This is one of those restaurant dishes that is genuinely easier to make at home than you would think. Keto chicken marsala has a rich, creamy sauce loaded with mushrooms, on the table in about 25 minutes.
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Marsala is a fortified wine from Sicily, sweet and nutty, and it pairs beautifully with cream, mushrooms, and chicken. Look for a bottle meant for drinking, not one labeled as a cooking wine.
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Chef Jenn’s Take on Chicken Marsala
Traditionally, you would deglaze the pan with Marsala and add a bit more at the end, but this keto version adds it all at the end, for maximum flavor and fewer carbs.
Slice thick chicken breasts horizontally in half so they are no more than half an inch thick, they cook too slowly otherwise. Get the oil and butter really sizzling hot before adding the chicken, for real golden brown color. Sautee the mushrooms, shallots, and garlic until they release their liquid, about 4 to 5 minutes. Deglaze with the broth, add the cream, and reduce by about a third. Add the chicken back with its juices, simmer to 165 degrees, then add the Marsala and whisk in the remaining butter. Thicken with xanthan gum if you want, no more than a quarter teaspoon, resist adding more too soon, whisk it in to avoid lumps.
A reader once asked about dredging the chicken in almond flour, like a traditional flour dredge, and my honest answer is almond flour behaves nothing like wheat flour, it will not stick properly and ends up making the sauce gloppy and grainy. Mushroom variety is flexible, button, white, portobello, or cremini all work.
What You’ll Love About Chicken Marsala
- Marsala goes in at the very end, for max flavor and fewer carbs.
- A rich, creamy sauce loaded with mushrooms, genuinely restaurant-worthy.
- One skillet, ready in about 25 minutes.
Ingredients
- Chicken breasts – Boneless, skinless, sliced horizontally if thicker than 1/2 inch.
- Mushrooms – White, cremini, or portobello all work.
- Shallot and garlic – Diced and minced.
- Marsala wine – A drinking wine, not one labeled as cooking wine.
- Chicken bone broth – Homemade adds real depth, or use low-sodium store-bought.
- Heavy whipping cream – Full fat.
- Butter – Salted, divided.
- Avocado oil – For searing the chicken.
- Green onions and parsley – For finishing and garnish.
- Xanthan gum – Optional, no more than 1/4 teaspoon.
How To Make Keto Chicken Marsala
Scroll down for the full recipe card with exact measurements and printable instructions.
If your chicken breasts are thick, slice them half horizontally. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then brown them in a combination of sizzling olive oil and butter.
Remove the seasoned chicken and add the mushrooms, garlic, and shallot to the same pan.
Deglaze the pan with chicken broth, then add the heavy cream and reduce by about one-third.
Add the browned chicken breasts, add the Marsala wine, and add the green onion to the pan. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through.
Add a tablespoon of fresh minced garlic (or a teaspoon of garlic powder) to enrich the sauce and thicken the sauce with 1/4 tsp of xanthan gum (optional). Simmer over medium heat until the sauce thickens.
Garnish with chopped parsley, serve, and enjoy your keto creamy chicken Marsala dinner!
Make It A Meal
I love this with Air Fryer Asparagus with Garlic, or a bright Classic Caprese Salad.
A batch of Keto Cauliflower Mash helps soak up all that creamy sauce, and Cream of Mushroom Soup is another great pairing if mushrooms are your thing.
Storage
This freezes well. Chill it thoroughly in the fridge, then package in airtight containers or zippered bags for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge, then reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, it can be! Marsala wine is higher in carbs but when added to the sauce near the end of the cooking time, you can use less of it. We’re also not dusting the chicken breasts in flour before cooking to keep the net carbs low. This is also a gluten-free Chicken Marsala recipe, so it’s a double-win.
A hearty portion of this tasty dish has just 8 net carbs, making it a great pick for a keto and low-carb diet.
Quality counts when making Chicken Marsala, so look for a bottle that was made in Sicily. The fortified wine should be drinkable and smooth. Don’t purchase anything that is labeled for cooking – they tend to have a higher salt content. There are also dry and sweet versions – I find the dry Marsala wine makes the tastiest creamy Marsala sauce. Resist anything labeled Marsala cooking wine as these are often loaded with salt. If you can’t drink it – don’t cook with it!
Not at all! This is an easy and delicious recipe with plenty of creamy sauce. Once you’ve browned the seasoned chicken, it all goes back into one pan to finish cooking. Garnish with chopped parsley to make it look pretty, and dig in! Don’t forget to spoon up all that amazing Marsala sauce!
Add Preferred SourceKeto Chicken Marsala
Equipment
- Large skillet
- Whisk
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 3 tablespoons butter divided
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast boneless, skinless
- 12 ounces mushrooms washed and sliced
- 2 tablespoons shallots diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 1/4 cup marsala
- 1 cup chicken bone broth
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup green onions sliced
- 2 tablespoons parsley chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
Instructions
- Bring 1 tablespoon of butter and the avocado oil to a sizzle in a large skillet. Season the chicken and then brown it on both sides for 2-3 minutes over medium-high heat or until lightly golden brown. Set the chicken aside.
- Add another tablespoon of butter and sauté the mushrooms, shallots, and garlic until the mushrooms are tender and have given up their liquid – about 4-5 minutes.
- With the mushrooms and shallots still in the pan, deglaze the pan with the bone broth and then add the heavy cream. Turn the heat down to a simmer and reduce the sauce by about a third.
- Put the chicken and any juices back into the sauce and simmer until the chicken is cooked through to 165-F. Add the Marsala wine and whisk in the remaining butter. Add the green onions.
- Thicken with xanthan gum (optional), top with parsley, and serve!
Notes
Recipe Card Tips
- Thick chicken breasts take too long to cook in this low-carb keto dish. You want them at most 1/2-inch thick. If your breasts are thicker than that, slice them horizontally in half into two mostly even pieces.
- Get the olive oil (or avocado oil) and butter sizzling hot to get a bit of brown color on the breasts – golden brown food is tasty food!
- You can certainly skip the xanthan gum in this keto Chicken Marsala recipe. If you do use it, don’t use more than 1/4 teaspoon to make the creamy Marsala sauce. Resist the urge to add more – it will thicken up as it cooks and sits. If you really want a thicker sauce, add 1/8 teaspoon of xanthan gum and let it thicken. Use a whisk to whisk it in and to avoid lumps.
- Change up the mushrooms in this keto-friendly Chicken Marsala recipe! Quartered or sliced mushrooms work well in this dish, and you can use button mushrooms, white mushrooms, portobello mushrooms or cremini mushrooms.
Nutrition
A Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed. Erythritol carbs (sugar substitutes) are not included in the carbohydrate counts as they have been shown not to impact blood sugar, and they have zero calories and zero carbs. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
Even More to Love!
Here are a few more low-carb recipes and keto favorites to try:
- Crack cauliflower
- Instant pot sauerkraut and sausage
- Beefy minestrone soup
- and for breakfast, this meaty hash.
And if you need help counting carbs, check out this net carb calculator!
I can’t wait to try this Creamy chicken Marsala. It looks and sounds absolutely amazing.
Looks so creamy and delicious! Can’t wait to make it soon!
Yum! Chicken marsala is one of my favorites to order at a restaurant. Will definitely try to make it.
I can’t get enough chicken recipes, so this one is definitely calling my name! Bookmarked to make later, thanks so much for the recipe 🙂
Yum! I love chicken marsala! This looks absolutely amazing with all those flavors. Definitely perfect for pairing with the roasted asparagus.
We made this the other night, and the creamy sauce was rich and flavorful, and the chicken was perfectly tender. I was a little nervous using xanthan gum because I haven’t used it before, but it thickened the sauce perfectly!
I gave this chicken a 5 star rating! If I could give it more, I would have! It was unbelievably easy to make and adding the deglazing at the end made all the difference. I made mine without xantham gum. This chicken was PERFECT for date night!
Hi Jenn,
Just wondering.. Have you ever tried dredging the chicken in almond flour for this recipe?
Before keto, of course, I always dredged with regular flour and it was so yummy.
It’s hard to imagine your havn’t tried this yourself. Yet, if it worked out, I assume you’d be recommending it here!? So, while I don’t want to waste your time, I just have to ask 😉
I’ll be making this early next week & as per usual, I will use chicken tenderloins which I prefer to breasts. It’s been a while, so I can hardly wait! 😋
I greatly appreciate the recipe & your thoughts on this.
Thank you so much. Ronni
Almond flour doesn’t behave like regular wheat flour, and so in this recipe you’d have a gloppy, grainy sauce. The almond flour wouldn’t stick to the chicken and would end up in your sauce. You can try it, if you don’t mind the texture of ground almonds in your sauce, but I prefer a smoother sauce. ~Jenn
Thank you Jenn.
I will take your advice & skip the almond flour..
I’m finally going to make it this week!
Thanks so much for your input.😊
Enjoy! It’s a yummy recipe! ~Jenn