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Roasted Cream Cheese Chicken & Mushrooms

by:
December  1, 2021
5
3 Ratings
Photo by Rocky Luten, prop styling by Molly Fitzsimons, food styling by Anna Billingskog
  • Prep time 15 minutes
  • Cook time 25 minutes
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

If you can brine chicken in buttermilk, marinate it in yogurt, or slather it in mayo—why not rub it in cream cheese? I found myself pondering that question recently when remembering my mother-in-law Monica’s slow-cooker recipe for cream cheese turkey breast (the same Monica behind these Sour Cream & Chive Mashed Potatoes). The idea: rub a mix of garden-style cream cheese, soy sauce, and butter all over a turkey breast, place it in a slow cooker with a little water, then let it cook all day. Every time she served it, the turkey was seriously good—juicy and tender and full of flavor—but my attempts to re-create it at home have always fallen flat and resulted in dry, stringy meat.

But cream cheese-rubbed chicken? I couldn’t shake the idea from my head, so I decided to give Monica’s recipe a little refresh (and make it weeknight doable in the process) while keeping the original spirit intact. Here’s what I did: Swapped boneless, skinless chicken thighs for turkey, added miso to the cream cheese to boost its umami, used fresh herbs to add dimension (though dried ones work in a pinch), and oven-roasted the thighs over a bed of mushrooms in a baking dish. Not only does the fat and lactic acid in the cream cheese keep the chicken juicy and tender, it melts together with the rendered chicken fat and water that cooks off from the mushrooms to create a lovely built-in pan sauce. Better yet, chicken thighs are far more forgiving than chicken (or turkey) breasts since they’re not as lean, so there’s no need to worry about dry, rubbery meat. I like to serve the chicken and mushrooms over buttered noodles, rice, or crusty bread to sop up all of the golden sauce. Or if you’re looking for a real weeknight treat, go for the mashed potatoes! —EmilyC

Test Kitchen Notes

It's the end of the long workday (or the start of an extra-long week) and we're hungry. Like, "can't-think-straight" hungry. Luckily, Food52 contributor EmilyC wants to do all the thinking for us. In Dinner's Ready, her twice-a-month column on weeknight wonders, Emily shares simple, flavor-packed recipes that'll have a good meal on the table in no time. —The Editors

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Ingredients
  • 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (2¾ ounces) plain, full-fat cream cheese (either spread or bar form)
  • 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons miso (any variety)
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 2 teaspoons soy sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more
  • 1 pound mushrooms (any variety), coarsely chopped into equal-sized chunks
  • 1 3/4 to 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped herbs, such as chives, parsley, or dill
  • Buttered noodles, rice, or crusty bread, for serving
  • Flaky sea salt, for serving (optional)
Directions
  1. Heat the oven to 425°F. In a small bowl, stir the cream cheese, oil, miso, thyme, soy sauce, ½ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper until smooth and well combined. (Tip: If the cream cheese and miso are cold and hard to integrate, set the bowl in warm water, just high enough to come up the sides, until gently warmed.)
  2. Place the mushrooms in a 13-by-9-inch pan (or a similar sized baking dish). Toss with a few teaspoons of oil and 1 to 2 pinches of salt and pepper. Arrange in an even layer.
  3. Using your hands, rub the cream cheese mixture evenly over both sides of the chicken thighs, then arrange on top of the mushrooms in an even layer, without letting them overlap (they'll roast better this way).
  4. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part should register 165°F) and lightly browned around the edges and the mushrooms are tender. (Note that you’ll be left with a lightly creamy, golden pan sauce, which is good! Don’t spoon this off!) If you want extra browning, feel free to run the pan under the broiler for a minute or two.
  5. Garnish the chicken and mushrooms with the herbs, and season with flaky sea salt, to taste. Serve warm with the noodles, rice, or bread on the side to sop up the sauce.
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See what other Food52ers are saying.

Recipe by: EmilyC

I'm a home cook. I love salads. Two things you'll always find in my refrigerator are lemons and butter, and in my pantry good quality chocolate and the makings for chocolate chip cookies.

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3 Reviews

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Kay February 25, 2024
From the other comment about the pan sauce being watery I did brown the mushrooms for 7 minutes on the stove to release some water before baking. I also added add a small diced onion before baking. The combo of cream cheese, chicken juices, miso and dried thyme really worked. Fresh parley was the perfect garnish
Jessica February 10, 2022
Loved it ! but what's not to love with these ingredients ?! I used white miso paste. Followed all directions as written, including a couple minutes under the broiler. Garnished with fresh dill, served with egg noodles and a side of broccoli. I will definitely make this again. I might roast the mushrooms separately next time, mine gave off a ton of liquid, so the pan sauce was more like a pan water.
EmilyC February 10, 2022
Wonderful, so glad you tried and liked this, Jessica! Thanks so much for your note. Feel free to reduce the sauce in the oven next time if your mushrooms give off a lot of liquid (after removing the cooked chicken from the pan). That way you can keep the one-pan ease. ; )