This French Onion Chicken Bake recipe has all the flavor of your favorite soup with the convenience of a high-protein skillet dinner. Onions are quickly caramelized on the stovetop before being combined with chicken and veggies and topped with melty cheese.
Low-carb, gluten-free, and made in under an hour with only 25 minutes of hands-on cooking, this French onion baked chicken is a winning recipe!
Quick and Easy French Onion Chicken Bake
We love French onion soup! However, we’ve never loved how labor-intensive the dish is or how long it takes (which is why we have a recipe for a slow cooker French onion soup).
But this French onion chicken bake? It’s like the best of both worlds; all that classic soup flavor in a heartier convenient weeknight dinner format. We also skipped the bread on this one, relying on perfectly cooked juicy chicken breasts to eat up all that caramelized onion flavor.
The cheese is optional here, but highly encouraged. Filling and flavorful, this is one recipe that never leaves you with any leftovers!
Ingredients Needed and Substitutions
*Scroll down to the recipe card for the full recipe and ingredient list!
- Butter: I recommend grass-fed butter for the best taste.
- Oil: I typically use avocado oil or olive oil.
- Aromatics: Yellow onions are the star of the show! Then, we add garlic and fresh thyme to enhance the sweet, savory flavor.
- Beef Stock: This is what creates a rich, saucy soup-like taste and texture. I recommend using low-sodium beef broth or stock to prevent the dish from tasting too salty.
- Dijon Mustard: A staple in any French onion recipe, the tanginess of Dijon works to really enhance the onions.
- Chicken: I use boneless skinless chicken breasts, but chicken cutlets or boneless skinless chicken thighs also work. Look for pieces that are roughly the same size to ensure even cooking!
- Cauliflower: I love to sneak in cauliflower florets for a boost of nutrients! However, you can omit them completely. Or, substitute halved baby potatoes for a heartier meal.
- Cheese: Mozzarella cheese or gruyere cheese will give you the classic savory, salty flavor you look for in French onion soup. However, provolone and Swiss cheese also taste great. Of course, you can also omit the cheese completely, but it’s my favorite part!
Where I Buy My Meat
- 100% Grass-Fed, Grass-Finished Beef
- Free-Range Organic Chicken
- Humanely Raised Pork
- Wild-Caught Seafood
Delivered to your door! The latest ButcherBox deal can be found right here!
How to Make This French Onion Chicken Bake
- Caramelize the onions: Heat the butter and oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Then, add the sliced onions, and cook undisturbed until they begin to sweat and are brown in places. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the salt, and continue to cook until the onions soften, stirring occasionally.
- Sauté: Add the garlic and thyme, and cook until fragrant. Then, pour in the beef stock and mustard, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. This is where all the best flavor comes from!
- Simmer: Continue to cook until the liquid reduces by half, and set half the onion mixture aside.
- Combine: Add the cauliflower to the skillet, mixing to combine it with the onions. Then, season the chicken with salt and pepper, and nestle it between the veggies. Sprinkle the remaining onions over the chicken.
- Bake: Transfer the skillet to a preheated oven, and bake until the chicken cooks through.
- Broil: Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top. Then, broil to melt the cheese and create a golden brown topping. Be careful not to burn!
- Serve: Remove the thyme sprigs from the pan, and enjoy your French onion chicken casserole while it’s warm!
Caramelized Onions
Traditionally, caramelized onions are cooked over a low flame for a long period of time. The water is slowly cooked out of the onions, and you are left with a sweet, almost jam-like consistency.
However, because we wanted this French onion bake to be a weeknight dinner that still has all that caramelized onion goodness we’re making “quick” caramelized onions. You still get all the incredible flavor just with a fraction of the time involved!
Storage
- Refrigerator: Transfer leftovers to an airtight container, and store them in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: Omit the cheese top. Then, transfer leftovers to a freezer-safe container, and freeze for 2-3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, add the cheese, and broil when you’re ready to serve.
- Reheat: Warm leftovers in the microwave or in a skillet over medium heat.
FAQs
The safe temperature for chicken to be cooked to is 165ºF. However, the chicken will continue to cook for a few minutes after it has been pulled out of the oven. So, it’s a safe bet to remove the chicken from the oven a few degrees before it hits that temperature.
The surest way to know if a chicken breast is cooked through is to use an instant-read thermometer. Insert it into the thickest part of the chicken breast, and wait about 3 seconds for it to read the degree. We pull our chicken breasts out at 160ºF and let the dish sit, lightly covered with tinfoil for 5-10 minutes so the chicken can rest.
Yes! If you don’t have an oven-safe skillet, simply prepare the ingredients on the stovetop. Then, transfer them to a 9×13 baking dish before broiling.
More Chicken Recipes To Try
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- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 5 medium onions sliced thin
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
- ½ cup beef stock
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 3 cups cauliflower florets see note
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella or gruyere cheese
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Preheat oven to 400ºF.
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Heat butter and oil over medium high heat in a large oven safe skillet (12 inches or more, see note). Add onions and cook undisturbed for 5 minutes, until onions start to sweat and have browned in places. Reduce heat to medium low, add salt and and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions have softened. Add garlic and thyme and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Add in beef stock and mustard and scrape up any browned bits and continue to cook until the liquid has reduced by about half, about 2 minutes.
1 tablespoon butter, 1 tablespoon oil, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, 5 medium onions, 3 garlic cloves, 3 sprigs fresh thyme, ½ cup beef stock, 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
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Set aside ½ cup of the onion mixture. Add the cauliflower to the skillet and mix together with the onions.
3 cups cauliflower florets
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Season the chicken with salt and pepper then nestle the chicken in the skillet. Divide the set aside onions on top of the chicken.
4 boneless
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Place in the preheated oven and bake until chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes.
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Preheat the broiler. Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the chicken and place under the broiler until the cheese is melty, about 1 minute.
1 cup shredded mozzarella or gruyere cheese
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Remove thyme sprigs and serve.
If you do not have a big enough oven safe skillet, you can bake this in a 9×13” oven safe dish.
Storage:
- Refrigerator: Transfer leftovers to an airtight container, and store them in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: Omit the cheese top. Then, transfer leftovers to a freezer-safe container, and freeze for 2-3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, add the cheese, and broil when you’re ready to serve.
- Reheat: Warm leftovers in the microwave or in a skillet over medium heat.
Serving: 1servingCalories: 171kcalCarbohydrates: 6gProtein: 9gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 30mgSodium: 614mgPotassium: 327mgFiber: 2gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 316IUVitamin C: 38mgCalcium: 171mgIron: 1mg