • I do not recommend subbing the heavy cream for half-and-half or milk; the sauce will end up thinner and likely curdle due to the high heat and acidity of the tomatoes.
  • Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.

Nutrition

Calories: 357kcal, Carbohydrates: 5g, Protein: 26g, Fat: 26g, Saturated Fat: 13g, Cholesterol: 141mg, Sodium: 236mg, Potassium: 545mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 1086IU, Vitamin C: 8mg, Calcium: 46mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Hi! I’m Natasha.

Salt & Lavender is a recipe blog with a focus on delicious comfort food using everyday ingredients. Beat the weekday grind with hundreds of easy-to-follow and hassle-free recipes!

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63 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Another hit recipe from Salt & Lavender! I followed this one pretty much to a T, aside from not really measuring the liquids I added and just “measuring with the heart” 🙂
    Also added grated parmesan right after stirring in the cream and allowed it to melt down to provide the extra bit of salt that I was looking for, rather than shaking in more salt and pepper. It was quick and a hit – will be adding this one to the rotation of recipes I return to frequently!

  2. Delicious and easy. A great way to use up tomatoes and basil from the garden. I doubled the sauce and served it over a blend of rices (wild, brown, white). There were just two of us so we had leftovers, which is nice! I like a little crunchy top to my creamy dishes, so added some homemade garlic croutons, crushed. It was really good!

  3. Hi Natasha,

    What are your thoughts on substituting white wine instead of chicken broth? I think I’ve seen that substitution in some of your other recipes, but not sure if that can be applied universally, or if it’s best to stick with the chicken broth for this particular recipe? Love your recipes 😊

    Thanks!

  4. 5 stars
    Let me first start with, I completely screwed thus recipe up lol. 1. The grocery store forgot the heavy cream in my order. 2. I completely forgot to dredge the chicken in flour even though it was sitting right in front of me. That said, the chicken still came out very yummy!! The tomato and garlic sauce gave it plenty of flavor. Can’t wait to try it with the cream 😋

    1. Lol oh no! I’m glad you have a good sense of humor about it and it still worked out haha. Sometimes these things happen. 😀

  5. 5 stars
    Tomatoes and basil are two items that are out of control in my garden. This recipe is delicious and just what I needed haha.