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!
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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!
Can I use any kind of sweet white wine? Not sure if we have that brand.
Hi Ramona, I do think a white wine would still work in this recipe. It would just have a different flavor profile and lighter color in the sauce.
So delicious!! I could not find the particular brand of wine but I used just sweet white wine the recipe was still perfectly incredibly delicious! I also used Monterey Jack Cheese instead mozzarella. I want to make it again tomorrow and I just made it tonight lol
I’m glad the recipe was a success! Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers!
Loved this recipe so much!! It is definitely one of my favorite chicken recipes now! Can’t wait to make it again. The sauce is amazinggg. Thank you for always having the best recipes.
My pleasure Dana! I’m glad to hear how much you’re enjoying the recipes. Thanks for following and sharing your excellent review!
Hi Natasha,
What a great recipe! I followed it exactly, but …had no Madeira. Substituted it with Champagne left over from the New Year’s, added a tablespoon of honey. It was delicious! I will try it with Madeira next time : )
Hello Elena! I’m happy to hear the recipe was a success! Thanks for sharing your review with other readers!
I’ve had this at the Cheesecake Factory and homemade was even better! Thank you for teaching me how to make this! It’s going into the rotation at our house 😉 Keep up the great video instructions!
I’m so happy to hear that and thank you for the amazing feedback! 🙂
Hi Natasha,
Is there a difference in Madeira? I bought the same brand as yours but mine says American instead of California like yours. Looking at your video, it looks lighter than mine. Mine is more brown. And it was sweet.
Hi Olga, I wouldn’t worry too much about a slight difference in color as long as it says Madeira on it. Madeira is a sweet wine so it sounds like you got the right one 🙂 Our local liquor store only had this one option so I purchased it.
I was hoping I got the wrong kind cause it tasted too sweet and I added up to a cup of the heavy cream to make it taste better. Also the smell wasn’t pleasant when the wine/broth cooked. Smelled like urine, is that normal?
That is definitely not normal! Maybe google that type of wine. That’s really strange – are you sure the broth was fresh or maybe one of the ingredients used had gone bad? Typically cooking with Madeira or any wine has a very nice aroma to it.
The madeira didn’t smell at first but did end up smelling once the broth was cooking. So I wonder if it was the broth. I made it twice already and the first time I used beef broth and I did not like the after taste. It wasn’t the type you dip your bread into lol.
The 2nd time i used only half a cup of beef broth and then the rest chicken broth and the smell did remain but it tasted better but still a little too sweet. Sounds like the beef broth wasn’t good huh? I am willing to try the “California” madeira, if i can find it. I searched 2 liquior/wine stores and regular store and couldn’t find it.
I made this for dinner tonight, OMG it was wonderful.
I’m so glad you love it Vickie! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
This dish is DELISH!!! All I can say is that I purchased 3 more bottles of the Maderia wine so I can make it whenever I want to.
That’s great! I’m happy to hear you enjoy the recipe as much as I do. Thanks for sharing Mickey!
What could I use in replacement of the wine?
Hi Diana, if you are looking for a different wine, Marsala is a good option. If you are looking to make it wine-free, 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.
I tasted tawny porto right along side of Madeira and it was very close. Porto being a little less sweet!
Thanks Natasha!
Made a salad, and baked pears for a dessert, to go with the chicken. So delicious and yet simple. We be making this for guests next time
My pleasure George! I’m glad you enjoy the recipe. Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers!
You WILL need Bread to soak up the sauce or you WILL lick the plate clean 🙂
Easy Peasy and soo Tastee!
Great tip Laura! Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers! 🙂
Where can I purchase this wine for the recipe, and what exact kind is used for the recipe. Thank you.
Hi Nicole, in most areas, this wine is only sold in liquor stores. Some states may carry in grocery stores but that’s not the case in Idaho.
Amazing, thanks!
My pleasure Ryan!
What is the calorie count on this? I am counting calories.
Due to time constraints, I don’t typically include nutritional info, but check out this nutrition analyzer – you can plug in the ingredients from any recipe, select the serving size and it will give you nutritional info, calories, etc. I hope that is helpful to you Louise!
Anyway to cut the carbs 15 is way too many and I want this.
Hi Tammie, most of that is coming from the madeira wine since it is a sweeter wine. Maybe try a different wine that is less sweet, however it would change the flavor profile with a different wine. This recipe is very similar to our filet mignon recipe which used a less sweet wine but again, different flavor profile.
This is the most delicious meal! I promise not to regret asking this (I’m expecting it to be ridiculously high! 😂), but do you have a calorie count for this meal? Thanks so much!
You’re welcome Elle! I’m glad you love the recipe! Due to time constraints, I don’t typically include nutritional info, but check out this nutrition analyzer – you can plug in the ingredients from any recipe, select the serving size and it will give you nutritional info, calories, etc. I hope that is helpful to you!
What can I use instead of the wine?
Hi Jessica, most of the alcohol is cooked out in the pan so you just get the added flavor and the sauce ends up with an insignificant amount of alcohol which isn’t really a concern. My children loved this.
I loved this dish, but my husband thought the medeira was overwhelming. I do plan to do this again, but cut back on the madeira. Not a wine lover, I think he is more aware of their flavors in a recipie.
Hi Shirley, I do think that would still work well with less Madeira. I’m not sure if this helps, but the more you cook down the madeira, it does change the flavor as the alcohol is cooked out.
Hi Natasha,
How do you store wine after you open it? I always have the problem of buying a bottle for one recipe and then not using it for a while and it goes bad and from what I’ve read online it goes bad pretty quickly.
Hi Tanya, I close the bottle and keep it refrigerated and it lasts forever (or seems like forever, not literally forever – you know ;)).
Wow! I made this yesterday for dinner and my husband could not stop complimenting it. He had to keep pinching himself to make sure he was at home and not out to dinner at a fancy restaurant. We grow asparagus and this will definitely be made again! Thank you so much for an awesome recipe! =)
You’re welcome Lori! I’m glad you both love the recipe. Thanks for sharing your excellent review with other readers!
This was absolutely delicious!! We made it twice in one week!! It’s time consuming, but so easy and worth it! Thanks for the recipe!!
You’re welcome Francesca! I’m happy to hear how much you enjoy the recipe. Thanks for sharing your great review!
soo made this it was very good couldn’t find madeira so used marsala was still very good
I’m glad the recipe was a success Danny! Thanks for sharing your review!