A savory, nutty, and comforting 30-minute dinner. Perfect for everything from weeknight dinners to dinner parties.
Table of Contents
- This brown butter chicken is...
- Ingredients:
- Substitutions:
- How to make sage chicken with sage butter sauce...
- Recipe pro-tips:
- Recipe FAQs:
- Serving suggestions:
- Alternative uses for this butter sage sauce:
- Storage directions:
- Save this Pin for Later on Pinterest
- Tools needed to make this recipe
- More quick dinner recipes
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Call me late to the party (it wouldn't be the first time), but I recently discovered browned butter. There's no going back.
It all started with these brown butter white chocolate and cranberry cookies. What already was one of my favorite cookie combos got elevated to a whole new level with the toasty and nutty flavor profile of the golden butter.
If brown butter could do this to a favorite baking recipe, what could it do to other dishes calling for traditional butter? As happens when I stumble upon a new ingredient or technique, the wheels were turning.
Before you could say "let's consider the possibilities," I got to work experimenting with options. Brown butter pasta, brown butter banana bread, brown butter chicken, and more.
Though the sweets have a dedicated spot in my heart, the savory brown butter recipes really caught me by surprise. The nutty notes added depth to the dishes and there's not much that can't benefit from added richness.
This sage walnut chicken with brown butter sauce is such a recipe. With toasted walnuts and sauce, the brown butter takes on additional flavor notes that make this recipe the perfect cold weather comfort food dish.
Serve this recipe for a quick weeknight dinner -- it's ready in under 30 minutes -- or treat your friends and family to a satisfying dinner party meal. Either way, one taste of this brown butter sauced chicken and I bet this star ingredient won't be leaving your life any time soon, either.
For more easy and quick chicken recipes, check out my Creamy Garlic Chicken, Chicken Meatloaf, and Panko Crusted Chicken.
This brown butter chicken is...
- Savory
- Nutty
- Buttery
- Rich
- Meaty
- Comforting
If you're looking for a quick and reliable comfort food dinner, this brown butter chicken is your new go-to!
Ingredients:
- Unsalted butter
- Chopped walnuts
- Fresh sage
- Olive oil
- Onions
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs
- Apple cider vinegar
- Salt & black pepper
Substitutions:
- Butter - salted butter can work in place of the unsalted butter. Reduce the amount of salt added to the browned butter to ⅛ teaspoon if doing so.
- Nuts - chopped pecans can substitute for the walnuts.
- Vinegar - white wine vinegar can substitute for the apple cider vinegar in a pinch.
How to make sage chicken with sage butter sauce...
- Heat large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the butter and melt until it just starts to foam.
- Add the walnuts, sage, and salt to the butter. Cook, stirring frequently, until the flecks of butter solids just turn golden brown.
- Immediately pour the butter mixture into a cool bowl, scraping all of the golden brown bits out of the pan. Thoroughly wipe the skillet out with a paper towel.
- Return the skillet to medium heat. Add the olive oil and onions and sauté until the onions start to soften.
- Place the chicken thighs on the onions. Season with the remaining salt and pepper. Cook or until the chicken is cooked through, stirring the onions and chicken every 1.5 - 2 minutes.
- Reduce the heat to low. Add the brown butter mixture and apple cider vinegar back to the pan. Stir in until combined and heated through. Serve!
Recipe pro-tips:
- Pour the brown butter mixture out of the pan as soon as it just starts to turn golden brown. Any longer and you will risk burning the butter. (To know when the butter is burned, see my notes below).
- Stir the butter frequently as it cooks. This will help the butter cook evenly and for you to see the progress of the browning.
- Use a light colored skillet, if possible. This will also help you see the butter's progress. Dark skillets won't show the color change as well, leading to an increased risk of burning the butter.
- Wipe out the pan well before adding the olive oil. This prevents any lingering brown butter bits from burning in the subsequent cooking steps. I recommend using a damp paper towel to carefully but thoroughly clean out the skillet.
- Prep all of the ingredients before starting the recipe. Especially the walnuts, sage, and onions. The first few steps go quickly and are time sensitive so you don't want to be caught still prepping the ingredients when they are called for in the recipe.
- Cook the chicken to 165 degrees Fahrenheit, or until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear. To measure the internal temperature of chicken thighs, insert a thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken.
Recipe FAQs:
Brown butter is butter that is cooked over a steady and moderate heat until the milk solids in the butter get toasty smelling and golden in appearance.
You know that you've burnt brown butter if it starts to smell burnt, smoke, or the milk solids in the butter have turned a dark brown or black color.
Brown butter sauce is rich, nutty, savory, and buttery. This recipe also has a slightly earthy flavor, thanks to the sage. Thanks to the bold flavor and texture of this sauce, it goes very well over rich flavored meats like chicken thighs or dark meat turkey.
Serving suggestions:
This chicken is perfect spooned over hot cooked pasta, polenta, couscous, quinoa, or your other favorite cooked grain.
Blistered green beans, roasted broccoli, or air fryer brussels sprouts all make delicious side dishes to serve with this chicken, too.
Alternative uses for this butter sage sauce:
If you just want to enjoy sage brown butter sauce, just follow the first 3 steps of the recipe and enjoy it ladled over roasted turkey, drizzled over roasted vegetables, or as a butter sage sauce for pasta.
Storage directions:
Leftovers store covered in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. They do not freeze well.
Save this Pin for Later on Pinterest
Tools needed to make this recipe
- Cutting board
- Chef knife
- Measuring cups & spoons
- 12-inch deep skillet
- Heat safe turner or tongs
- Silicone spatula
- Glass mixing bowl
More quick dinner recipes
- Crispy Herbed Panko Chicken
- Honey Garlic Lemon Pepper Chicken Thighs
- Southwest Chicken with Black Bean Sauce
- Sheet Pan Mojo Chicken
- Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet
- Healthy Orange Chicken
- Chicken Bolognese Sauce
- Peanut Butter Chicken Curry
- Thai Green Chicken Curry
- Instant Pot Barbecue Chicken
Sage Walnut Chicken with Brown Butter Sauce
Ingredients
- ¼ cup unsalted butter cut into 4-6 chunks
- ⅓ cup chopped walnuts
- 2 tablespoons fresh sage chopped
- ¾ teaspoon salt divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion sliced into rings
- 1 ¼- 1 ½ lbs. boneless skinless chicken thighs
- fresh cracked pepper
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- Hot cooked quinoa pasta, polenta, couscous or other grain
Instructions
- Heat large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the butter and melt until it just starts to foam.
- Add the walnuts, sage, and ¼ teaspoon of the salt to the butter. Cook, stirring frequently, for 2 - 3.5 minutes, or until the flecks of butter solids just turn golden brown.
- Immediately pour the butter mixture into a cool bowl, scraping all of the golden brown bits out of the pan. Thoroughly wipe the skillet out with a paper towel.
- Return the skillet to medium heat. Add the olive oil and onions and sauté, stirring occasionally for 3.5 - 4 minutes, or until the onions start to soften.
- Place the chicken thighs on the onions. Season with the remaining ½ teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring the onions and flipping the chicken every 1.5 - 2 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit and the juices run clear.
- Reduce the heat to low. Add the brown butter mixture and apple cider vinegar back to the pan. Stir in until combined and heated through. Serve the chicken mixture over hot quinoa, pasta, polenta, couscous, or other grain.
Could I substitute chicken breast for thighs? I have the breasts and grocery prices in June 2022 are insane, so I’d like to use what I have if possible…
Yes, you should be able to! Just make sure they are cooked through, as the cooking time for breasts may be different than for thighs. 🙂