On busy nights when you fancy a quickly prepared meal that is luxurious and satisfying, my Creamy Mustard and Spinach Chicken may be the answer. We begin by cooking seasoned chicken tenderloins in a frying pan and then bathe them in a creamy sauce flavoured with garlic, two kinds of mustard, fresh thyme and baby spinach. It is a one pan meal that you can have on the table in 30 minutes. Dinner does not come much easier or delicious than this!
Why You'll Love This Recipe:
- Easy chicken dinners are always popular. We love a simple Roast Chicken or Mediterranean Chicken Casserole.
- It is prepared from ingredients which are readily available year-round.
- This is a meal that provides maximum enjoyment for minimum effort.
- We use chicken tenderloins, one of my favourite ingredients, and as the name implies, they are reliably tender.
- The creamy mustard sauce is not overpowering; it is perfectly balanced and suitable for family meals.
- If you need to make the meal gluten-free, use the appropriate flour and check the label on the mustards to make sure that they are suitable.
- It is sufficiently elegant to use when entertaining.
Recipe Inspiration: our easy, creamy, chicken meals have been extremely popular, and we developed this recipe in response to a request from one of our readers. This recipe has been adapted from our Creamy Garlic Chicken.
Ingredients and Substitutions:
Please see the recipe card further along in the post for exact quantities of ingredients and the full method.
- Chicken tenderloins: they are a versatile ingredient, sometimes known as chicken tenders.
- Plain/all-purpose flour: we coat the tenderloins with a small amount of flour before pan frying the chicken. It also helps the sauce to thicken. You can substitute with gluten-free flour if required.
- Dried oregano: I prefer to use dried oregano in this instance. I feel that the flavour complements rather than dominates the ingredients.
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper: for a flavoursome dish, it is essential to properly season your food.
- Unsalted butter: we use unsalted butter to pan fry the chicken tenderloins and to cook the creamy sauce.
- Extra virgin olive oil: we use some olive oil to prevent the butter burning.
- Garlic: for the best flavour, we use fresh garlic cloves.
- Baby spinach: adds colour and flavour to the sauce.
- Mustard: we use two varieties; Dijon and wholegrain mustard. If necessary, check that they are gluten-free.
- Heavy/thickened cream: this is cream with a minimum milk fat content of 35%. It gives the sauce a silky texture.
- Thyme: fresh thyme leaves add depth of flavour to the sauce.
- Flat-leaf parsley: add for flavour and colour.
Variations:
Chicken tenderloins: if you prefer, you can use strips of breast meat, but it is not as forgiving as tenderloins and will become tough if overcooked.
Thyme: you could substitute fresh rosemary; it has great flavour.
How To Make Creamy Mustard Chicken:
Please see the recipe card further along in the post for exact quantities of ingredients and the full method.
1 - Cook the chicken:
Prepare the chicken tenderloins and coat in seasoned flour. Cook the chicken in a large frying pan until it is golden brown and just cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan to a plate and cover loosely with foil to keep warm.
2 - Wilt the spinach:
In the same pan, over medium heat, add the remaining butter and melt. Add in the garlic, and sauté.
Add in the spinach and allow it to wilt.
3 - Add the cream and mustard:
To the pan, add the mustard, thyme and cream. Simmer the sauce until it thickens slightly.
4 - Return the chicken to the pan:
Return the chicken to the pan and turn off the heat. Check that seasoning is to your liking. Serve immediately with the finely chopped parsley.
Hint: although tenderloins are forgiving, for the best result, it is important to not overcook the chicken or it will become tough.
Tips for Success, Storage and FAQs:
This dish is best if served as soon as it is made. However, you could prepare the separate components a day ahead, and store in the refrigerator ready to cook. The cooking process is very speedy.
Yes, you certainly can. Just be careful to not overcook the chicken breast as it tends to become tough and dry if even a little overcooked.
Store leftovers in the fridge as soon as possible. If they have been at room temperature for more than two hours, the chicken should be discarded. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days, then reheat gently on low heat on the stovetop or in a microwave. To prevent the sauce from splitting, you may like to add a little additional cream when reheating. I don't recommend freezing this dish. With the high dairy content, on thawing, it could separate.
Top Tip:
This is a dish that is prepared very quickly, so I recommend that you have your utensils and ingredients ready before you start cooking. This will make for a quicker, smoother cooking process.
Serving Suggestions:
The Creamy Mustard Chicken works well with many dishes. Serve it alongside:
- A potato dish, such as Smashed Potatoes or Baked Mashed Potatoes.
- Buttered noodles or steamed rice.
- Green vegetables, such as Sautéed Asparagus or Roasted Broccolini.
- A fresh salad, like my Rocket and Pear Salad or Kale and Apple Slaw.
This delicious Creamy Mustard Chicken is quickly and easily prepared, making it ideal for busy weeknights, or sufficiently elegant to serve when entertaining.
Alex xx
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Creamy Mustard and Spinach Chicken
Please note:
For accuracy, when weights are provided, we recommend weighing your ingredients. This will produce the best results. All oven temperatures listed are for fan forced.
Ingredients
For the Chicken:
- 500 g (1.1 lb) chicken tenderloins
- ¼ cup (40 g) all-purpose/plain flour - use gluten-free if needed See Note 1
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter See Note 2
- 2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
For the Creamy Mustard and Spinach Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 3 large garlic cloves - finely chopped
- 3 cups (100 g) baby spinach leaves
- 1 ¼ cups (310 ml) heavy whipping/thickened cream See Note 3
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoon whole grain mustard
- 2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves - finely chopped
- ¼ cup (15 g) flat-leaf parsley - finely chopped
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper - to taste See Note 4
Instructions
- Have all your ingredients prepared before you start to cook.There is a small, white, tough tendon at the end of the chicken tenderloin. You will need to remove it with a sharp knife or a pair of scissors. There’s no need to remove it all; the tendon inside the meat is very thin and you won’t notice it after cooking but it is important to remove the larger, thicker piece. Don’t try to pull it out or the meat may fall apart.
- On a large plate, mix the flour, oregano, salt and pepper. Toss the chicken in it so it is well coated. Tap off any excess flour.
- In a large frying pan, heat the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat.
- Add the chicken and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, or until just cooked through. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside. Loosely cover with foil to keep warm.
- In the same pan, over medium heat add the remaining butter and melt. Add in the garlic, and sauté for 1 minute, being careful to ensure it doesn't burn.
- Add in the baby spinach leaves and allow it to wilt. This will take about 1 minute.
- Add in the mustards, cream and fresh thyme. Simmer the sauce for 2-3 minutes, or until it thickens slightly.
- Return the chicken to the pan and turn off the heat. Serve with the finely chopped parsley.
Notes
- Gluten-free: adapt this recipe to gluten-free by using the appropriate flour.
- Tablespoon: we use a standard Australian tablespoon which is 20 ml (4 teaspoons). For readers located elsewhere in the world, please use 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon for each listed tablespoon.
- Cream: for a creamy texture and best flavour, use full-fat cream. Thickened/heavy whipping cream should have a minimum 35% fat content.
- Seasoning: adjust the seasoning to your liking - we recommend using freshly ground black pepper and sea salt flakes for the best flavour. Proper seasoning is essential for a delicious dish that is well flavoured.
- Storage: cooled leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to three days. Reheat gently at a low heat. As the sauce is cream based, reheating can cause it to split - adding a little additional cream can stop this from happening.
- Freezing: this dish is not suitable for freezing.
Nutrition Estimate:
Nutritional Disclaimer:
The nutritional information is an estimate only, and is derived from online calculators. For accurate results, we recommend calculating the nutritional information based on the ingredients and brands you use.
Sandra says
So delicious and Easy. I only had fresh Oregano in the garden, so I picked some ,wrapped in a paper towel and microwaved for 1 minute . It dried and crumbled perfectly. Thank you from NZ
Alexandra Cook says
Hello Sandra,
Thank you so much for making this recipe!
I am so happy you enjoyed it 🙂 And that is such a great tip with the oregano too!
Alex xo