Copycat Olive Garden Stuffed Chicken Marsala Recipe

The Olive Garden stuffed chicken Marsala meal consists of lightly floured and grilled chicken breasts that have been filled with a hearty mix of Italian cheeses and topped with savory mushroom and Marsala wine sauce. Now, who wouldn't want to have access to that at home?

Stuffed chicken Marsala is a legendary and much beloved Olive Garden entree, one that people used to crave and clamor for. Now that it's no longer on the menu, attaining stuffed chicken Marsala perfection is still totally possible from the comfort of your own home, says food blogger and photographer Ksenia Prints of At the Immigrant's Table.

First, plump chicken breasts are stuffed with a mixture of Italian cheeses, sundried tomatoes, and Italian seasoning. The chicken is then lightly floured and pan-fried. A rich mushroom and Marsala wine sauce is quickly prepared, into which the chicken breasts are laid out and covered with more sauce. A quick sojourn in the oven makes the sauce all nice and bubbly, and the chicken cooks to perfection. Served atop a bed of spaghetti pasta and sprinkled with parmesan cheese and chopped parsley, this copycat Olive Garden stuffed chicken Marsala is generous Italian fare in all its glory — and all in the comfort of your own home.

Olive Garden dishes can look complicated to make due to the long list of ingredients, but don't let that intimidate you. That's because the cooking and prep process is often incredibly easy. All the ingredients are needed to attain that perfect balance of Italian flavors, anyway, so it's worth the extra effort to gather everything up and do this dish right. Let's proceed with making this delicious pasta dish, shall we?

First, you will need 6 skinless, boneless chicken breasts. For coating the chicken, grab all-purpose flour, salt, and pepper. The stuffing consists of shredded Italian cheeses (a mix of mozzarella, provolone, and parmesan), sun-dried tomatoes, Italian seasoning, chili flakes, and sour cream.

Our Marsala sauce contains butter, fresh mushrooms, sweet Marsala wine (a type of fortified wine), chicken stock, and heavy cream. Finally, to complete the meal you'll want a package of spaghetti or other thin noodles, flat-leaf Italian parsley, and grated parmesan cheese.

Prior to mixing the filling and stuffing the chicken, remember to preheat the oven to 400 F. Then, roughly dice your sun-dried tomatoes and slice the mushrooms. Finally, cook the spaghetti or other pasta according to the package instructions (you can also do this while the chicken is baking at the end).

To make the stuffing, in a medium bowl, combine the cheeses, diced sun-dried tomatoes, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, chili flakes, and sour cream. Mix well to combine.

Place the chicken breasts side by side on a cutting board. Slice chicken breasts almost in half, creating a deep pocket in each chicken breast. Take care not to slice completely through the chicken, or else the stuffing will certainly leak out. The cut chicken should look like a butterfly when open, which is why this technique is often referred to as "butterflying." A similar technique known as "spatchcocking" is part of creating the ideal roasted chicken.

Place approximately 2 tablespoons of filling inside each chicken breast. Each chicken piece should be generously filled but not bursting, so add more or less as needed. Arrange the stuffed chicken breasts on a baking sheet and set them aside.

Now that our breasts have been stuffed, let's give them a quick sear in a pan. This helps keep the filling in place and will also help to lock in the flavors of your chicken.

First, transfer the flour to a large plate and mix it with ½ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Dredge stuffed chicken breasts in flour on both sides. Return the breaded chicken to the baking sheet.

Now, preheat a large Dutch oven or oven-safe pan to medium heat. Add chicken breasts to the pan and saute for 4 minutes per side. Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the pan and return to the baking sheet, setting it aside. You may have to fry in batches, but don't worry. This is ok as the breasts will shrink after they cook, and you'll be able to squeeze them all in one pan.

Using the same oven-safe pan, you can now cook your Marsala sauce. First, add the butter to the pan on medium heat. Add the sliced mushrooms and sauté until they have shrunk and browned around the edges, which will take about 5 minutes. Add wine, chicken stock, and cream to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes, until the whole sauce has slightly reduced.

Season the sauce with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Taste the sauce and add more or less salt and pepper, as needed.

The last stage in making Olive Garden stuffed chicken Marsala is cooking the chicken in the oven, which further thickens the sauce and fully cooks the chicken breasts. It also melts the cheeses in the stuffing completely, resulting in an ooey, gooey stuffed chicken.

Return fried chicken breasts to the pan and spoon the Marsala sauce over the chicken. Transfer the oven-safe pan to a preheated oven and bake at 400 F for 20 minutes, until the chicken has cooked through and the cheeses have melted. For safety's sake, cooked chicken and other poultry should reach an internal temperature of 165 F, so check that with a meat thermometer if you want to be sure.

If you haven't done so yet, this would be a good time to cook your spaghetti while your chicken is baking.

When your whole kitchen starts to smell like a dreamy mixture of cream, wine, mushrooms and a mix of Italian cheeses, it's a good sign that your copycat Olive Garden stuffed chicken Marsala is ready!

For best results, serve the chicken breasts immediately from the oven. This will make sure the cheese stays melted and bubbly. When serving, spoon the sauce over the stuffed chicken Marsala, top with additional grated parmesan cheese and parsley, and serve.

If you happen to have any spare chicken left after this meal, storage will be pretty easy and straightforward. Leftover stuffed chicken Marsala will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for 5 days.