Chicken Thighs in Mustard Wine Sauce are easy and quick to make during busy weeknights. This simple chicken dinner has just the right amount of Dijon mustard, cream and white wine & perfectly flavored with thyme and garlic.
Juicy on the inside and crispy skin on the outside! The best chicken in the decadent Dijon mustard sauce! So if you are ready to add a bold punch of flavor to your chicken, this Chicken in Mustard and Wine Sauce is definitely the choice.
What Kind of Chicken to Use
You will need skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs, but if you don't like chicken skin, this recipe can definitely be used with skinless boneless chicken breasts or thighs - in that case the chicken will be completely done after sauteing in the pan and should only be reheated on the stove top and not baked.
If you love cooking and eating thighs as much as I do, I have several delicious chicken thighs recipes here.
How to Cook Chicken Thighs
I always cook chicken thighs skin side first on medium high heat for at least 4 minutes. I just set a timer on my microwave for 4 minutes and don't touch chicken thighs until it goes off. Then I slightly reduce the heat and flip them to the other side and cook for additional 4-5 minutes, for a total of 8-10 minutes.
Bone-in chicken thighs won't be cooked through by pan searing like this, they will need some additional heat to get to the bone and that's why the chicken in sauce is transferred to the oven.
How to Make Dijon Mustard Sauce
The sauce is cooked on the stove top before the chicken is added back to the pan and transferred to the oven to finish cooking
VEGGIES. Sautéed onions, thyme and garlic serve as the starting point of the sauce, followed by Dijon mustard and dry white wine.
DRY WHITE WINE. I used Pinot Grigio, but any other dry white wine, such as Chardonnay will be great here. I add wine immediately after adding flour or even while adding flour and start whisking both at the same time. Only once did I have a problem with flour clumping and it was when I added it all at once and without sifting.
FLOUR, CREAM A little bit of flour here is added to thicken up the sauce.
USE A SIFTER. When adding flour to the pan, I always use a small sifter to prevent clumps. I sift it into the pan very slowly right before I add wine, and the pan needs to have some fat in it: olive oil or butter, or both. If the sauce appears to be too thin, I bring my sifter back in and add about half a tablespoon of flour to thicken it up again. Always works!
CHICKEN BROTH, CREAM, MUSTARD. Next add chicken stock, heavy cream and cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes. Add mustard and mix in well with the sauce.
After the sauce is done the chicken is reunited with the pan and is ready to be baked in the luxury of mustard and wine cream sauce!
How To Make It Gluten Free
Use rice or almond flour instead of wheat flour to thicken up the sauce.
Equipment Needed
I used a large skillet like this modern design 12 inch Lodge cast iron pan.
You can also use stainless steel or dutch oven - they will work great.
More Easy and Delicious Chicken Thighs recipes
- Oven Baked Peri Peri Chicken
- Rosemary Chicken Thighs with Mushrooms in Wine Sauce
- Skillet Chicken Thighs in Mushroom and Wine Sauce
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French Style Chicken in Mustard and Wine Sauce
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 lbs chicken thighs
- Italian seasoning for seasoning chicken
- salt and pepper to taste
Dijon Wine Sauce:
- 1 medium onion diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 3-4 thyme sprigs (leaves of those sprigs)
- 1 tablespoon flour (wheat or rice flour)
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 cup chicken stock
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 3 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- Sautéing the chicken: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Season chicken with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning on both sides. Cook the chicken on medium high skin side down first until golden brown, then flip over and cook on the other side, 4 to 5 minutes per side; transfer chicken to a plate. Chicken will not be cooked through at this point.
- Sauce Base: To the same pan add onion, garlic and thyme leaves and cook over medium heat until just tender for 3-4 minutes.
- Making Dijon Wine Sauce: Move onions to the side of the pan and start whisking in flour (preferably using a sifter). While adding flour, also slowly start adding the wine. Next add chicken stock, heavy cream and cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes. Add mustard and mix in well with the sauce
- Adding chicken to the pan: Add removed chicken back to the skillet with sauce.
- Baking in the oven: Put the skillet with chicken into the oven uncovered and bake at 375 F for 35-40 minutes. Check to make sure chicken is cooked all the way through.
- To serve: Serve with mashed potatoes, asparagus or roasted vegetables of your choice.
David H Currier says
I made this last night with 6 thighs, bone in, skin on. It is fabulous. I increased the quantity of sauce about 50% and used more flour to thicken the sauce. I used dried thyme because my fresh thyme plant has been over-used lately. The cream really softens the Dijon mustard. One of the best internet recipes I've found in a long while.
Olya says
Your comment made my day!!! Thank you so much for your fabulous review!
Laura says
This was soooo good! I will cook this again, for sure!
Hollye Maxwell says
Howdy,
I cook a lot as a home chef, pretty much 3 meals a day, and have assisted in restaurants in the past as prep. I waited to add the garlic until I had thoroughly sautéed the onions because I didn’t want the garlic to burn. Also, I drained all the oil off, except for about a tablespoon, after sautéing the chicken thighs because it seemed like too much oil and fat left in the pan. Otherwise, I followed the recipe. It’s great and I‘ll be adding it to the “rotation.” Thanks so much!
Kind regards,
Hollye
Olga says
Thank you, Hollye!
Corrine says
I still have some fresh thyme in the back yard - this will be our dinner tonight!
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
Way to use your gardening resources! I hope you enjoy it.
Pat says
Love this recipe! Looks very French.
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
Thank you Pat.