Chicken in Tomato Sauce (With Mushrooms & Mozzarella)
Aug 22, 2017, Updated Dec 04, 2024
This one-skillet chicken in tomato sauce recipe is easy, satisfying, and will make your entire house smell incredible. With aromatic herbs, perfectly golden chicken, stringy mozzarella cheese, and a flavorful tomato sauce, this cozy dish is sure to become a staple dinner in your home!
Imagine tender, pan-seared chicken and earthy shiitake mushrooms surrounded by a sage-infused, bubbling, aromatic tomato sauce. Bits of fresh mozzarella are melted between olives and garlic. Slowly cooked in wine and herbs, this chicken in tomato sauce is incredibly flavorful and perfumed by all the ingredients simmering together in the tomato base. When I say this is one of the best recipes on my site, it is 1000% true.
P.S. If the smell of this sauce doesn’t make you want to eat right out of the skillet, we may not be able to be friends!
If you’re a fan of this recipe and are interested in some more tips and tricks for all of your chicken-centered recipes, check out these Grilled Chicken Thighs and my in-depth post on How to Grill Chicken Breast. And if you’re still loving chicken smothered in luscious sauce, my Marry Me Chicken will be sure to make you swoon!
Ingredients for Chicken in Tomato Sauce
- Chicken cutlets – cut chicken breasts in half lengthwise by laying them flat on a cutting board and slicing from the thickest end to the thinnest. You can also usually buy chicken cutlets already sliced in the grocery store!
- Canned, crushed tomatoes – I look for the fire-roasted San Marzano canned tomatoes.
- Fresh sage leaves – The addition of sage adds an earthy, slightly peppery note that enhances the dish’s overall flavor profile. Pro tip: the smallest leaves on the stem are the most tender!
- Pitted Castelvetrano olives – Castelvetranos add a slightly sweet, buttery, and briny pop of added flavor, color, and texture. Olives should be halved before adding them to the dish.
- Shiitake mushrooms – This rich, slightly smoky variety adds the perfect umami punch to the chicken in tomato sauce. Be sure to remove the stems before adding them.
- Parmigiano-Reggiano – Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano is an essential finishing touch. Regular parmesan or Pecorino Romano works, too!
- Mozzarella pearls – delicious and perfectly bite-sized, they melt in the tomato sauce!
- Garlic – thinly slice the cloves into slivers so they also melt into the sauce.
- White cooking wine – My favorite is Sauvignon Blanc, but Pinot Grigio is another great option that blends well with the tomato sauce, adding the perfect touch of acidity.
- Butter – including both butter and olive oil in the dish enhances flavor and creates the perfect richness to pull all of the ingredients together.
- Extra virgin olive oil – olive oil, used with the butter, to sauté the chicken and mushrooms.
- All-purpose flour – flour helps soak up extra liquid and makes the chicken beautifully golden.
How to Make Chicken in Tomato Sauce
This chicken in tomato sauce recipe is teeming with bubbling flavor, all packed in a big skillet! Full instructions are in the recipe card below; this is just an outline.
- Make a bed of flour on a plate, coat chicken cutlets lightly with the flour, and shake off the excess.
- Melt butter and olive oil in a large skillet over low heat. Ensure the skillet you use has a lid so you can cover the chicken later on.
- Cook cutlets on medium-low, browning each side (4 minutes first side, 3 minutes second side). Remove and set aside.
- Add butter, olive oil, and a tablespoon of water to the pan. Sauté mushrooms cap-side-down for 3 minutes per side, then remove.
- Deglaze the pan with wine. Return chicken, add tomato sauce, sage, garlic, and mushrooms. Simmer, covered, for 8 minutes.
- Top with grated parmesan and mozzarella, simmer until melted (3-4 minutes). Add olives and serve.
What to Serve With Chicken in Tomato Sauce
I recommend serving chicken in tomato sauce with a warm piece of ciabatta, Garlic Bread or Baguette. They’re a nice touch to soak up that beautiful sauce (or “Scarpetta,” as the Italians say)… don’t you think?
Another great serving option for this dish is a versatile side like creamy polenta, a side of pasta (like penne or fusilli) for the extra sauce, or Garlic Mashed Potatoes, which is the perfect potato side dish with chicken in tomato sauce.
My Pro Tip
Tips for Making Chicken in Tomato Sauce
I recommend making sure all ingredients are ready to add by pre-cutting and washing them! This dish is most straightforward when you prep all the ingredients before you begin the cooking process.
Don’t add your olives too early! If you do, they will turn gray and lose some of their taste.
Make a big batch and store your leftovers in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. The dish is just as fabulous the second or third time around!
More Delicious Chicken Recipes
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Honey Mustard Chicken (in 30 Minutes!)
If you’ve tried this Chicken in Tomato Sauce Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please let me know in the comments below. I love hearing from you. Please consider leaving a 🌟 star rating while you are here!
Chicken in Tomato Sauce (With Mushrooms & Mozzarella)
Equipment
- Large skillet
Ingredients
- 4 chicken cutlets, halved
- 10 shiitake mushrooms, with stems removed
- 10 fresh sage leaves, the smallest leaves are the most tender!
- 3 medium garlic cloves, slivered
- 1 cup canned, crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup Castelvetrano olives, pitted and halved
- ½ cup white wine, like sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio
- ⅓ cup mozzarella pearl balls, drained
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 4 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, or regular parmesan
Instructions
- Make a bed of all-purpose flour on a large plate. Lightly coat outside of halved chicken cutlets in flour by dipping cutlets in flour bed and shaking off excess flour.
- Place 2 tablespoons of butter and 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large (preferably nonstick) skillet. Make sure the skillet you use has a top so you can cover the simmering chicken later on. Turn stovetop on low, and let butter melt.
- Add dredged cutlets into hot pan, in a single layer, and turn heat up to medium-low. Let chicken lightly brown in butter/olive oil mixture for 4 minutes. Every minute, check to make sure chicken pieces aren’t sticking to the pan. Flip cutlets and let other side lightly brown for another 3 minutes. Remove chicken from pan, and set aside on a clean plate.
- In the same pan, reduce heat to low and add 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons olive oil along with a tablespoon of water. Add mushrooms cap-side-down. Let sauté for about 3 minutes. Flip mushrooms (I use tongs to do this), and sauté for another 3 minutes. Remove mushrooms from pan.
- Deglaze pan with wine, and place cutlets back into pan, in a single layer. Add crushed tomato sauce in spaces between cutlets.
- Sprinkle sage and garlic slivers in tomato sauce. Place mushrooms on top of chicken cutlets. Cover skillet, and let simmer on low/medium heat for about 8 minutes.
- Sprinkle grated cheese on top of cutlets. Add mozzarella balls in sauce and on top of cutlets. Cover again and let simmer on low heat for 3-4 minutes, until cheese melts.
- Remove from heat and add olives to sauce. Enjoy!
Notes
- This dish is easiest when all the ingredients are prepped before you begin the cooking process!
- Add olives last minute. If you add the Castelvetrano (green) olives too early, they will turn gray and lose some of their taste!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Incredible!! I saw this recipe and thought the combination of flavors seemed interesting and it couldn’t have turned out any BETTER. My daughter is asking for it again next week. Thank you!!
Can’t beat that! Thanks for letting me know.
Grace