French Onion Chicken Recipe (2024)

December 19, 2023December 7, 2022 by Erin

This French Onion Chicken is a simple yet crave-worthy dinner that’s made in one skillet! Tender chicken breasts are covered in a rich gravy with caramelized onions, then piled with Gruyere and baked to form a perfectly melty, cheesy layer on top. This is comfort food at it’s very best.

This may be one of THE best chicken dinners that exists.

I don’t say that lightly. I’ve made some delicious skillet chicken dishes, like this Chicken with White Wine Sauce, , or this Chicken Parmesan Skillet.

But French Onion Chicken takes the gold medal!

This recipe starts with the classic caramelized onions. These take a little time to get right, but the tender, sweet, golden brown onions you get at the end are soooo worth it!

If you want to enjoy these flavors with more hands-off work, you can also try this Instant Pot French Onion Soup.

Once the onions are caramelized, you make it into a rich, creamy gravy that will bathe the chicken. Then sear up the chicken for a crispy outside, pile it with cheese, and bake until it’s deliciously gooey.

Can you get more warm and comforting than that?

Ingredients needed

• Chicken Breasts – You can also use chicken thighs for this recipe.
• Gruyere Cheese – You can also use provolone, swiss cheese, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, or a combination.
• Butter + Olive Oil
• Onions – It’s best to go with a sweet onion, like a Vidalia or Walla Walla onion.
• Dry White Wine – Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Gris are great dry-wine options. Here are 13+ of my favorite dry white wines for cooking. Or, for an alcohol-free version, add some additional beef broth.
• Cognac – Or, omit and use additional beef broth.
• Flour – This helps to thicken that yummy onion gravy.
• Beef Broth – If you don’t have store-bought beef broth, I highly recommend making homemade bone broth in the Instant Pot. I always have some on hand in the freezer.
• Salt, Pepper + Sugar
• Fresh Thyme + Parsley

What wine is best for French Onion Chicken?

Similar to french onion soup, I prefer to use a dry white wine like Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Gris in this recipe. You could also try dry vermouth or sherry. If you prefer not to use wine, just substitute it with additional beef broth.

What kind of onion is best for this recipe?

The best type of onion for this recipe is a sweet onion, like a Vidalia or Walla Walla onion. These get sweeter as they cook and caramelize beautifully! If you don’t have sweet onions, I suggest using yellow onions instead.

How to make it

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Caramelize the onions: Melt butter in a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for about 20-25 minutes, or until onions are golden and beginning to caramelize.
• Add the alcohol: Into the onions, stir in the cognac and white wine. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 2-3 minutes until the alcohol is cooked off and slightly reduced. Then stir in flour and cook for 1 minute.
• Finish the gravy: Slowly whisk in beef broth. Add salt, sugar, pepper and thyme sprigs. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 3-4 minutes until slightly thickened. Then remove from the skillet, set aside, and remove thyme sprigs.
• Season chicken: While the gravy is cooking, season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper.
• Cook chicken: Heat oil in the now empty skillet over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, add chicken breasts and cook about 3-4 minutes per side, until golden. Return onions to skillet and sprinkle cheese over the chicken. Bake for 8-10 minutes until chicken is cooked through and cheese is melted.
• Garnish and serve: Spoon some of the onions and gravy over the top of the chicken, garnish with fresh chopped parsley, and serve.

Recipe tips

• Chicken: Choose pieces of chicken that are close in size, then pound them to uniform thickness. This will help them all cook evenly.
• Caramelizing onions: Don’t cook the onions any higher than medium heat. This step takes quite a while, but don’t rush it. The onions turn out best when cooked longer over a lower heat.
• Reheating: To reheat this chicken, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook for 20-30 minutes, or until the chicken is warmed through.

What to serve with French Onion Chicken

I tend to serve thischicken dinnerup with some instant pot rice. It’s also great served alongside some buttered egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or even mashed cauliflower for a low carb option.

This dish also goes really well with a simple salad, like this Easy Arugula Salad or this . You could also serve a side of Sous Vide Asparagus or Easy Instant Pot Artichokes. Or, try one of these:

• Sauteed Spinach
• Arugula Salad
• Radicchio Salad
• Click here for MORE side dishes to serve with chicken
• Click here for 35+ options for what to serve with French Onion Soup

Wine pairings

• If you prefer white wine, this chicken pairs well with Viognier or Pinot Gris.
• For red wine, I suggest a Beaujolaisor Pinot Noir.
• MORE → the 8 BEST Chicken Wine Pairings.

More chicken recipes

• Mushroom Chicken
• Pickle Brine Chicken
• Chicken Piccata
• Harissa Chicken
• Chicken with White Wine Sauce
• Chicken Marsala
• Instant Pot Chicken and Gravy
• Pretzel Crusted Chicken with Cheddar-Mustard Sauce

Did you make this French Onion Chicken recipe?

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This post was originally published in 2020. It was updated in 2022 to add new information. The recipe remains the same. Enjoy!