Marry Me Chicken
There are some recipes that quietly do their job and disappear. Then there are recipes like this one, the kind that people ask about days later, the kind that gets texted to friends, the kind that somehow ends up attached to a story.
Marry Me Chicken firmly sits in the second camp.
This is creamy chicken done properly. Golden chicken breasts, lightly coated and pan-fried so they’ve got colour and texture, finished in a rich sauce built from chicken stock, double cream, parmesan, and sun-dried tomato paste. It’s comforting, savoury, a little indulgent, and deeply satisfying without being heavy or clumsy. Nothing here is clever for the sake of it. Everything has a job to do.
And yes, it really is called Marry Me Chicken.
Why it’s called Marry Me Chicken
There are two versions of the story, and I like both.
The first, and the one I actually stand by, is that this dish is called Marry Me Chicken because of the way the ingredients marry together. The savoury depth of parmesan, the sweetness and acidity of sun-dried tomatoes, the richness of cream, the gentle hit of garlic and herbs. Nothing dominates. Everything supports. The sauce coats the chicken instead of drowning it. It just works.
The second version is the one people love repeating, and honestly, I’m not here to ruin it.
The story goes that someone took this dish into a New York office, shared it around, and within a few days three people who had eaten it were engaged. Is it true? Who knows. Does it matter? Not really. What it does tell you is how people feel about this food. It’s generous, comforting, and memorable. The kind of meal that makes someone feel looked after.
That’s the real magic.
Cooking this live on ITV’s This Morning
This recipe is also one I cooked live on ITV’s This Morning, alongside Dermot O’Leary and Alison Hammond. Cooking live on air is always a different beast. There’s no room for fluff, no time to rescue mistakes, and absolutely nowhere to hide if something doesn’t make sense.
That’s why this dish works so well in that environment.
It’s fast. It’s forgiving. It smells incredible almost immediately. And by the time the sauce thickens and the basil goes in, the whole studio knows exactly what’s happening in that pan. That moment when everything comes together is always the same, whether you’re in a home kitchen or under studio lights.
Good food reads well. This reads brilliantly.
What makes this version work
This isn’t a novelty recipe and it’s not a viral gimmick. It’s built on proper fundamentals.
The chicken is seasoned and lightly floured, which helps it brown properly and gives the sauce something to cling to later. The butter and oil combination gives flavour without burning. The onion is cooked gently so it sweetens rather than sharpens. The garlic is added at the right moment so it stays fragrant, not bitter.
Then the sauce. Chicken stock for savoury depth, double cream for richness, parmesan for salt and umami, sun-dried tomato paste for sweetness and acidity. Dried thyme and oregano sit quietly in the background, doing their job without announcing themselves. Fresh basil at the end lifts everything and keeps it from feeling heavy.
Nothing is rushed, but nothing is fussy either. It’s a 30-minute dinner that eats like something you spent much longer on.
Ingredients
2 chicken breasts
80 g plain flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
20 g butter
1 onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
200 ml chicken stock
150 ml double cream
60 g parmesan, grated
2 tbsp sun-dried tomato paste
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
1 bunch of fresh basil, roughly chopped
How to make Marry Me Chicken
For this recipe I used two small chicken breasts. If yours are large, slice them in half lengthways to make thinner fillets.
Mix the salt and black pepper through the flour, then coat the chicken in the seasoned flour, shaking off any excess.
Add a little cooking oil and the butter to a large frying pan. Once it’s really hot, add the chicken and cook over a medium to high heat for 3–4 minutes on each side until golden brown. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Using the same pan, add the diced onion and cook for a few minutes until softened.
Add the garlic and cook for about a minute until fragrant.
Pour in the chicken stock and double cream, then add the grated parmesan. Stir well and bring to a gentle simmer.
Stir in the sun-dried tomato paste, dried thyme, and dried oregano.
Return the chicken to the pan and simmer until the sauce thickens and the chicken is cooked through.
Taste for seasoning, then finish with the fresh basil just before serving.
What to serve it with
This is brilliant with mashed potatoes, rice, or pasta, anything that can catch that sauce. It also works really well with roasted potatoes and a green vegetable on the side if you want to keep things balanced. A simple salad with a sharp dressing is never a bad idea either.
Leftovers reheat well, and the flavour actually improves the next day.
FAQs
Can I use chicken thighs instead of breasts?
Yes. Boneless, skinless thighs work really well here and stay extra juicy. They may need a few extra minutes of cooking time.
Can I make this ahead of time?
You can, but it’s best served fresh. If you do make it ahead, reheat gently on the hob with a splash of water or stock to loosen the sauce.
Is sun-dried tomato paste the same as chopped sun-dried tomatoes?
Not quite. The paste gives a smoother sauce and a more even flavour. If you only have chopped sun-dried tomatoes, finely chop them and add a little extra cream to balance things out.
Can I make it lighter?
You can swap the double cream for a lighter cream or crème fraîche, but the sauce won’t be quite as rich. It’ll still taste good, just different.
Does this really make people want to get married?
No promises. But it will make people very happy, and honestly, that’s the important part.
This is one of those recipes that earns its place. Simple, comforting, and quietly impressive. The kind of dish that proves you don’t need tricks, just good ingredients and a bit of confidence in the pan.
Marry Me Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 Chicken breasts
- 80 g Plain flour
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Black pepper
- 20 g Butter
- 1 Onion diced
- 4 Cloves of garlic chopped
- 200 ml Chicken stock
- 150 ml Double cream
- 60 g Parmesan grated
- 2 tbsp Sun dried tomato paste
- 1 tsp Dried thyme
- 1 tsp Dried oregano
- 1 Bunch of fresh basil rough chopped
Instructions
- For this recipe I used 2 small chicken breasts, if you have large ones then you can cut them in half lengthways to make two fillets.
- Add the salt and pepper to the flour and mix it well. Coat the chicken in the seasoned flour and shake off any excess.
- Add a little cooking oil and the butter to a large frying pan, once it’s really hot add the chicken and cook until it is golden brown on both sides. This should take about 3-4 minutes on each side over a medium to high heat.
- Remove the chicken from the pan and just set aside. Using the same pan, fry the onion for a few minutes until it starts to soften.
- Chuck in the garlic and cook for a minute.
- Pour in the chicken stock and double cream, add the grated parmesan. Stir well, then bring to a simmer.
- Add the sun-dried tomato paste, dried thyme and dried oregano. Stir well.
- Get the chicken back into the pan, then bring to a simmer until the sauce has thickened and the chicken is cooked through.
- Taste for seasoning, then add the fresh basil.
52 comments on “Marry Me Chicken”
What’s the “method” when making bigger portions please?
If I make enough for six portions, do I triple all the ingredients?
asking because that would be 240g of flour which is enough to make a cake 😆 and a tablespoon of salt which seems a lot.
With the flour, you are not using all of it, just enough to coat the chicken, so you may even get away with however much you use for 2 people. As for the rest of the recipe, if you triple it the sauce will take longer to reduce, so you could get away with doubling the sauce, but just trebling the chicken. Hope that makes sense
Very easy to make with good instructions as always!! It was very tasty and will be making this recipe again, thanks Jon!!
Hi. This meal is so delicious! Is it ok to freeze it?
Thank you. Yes you can freeze it.
This was amazing, so easy but looks & tastes so impressive my whole family loved it. I doubled your recipe to feed the family. Thank you this is a keeper!
Bought my mum your cook book for Xmas she loves it and everyday telling me about a new receipe she has cooked that’s lovely.
I can’t seem to find sundried tomato paste anywhere 🙁 I’ve checked Morrisons and Aldi but so far can only find sundried tomato pesto. Is that the same? Xx
It isn’t the same, but it will work. Sun dried tomato paste should be in all supermarkets.
Can you use just normal tomato puree?
YOu can do, but it will be much nicer with sun dried tomatoes
the paste you are after is in sainsburys – inspired cook by sainsburys 190g
is in sainsburys – inspired cook by sainsburys – 190g
I used sundry tomatoes and tomato puree instead. It was still delicious
What a banger of a recipe Jon, absolutely loved it and so easy.
This dish was delicious am so pleased am getting your cookbook for Christmas thank you
I’d marry me after that! Will be making this weekly, thank you.
Hi. Made this Marry me chicken tonight with hassleback potatoes and tenderstem broccoli..it was absolutely amazing and will definitely make again. Everyone’s plates were cleaned. Managed to get the sundried paste out M&S. Was delicious. I need your cookbook!!!
Probably one of my favourite dishes I’ve ever made. It’s made me passionate about cooking again.
I really enjoyed this!
Great recipe! Didn’t have sundried tomato paste, so I mixed regular tomato paste with sundried tomatoes instead. Worked great. Also, added some cornstarch slurry to make the sauce thicker.
Wow. We just tried this tonight. Hubby said the sauce was delicious. It was so easy to make. We will definitely be having this again soon. Thank you Jon.
Absolutely delicious and so easy to make!
Sorry forgot to rate! 5 stars
Wow, an amazing dish. This will be made again that’s for sure. The amount of sauce was perfect for four of us and made the hassleback potatoes to go with it and tenderstem broccoli. My husband said he would definitely “marry me” although we’ve been married for 25 years! Such a lovely recipe thanks so much.
A stunner of a dish!! And quite simple to cook too. I’ve been following Jon for a long time on instagram and have tried many of his recipes. Not one has let me down so far. If you haven’t got his book yet, order it now. You won’t regret it 👍👍
Thanks Jon. Keep em coming 😄
I’ve just seen this recipe and I’m going to get the ingredients today so I can make it tonight. It looks easy to make and it looks so delicious. Thank you so much for the recipe. Your book looks amazing.
Really delicious! Girlfriends asking for calorie counts per serving 🙄
I saw this on This Morning, being cooked for Alison and Dermot and thought that looks really nice! So shopped for the ingredients that same day and made for tea and my god! It was beautiful! So much I’ve got it for tea again tonight. Thank you for this great recipe Jon! 👏
Did you also make the potatoes he made? I can’t find the recipe for them 😪😪 xx
The recipe for the baby hasselback potatoes is also on my website, or you can find it on ITV this morning website.
Gorgeous and easy to make. Definitely a firm favourite
Haha me too! Absolutely stunning!
One of my favourite recipes , amazing and so tasty .
Easy to make substitutions for my diet as well
Yummy, yummy. A super recipe with aĺ my favourite ingredients,! What’s not to like. I can’t wait to try it, but missing a couple of ingredients at the moment, so shopping tomorrow is a must.
Thank you Jon.
The most lovely dish I have made in a long time. I made with sweet potato mash with this and spring veg. Thank you so much for your inspiration,I adore all your recipes.
I don’t have any dried thyme, can I use mixed herb instead?
yes 🙂
It is so delicious and so simple. It will be a regular for my family 👍👏
Hi Jon
I couldn’t find sun dried tomato paste, should I use tomatoe purée or red pesto instead?
Thanks
Hi, both would work as good substitutions.
Such a tasty meal that the whole family enjoyed. I subbed out the sundried tomato paste for red pesto as I had ran out and it tasted great. Served with rice, broccoli and green beans 👍
Make this every week it’s delicious with lots of sauce
Lovely dish. Didn’t have any sundried tomato paste so used ordinary tomato puree. Will try that next time to see what the difference is. Really tasty, thick and creamy sauce so served up with potato and squash garlic mash and greens. Have been looking for something to serve up to friends who will be coming down next month. This will be it!! Great talking point dish name too ❤️
Lovely, lovely recipe. Cooked this twice now. First time for just me and hubbie, with mashed potato and broccoli. 2nd time, I tweaked the recipe slightly, as I was feeding 4 people and not 2. I followed the original recipe, with exactly the same quantities and method for 2, but this time I cut the chicken breasts into bite size chunks instead of leaving them whole, before I dusted them in the flour, and then fried them until golden.
I cooked a packet of linguine (500g) and then added the cooked pasta to the chicken and sauce. I added about a cup of the pasta water to loosen it up and then mixed it all together. It made it more economical and really family friendly.
Thank you Jon 🙂
Hi, what side do you recommend to eat with this dish ? Thanks
Hi, It is very versatile so will go with almost anything. Rice or mashed potatoes work well if you want something simple.
My family all loved this and they are usually very hard to please! Apparently they would order it in a restaurant – praise indeed. Thank you for sharing your delicious recipes.
This dish has amazing fresh flavours, easy to follow recipe. Even tastes better the next day. A good way to eat your greens and veggies with the sauce. Sauce does thicken more after adding the cream. The chicken tastes lovely and soft cooking this way before putting it back in the sauce.. Never heard of this dish or chef until a friend forwarded it to me. Looking forward to try the rest of the recipes. Impressed.
Very nice, but the parmesan went very stringy and chewy. Will try adding it right at the end next time.
Hi, That’s strange, I haven’t known parmesan to do that before. Even adding it early shouldn’t have that effect. Which parmesan did you use?
Wow. The whole family enjoyed this all clean plates. I personally added mushrooms and chopped in sun dried tomatoes too, served with long grain rice tenderstem broccoli and carrots. Very filling but also a great way to get in veggies. The recipe is very easy to follow and took no more than 40 mins for 4 people.
Cooked this one, the sauce is to die for. Nice one Jon.
This dish was delicious am so pleased am getting your cookbook for Christmas thank you