Go Back

Creamy Ranch Chicken

Creamy ranch chicken skillet with juicy, golden chicken breasts in a thick ranch cream sauce. The sauce is tangy and smooth from cream cheese and ranch seasoning, pooling richly around the meat with visible dill and cracked pepper.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: American
Calories: 780
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Chicken breasts
  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Seasoning
  • 0.5 tsp salt To taste.
  • 0.5 tsp pepper To taste.
  • 0.5 tsp garlic powder To taste.
Searing and sauce base
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves Minced (3 cloves total).
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 packet (1 oz) ranch seasoning mix
  • 4 oz cream cheese Cubed.
  • 1 tsp dried dill
  • 0.25 fresh chives For garnish.

Equipment

  • 1 cast iron skillet

Method
 

Sear the chicken
  1. Season the chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and sear chicken for 5-6 minutes per side until golden and the internal temperature reaches 165°F, then remove.
  2. Let the chicken rest off the heat while you make the sauce in the same pan. Keep any browned bits in the skillet for flavor.
Make the ranch cream sauce
  1. Cook minced garlic in the same pan for 30 seconds until fragrant. Pour in the chicken broth and deglaze, scraping up browned bits.
  2. Stir in heavy cream and ranch seasoning mix, then bring to a simmer over medium heat. The sauce should look slightly thick as it starts bubbling.
  3. Add the cream cheese cubes and stir over medium-low heat until completely melted and the sauce is smooth. It should be glossy and creamy with no visible chunks.
  4. Stir in dried dill and return the chicken to the pan. Spoon sauce over each breast and simmer for 3 minutes.
Serve
  1. Garnish with fresh chives and serve immediately. Plate the chicken with mashed potatoes or pasta so the ranch sauce pools around the edges.

Notes

Pro tip: scrape the skillet well when you add the chicken broth so the browned bits dissolve into the ranch sauce for maximum flavor. Store leftovers in the refrigerator up to 3 days; reheat gently in a skillet until warmed through. Freezing: not recommended because the cream and cream cheese can break when thawed. Dietary swap: use low-fat cream cheese and light ranch seasoning if you want a lighter sauce, noting the texture may be slightly thinner.