Chicken with Artichokes

Swimming in a luscious lemon-infused wine sauce and studded with briny artichokes and sweet caramelized onions, our Chicken with Artichokes is the perfect bright springy dish to whip up when we also need a little cozy for those curve ball cold days we all get this time of year. 

Chicken is the unsung dinner hero, so don’t miss our French Onion Chicken, our Chicken with Olives, or this Baked Chicken Saltimbocca. 

Chicken with Artichokes 

I can’t think of anything better to get us through the ping pong transition of winter to spring than a cozy plate of Chicken and Artichokes (this Spicy Bucatini is up there too). While I appreciate warmer days making an appearance, those days give me a false hope we’ve officially moved on to permanent warmth, because the next thing you know, it’s 42 and snowing. I’m left feeling quite betrayed by Mother Nature.

I’ve decided to remedy this problem the only way I know how…with food. Chicken with Artichokes is an homage to spring with bright notes of lemon and briny artichokes, but still has subtle hints of blistery days due to a luscious creamy broth and rich caramelized onions surrounding the golden brown seared chicken breasts. 

And the broth…Oh my goodness the broth. The chicken, artichokes and onions are practically swimming in a lemon-infused wine sauce that’s just begging to be puddled on top of our creamy polenta or sopped up with crusty bread. 

Ingredients in Chicken with Artichokes

Chicken. These days chicken breasts are pumped with all kinds of additives making them larger than life. I prefer to buy smaller organic chicken breasts no more than eight ounces each.

To make sure the chicken cooks evenly, I also like to pound on the chicken breast a little bit so each breast is uniform in thickness. You can use a meat mallet or simply use a heavy rolling pin. 

Flour. Coating each chicken breast in flour helps each side of the chicken breast get super brown and crisp. This step obviously isn’t required, so if you want a gluten or carb-free chicken and artichoke dish, you can skip this. 

Butter + olive oil. Butter has tons of flavor, but when you use it to sear meats it has a tendency to burn. Olive oil has a high smoke point, so it’s not going to burn when it’s cooked at a high temperature. The combination of the two is the answer. 

Onion. Instead of using the onion simply as a flavor booster, we caramelize in the butter so it becomes one of the star ingredients of the chicken in addition to the artichokes. 

Lemon. Usually I’ll just squeeze some lemon juice or lemon zest in to sauces, but this time we just slice the whole lemon up and toss it in. 

Garlic. As always, I use a heavy hand of garlic, three to four large cloves. 

Artichokes. Even though I love artichokes packed in oil for salads and charcuterie, for our chicken with artichokes, you want to buy quartered artichokes hearts canned in water. 

Wine. The wine is the base of our sauce, so make sure to use a dry white wine you’d want to drink yourself. I’ve even used sparkling wine as well. 

Chicken stock. Always low-sodium! 

Cream. Just a hint of cream is all you need to add a luxurious finish to the sauce. 

Let’s make chicken with artichokes

Pound the chicken. This isn’t a mandatory step, but if you want the chicken to cook evenly, you can pound the chicken out until it’s even in thickness. Usually I’ll put it between two pieces of plastic wrap or in a large zip lock baggie. 

Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. 

Coat the chicken lightly with flour, this will help it to sear nicely. 

Sear the chicken. Heat a large cast iron skillet to a medium-high heat. Add the butter and the olive oil. When the butter melts, add the chicken. Sear until golden brown and crisp, about 3-4 minutes, flip over and do the same on the other side. 

Caramelize the onions and lemons. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside on a plate or platter. Add the onions, lemon, and little bit of salt to the pan. Turn the heat down and slowly caramelize the onions. 

Make the sauce. Once the onions are soft and caramelized, pour in the wine. Let it reduce for a good five minutes or so until it’s reduced by half. 

Add the chicken stock and cream. Keep simmering until it’s thickened a bit. 

Simmer. Add the chicken back to the pan and continue to simmer until the chicken is cooked through.

Serve! Transfer a few spoonfuls of Creamy Polenta on to a plate. Put the chicken on top and then spoon the sauce, artichokes and onions around. 

How do I know when my chicken is cooked though?

Chicken is cooked through when an instant read thermometer reaches 165 degrees. I usually like to stop cooking it around 160 degrees as it will continue to cook as it sits in the hot broth. 

Can I make Chicken and Artichokes in advance? 

Yes. Make sure to slightly undercook your chicken so when you go to reheat, it doesn’t dry out. 

Substitutions and Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success

• If you don’t want whole lemons in your chicken and artichokes, you can just squeeze in a little bit of lemon juice and finish it off with some lemon zest 
• Be sure to check the temperature of the chicken so you don’t over cook it. 
• Throw in a handful of green olives for extra brine at the end. 

Tools and Pretty Things Used in Today’s Post

• Cast iron skillet

What to serve with Chicken and Artichokes

• Double up on the artichokes with our Italian Artichoke Salad
• Looking for something heavy on the dark leafy greens? Don’t miss our Everyday Kale Salad.
• Okay, so we’ve got polenta to soak up some of the sauce, but let’s also use our Cheesy Garlic Bread to soak up what’s left.