Juicy chicken and mushrooms in a madeira cream sauce under melty cheese and asparagus… all you need is mashed potatoes to go with it. This creamy Chicken Madeira is one of the most popular menu item at the Cheesecake Factory. It is popular for good reason! We love recreating our favorite restaurant copycat recipes like this one from Olive Garden!
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
The madeira cream sauce has incredible flavor. You will want to dip your bread into the pan before the night is over and get every last drop of it. This Chicken Madeira recipe tastes fancy and will impress your family, dinner guests or your special someone for a date night in! This is one of our favorite copycat recipes.
Everyone in our family loved this Chicken Madeira, even the baby! My Mom was particularly impressed (she was trained as a chef so naturally when Mom is impressed, I’m beaming!).
This made for a lovely and fancy dinner and there was nothing overly difficult about it. Now you can also enjoy homemade Chicken Madeira for a fraction of the price!
Watch How to Make Chicken Madeira Recipe:
We went to the Cheesecake Factory on our Anniversary for my husbands’ first (and my second) time ever and ordered their world famous Chicken Madeira. It was love at first bite and we just knew we had to recreate this dish at home.
We made a copycat Chicken Madeira, except I love the homemade version even better! And, when you make it at home, you can feed a family of 4 for the cost of 1 serving at the restaurant. This is why we love copycat recipes so much!
Ingredients for Easy Chicken Madeira Recipe:
These simple ingredients work together to make a memorable one-pan dinner. If the wine section of your grocery store does not have Madeira, check at the liquor and wine store – I purchased this bottle for $6. If you aren’t able to find Madeira wine, you can substitute with Marsala wine which is also a sweet wine although it will taste more like chicken marsala ;).
How to Make Copycat Chicken Madeira:
1. To blanch asparagus: Remove fibrous stems from asparagus by snapping them off (watch video above). To blanch asparagus, fill a medium pot with 6 cups water, bring to a boil and add 1 Tbsp salt. Add asparagus and boil uncovered until crisp tender and bright green (2-3 minutes then remove immediately from hot water and set aside).
2. Place a large heavy (oven-safe) pan over medium/high heat and melt in 2 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp oil. Add thickly sliced mushrooms and cook 5 minutes until soft. Stir in diced onion and cook 3 minutes. Add minced garlic cloves then season with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper and 2 Tbsp fresh parsley. Cook another 2 minutes then remove mixture to a plate and wipe skillet clean with wet paper towel.
3. Slice chicken breasts in half lengthwise and pound each cutlet between plastic wrap until no more than 1/4″ thick. Season chicken breasts all over with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Place same pan over medium/high heat and add 1 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp oil. When butter is finished foaming, add chicken breasts and saute 3 to 4 minutes per side or until golden brown and cooked through. Remove chicken from pan to the same plate as mushrooms.
4. In the same pan, add 1 1/2 cups Madeira and boil until reduced by half (5 minutes of vigorous boiling), scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze. Add 1 1/2 cups beef broth and boil until 2/3 cup liquid remains or about 1/4 of it’s original volume (10 min). Reduce heat to medium, add 1/2 cup cream and simmer until sauce thickens (2 min). Season sauce with salt and pepper to taste and turn off heat.
5. Return chicken to the pan, turning it to coat in the sauce. Top with mushrooms, asparagus and sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella cheese over the top. Broil 3-4 minutes or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven, garnish with fresh parsley.
Are you hungry yet? This dish always gets rave reviews at the dinner table and it’s so good paired with Mashed Potatoes. I hope it becomes a new favorite for your family.
Our Most Popular Chicken Recipes:
- Chicken Avocado Salad – our #1 most popular chicken recipe
- Spatchcock Chicken – the juiciest way to roast a whole chicken
- Garlic Butter Stuffed Chicken – you won’t believe what’s inside!
- Stuffed Chicken Parmesan – a classic chicken recipe just got better
Chicken Madeira Recipe (Cheesecake Factory Copycat)

Ingredients
- 1 lb Chicken Breasts (2 large)
- 1 lb asparagus, blanched*
- 3/4 tsp sea salt, divided, and black pepper to taste
- 3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, divided
- 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
- 16 oz button mushrooms, thickly sliced
- 1 small or 1/2 medium yellow onion, finely diced
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped, plus to garnish
- 1 1/2 cups Madeira Wine, sweet white wine*
- 1 1/2 cups low sodium beef stock or broth
- 1/2 cup Whipping Cream, heavy or regular
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
Instructions
- To blanch asparagus: Remove fibrous stems from asparagus by snapping them off. Fill a medium pot with 6 cups water, bring to a boil and add 1 Tbsp salt. Add asparagus and boil uncovered until crisp tender and bright green (2-3 minutes then remove from hot water and set aside).
- Place a large heavy (oven-safe) pan over medium/high heat and melt in 2 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp oil. Add sliced mushrooms and cook 5 min until soft. Stir in diced onion and cook 3 min. Add minced garlic cloves then season with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper and 2 Tbsp parsley. Cook another 2 min then remove mixture to a plate and wipe skillet clean with wet paper towel.
- Slice chicken breasts in half lengthwise and pound each cutlet between plastic wrap until no more than 1/4" thick. Season chicken all over with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Place same pan over medium/high heat and add 1 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp oil. When butter is finished foaming, add chicken breasts and sauté 3 to 4 min per side or until golden and cooked through. Remove chicken from pan to the same plate with mushrooms.
- In the same pan, add 1 1/2 cups Madeira and boil until reduced by half (5 minutes vigorous boiling), scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze. Add 1 1/2 cups beef broth and boil until 2/3 cup liquid remains or about 1/4 of it's original volume (10 min). Reduce heat to medium, add 1/2 cup cream and simmer until sauce thickens (2 min). Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Return chicken to the pan, turning it to coat in the sauce. Top with mushrooms, asparagus and sprinkle with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese over the top. Broil 3-4 minutes or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven, garnish with fresh parsley.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
This chicken madeira recipe is easy and so good – just the way it should be. And, it’s so smart to dine in, especially if you are feeding a crowd!
My husband and I celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary with this dish. 14 years feels just few by and we now have an 8 year old and 2 year old. WOAH!! I am so thankful that we are best friends after all these years and that we not only love, but really like each other – and we work side by side day after day. The longer I am married to my husband, the more I just want to be around him and with him. Our date nights are few and far between but they are a treat!
Q: What is your favorite celebration dish and restaurant? I’d love to hear about it in a comment below!
P.S. If you love one-pan chicken recipes, make sure to check out this reader favorite (EASY) pesto chicken!
I made this last weekend, it was so delicious. Thank you so much for the recipe. Wine, I found at local QFC store.
You’re welcome Valentina! I’m glad you enjoy the recipe. Thanks for sharing your review!
Sounds wonderful! Is there anything I can use instead of the wine?
Hi Bonnie, you could just use more broth but the flavor profile wouldn’t be quite the same. The madeira wine gives it a unique, sweet flavor profile.
This was outstanding. The Madeira sauce was so flavourful. I’ll be making this again.
I’m glad you love it Kris! Thanks for sharing!
Just made this tonight. Fantastic ! I wish I had a gallon of that sauce….wow.
Will be keeping this recipe on the front page.
I’m glad you love the recipe just as much as I do! Thanks for sharing your excellent review Scott!
oh this recipe looks so good and i can’t wait to try it.
but my husband prefers pork chops so i will substitute it for the chicken.
It’s super popular for good reason! Please let me know what you think!
Amazing! Would you serve it with anything else! Maybe like a fresh baguette?
That sounds like a great alternative to mashed potatoes!
Omg so delicious! I made it with a moscato since that’s what I had on hand and it was amazing! And low carb too!
Forgot to rate 5 *****!
AWESOME! 🙂
I’m glad you love the recipe Kimberly! Thanks for sharing your great review!
I made this tonight and my husband does not like mushrooms! He loved it! It was awesome! We have never eaten at the Cheesecake Factory so I have nothing to compare it to. I love to cook and this was excellent! Thanks!
You’re welcome Denise! I’m glad to hear how much you both enjoy the recipe. Thanks for sharing your fantastic review!
Just made this tonight. It was delicious!! I used a white table wine instead of the Madeira wine. The sauce was incredible and full of flavor. Will definitely be making this again!
I’m happy to hear how much you enjoy the recipe Laura! Thanks for sharing your great review!
Was nice but the sauce was a bit heavy
Hi Lawmak, normally the sauce has a pretty light feel to it with only 1/2 cup of cream, unless you cooked it down and made it thicker that way.
We just made the chicken Madeira dish- amazing!!! Love your recipes, love your energy and can’t wait to make the blueberry lemon cake! Looking forward to many, many more! Thank you and Happy New Year!
Hi Molly, thank you for the wonderful review and you are very welcome 😬. Happy New Year to you and your family!
Anxious to try this recipe! Wondering though, I would have thought to use chicken broth in a chicken dish, is beef just better for flavor?
Hi Tara, it would still work with chicken broth if you prefer that. The beef broth is more for color also when it is reduced down.
Thanks; made it last night and enjoyed it!
Awesome, I’m happy to hear that Tara! 🙂
Made this tonight ! ( had to sub and use marsala wine ) but it was incredible!!! Thanks for sharing !
My pleasure Laureen! I’m glad you love the recipe. Thanks for sharing!
Oh my ive just made this dish, it is delicious! The sauce is full of flavours. Will def make it again
I’m glad you love it Andrea! Thanks for sharing!
This recipe is so easy, and it turned out perfect!
I’m glad you enjoy it Kimberly! Thanks for sharing!
This is an excellent recipe! Thank you so much for sharing!
You’re welcome Lucille! I’m glad you love it!
Hi Natasha, I am going to make this tonight but I am missing 2 ingredients. I have white Stella rosa peach flavor wine at home and i have Chardonnay white wine. Can I use any one of them? Also, i have chicken broth instead of beef will that be ok?
Hi Mary, I honestly haven’t tried either of those so it would have to be an experiment. They would both give the dish a different flavor profile but I think the chardonnay would probably still taste great 🙂 I’d probably test that one first because it is a little more familiar to me and I have posted a handful of recipes using it :).
This is a family favorite for sure! I sub the Maderia for Marsala. Amazing, thank you Natasha!
You’re welcome Dawn! I’m glad to hear your family enjoys the recipe as much as I do! Thanks for sharing your great review!
I’ve made this a few times now, and I feel like the sauce is never thick enough. Can anyone give me some pointers on this? I love all of the recipes I’ve tried on here, thanks for sharing then!
Hi Nick, I would suggest cooking the sauce a few minutes longer before adding the chicken back to the pan for the sauce to thicken more.
This might seem weird as well but what if I wanted to substitute the mushrooms for something else or just remove them all together? Would that be a good idea?
I love the recipe except for the mushrooms. I’m allergic but loved everything else in the meal. What do you think?
Hi Nikolette, I haven’t tested it without mushrooms so I’m not sure how much it would affect the flavor. You could try omitting them and maybe using some chopped zucchini instead. I hope you love it even without the mushrooms! 🙂
I made this tonite..only change is substituting Marsala wine for the Madeira as I could not find the Madeira ..read afterwords that you can only find Madeira in liquor stores. We actually loved the sauce..don’t know if Madeira would be better! I also , as posted before..I did half asparagus and half green beans..to accommodate our tastes. I blanched both together in the same pan..and then drained in a colander and ran cold water over them and then continued while I continued the rest of the recipe
I’m happy to hear you enjoy the recipe Marge! Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers!