Chicken with Brown Butter Corn and Bacon
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This skillet combines tender pan-fried chicken cutlets, crisp bacon, and sweet kernels of corn in a deliciously simple brown butter pan sauce for a dinner that looks complex, tastes divine, and is secretly pretty darn easy to make. It’s especially dreamy with late-summer corn off the cob but appealingly accessible all year long.
I love finding new combinations to make chicken skillets shine, since this staple deserves to be an exciting and flavorful part of your routine. This particular mix of tender-crisp corn kernels, salty bacon, nutty brown butter, and zippy fresh herbs lets ordinary chicken breasts punch way above their usual weight.
Why You’ll Love This Chicken with Corn and Bacon
- The flavors mix together so well, but also are easy to deconstruct for choosy kids
- Ready in one pan and about 30 minutes
- Simple method of pan-searing the chicken with tips to keep it nice and tender
- Easy enough for a weeknight, fancy enough for guests
This recipe is my adaptation of a New York Times Cooking gem that uses chicken thighs, seasons them a bit differently, and does not include bacon. The original idea is a wonderful one, and their version has more than 1,700 5-star ratings to prove it.
Ingredient Notes
Building Flavor, Block by Block
Begin by sizzling the bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Leave the rendered fat in the pan and transfer bacon to rest on a plate.
Pro Tip
We like our bacon nice and crisp, and find it most effective and efficient to finish off pan-fried bacon in the microwave for the perfect texture. We get it 90% of the way cooked in the pan, then transfer slices to a paper towel-lined plate and fold the paper towel back on top, so the bacon is sandwiched in between layers. Microwave on full power for about 1 minute. The bacon turns out perfectly crisp, with excess fat whisked away by the paper towel.
Tender chicken breasts start with your prep work. Begin by removing them from the fridge a few minutes before you start cooking. Thinly slice into cutlets, or start with a package labeled “thin-sliced” from the store. If they still look a bit uneven, use a mallet or the back of a heavy pan to pound them out into a consistent thickness.
Season each piece on both sides with garlic powder, thyme, salt, and pepper. Dredge lightly in flour—you can skip this step if you prefer gluten-free—and sear the chicken in the skillet. When cooked through, remove these to a plate, as well.
Now add butter to the pan. Swirl and let bubble until it develops deep brown flecks, then add the corn and splash of broth, wine, or water. Simmer until the corn is tender and the liquid visibly concentrated.
Season with more salt, pepper, and lime juice to taste, then assemble everything by adding the chicken and crumbled bacon back into the pan. Spoon a bit of the corn and light sauce over each piece of chicken and let it warm through.
Fresh herbs, green onions, and you’re ready to dig in!
Full disclosure: my kids could not conceive of eating a dish like this all put together. I cook each element and prepare their plates as I go, with a strip of bacon, pieces of chicken, and the brown butter corn all plated separately. One meal, but everyone is reasonably content.
Serving Suggestions
I think this dish goes especially well with green beans or a crisp-topped zucchini casserole, both of which conveniently also feature late summer produce.
Garlic bread or thick-cut pieces of sourdough or Dutch oven bread also hit the mark—unsurprisingly!
More Flavorful Chicken Recipes
- Brown Sugar Chicken with Pineapple Salsa
- Chicken Marinara Pasta
- Cajun Butter Chicken Breasts
- Creamy Cilantro Lime Chicken
Chicken with Brown Butter Corn and Bacon
Ingredients
- 2-3 strips bacon
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts sliced or pounded thin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 Tablespoons butter
- 1 cup corn kernels fresh or frozen
- 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth dry white wine, or water
- juice of 1/2 lime
- small handful fresh basil and/or thyme leaves
- green onions optional for serving
Instructions
- Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add bacon and cook until browned and crisp. Remove to a plate and crumble or chop into small pieces. Leave bacon fat in the pan.2-3 strips bacon
- While the bacon cooks, sprinkle the chicken breasts on both sides with garlic powder, thyme, and a generous sprinkle each of salt and pepper.4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, kosher salt and black pepper
- Place flour on a shallow plate. Dredge each piece of chicken through it to coat on both sides, shaking gently to remove excess flour.1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- After removing the bacon, add chicken to the skillet and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Add a small pat of the butter if the pan starts to look dry. Remove chicken and set aside with the bacon.
- Reduce heat to medium, then add the butter. Cook, swirling occasionally, until it forms a gentle foam, then subsides, leaving a nutty, toasty smell and brown flecks in the butter. Watch carefully that it does not start to burn.3 Tablespoons butter
- Once the butter is browned, quickly stir in the corn, followed by the broth, wine, or water. Cook for 5-8 minutes, until the corn is tender and the liquid is noticeably reduced. Stir in the lime juice, then sample and season with more salt, pepper, and lime to taste.1 cup corn kernels, 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth, juice of 1/2 lime
- Return chicken to the pan and sprinkle bacon on top. Cook for 2-3 minutes to meld the flavors and warm the chicken back through. Add fresh herbs and green onions, serve, and enjoy.small handful fresh basil and/or thyme leaves, green onions
Notes
- Prefer no Bacon?: Just leave it out and start by cooking the chicken in 1 Tbsp. butter + 1 Tbsp. olive oil instead. You can reduce the amount of butter you add in later, if you like.
- Prefer Gluten-Free?: Omit the dredging step, or use almond flour.
- Don’t Overcook: An instant-read thermometer is one of my most reached for kitchen tools; it completely eliminates guesswork. Remove chicken as soon as it hits 165°F inside and it will stay tender and juicy.
- Storage:Â Leftovers keep well in the fridge for 3-4 days. When warming it back up, I always recommend microwaving chicken at 50% power to avoid drying out.
