Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep

This Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep features juicy seasoned chicken thighs simmered in a rich sun-dried tomato sauce, served with your fave rice or pasta! Make-ahead and freezer-friendly, or perfect for a weeknight dinner!

Here’s a new desk lunch that’s guaranteed to impress your co-workers – this Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep 😍 It’s like you went out to lunch, but you didn’t have to go out at all. And it feels gooooood.

For max flavor, the chicken thighs are coated in a flour seasoning mixture before browning. The creamy wine-based sauce is full of onions, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and spinach. And it all simmers together for a meal prep like no other. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Where does Tuscan chicken come from originally?

Based on my research, Tuscan chicken dishes have their roots from the Tuscany region of Italy. The flavors of sun-dried tomatoes, olive oil, and the white wine-based sauce are all inspired by themes of Tuscan cuisine.

What I also found was that a dish called Tuscan Chicken was introduced at Olive Garden and then became incredibly popular in America. It feels like this has probably influenced our idea of what ‘Tuscan chicken’ actually is.

Either way, this meal prep dish is a delicious combination of both: a rich and creamy white wine based sauce full of sun-dried tomatoes, combined with some classic meal prep staples – chicken thighs and rice!

What are the ingredients in this Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep?

What I love about this recipe is all how all of these simple ingredients come together to taste like something I’d order in a restaurant – but it’s meal prep! I bet you’ve never meal prepped something as creamy and delicious as this!

Here’s a list of everything I used in this recipe and a little info about each, just in case you need it:

• uncooked rice of choice + cooking liquid – To keep it simple, we paired this Creamy Tuscan Chicken with white rice. I like to cook my rice with chicken broth in my Instant Pot so it’s super hands off while I’m making the rest of the meal. Feel free to swap with your favorite rice or pasta!
• all purpose flour – A small amount of flour paired with paprika and oregano acts as our coating and flavoring on the chicken. Super easy but adds a ton of flavor and locks in moisture.
• smoked paprika & dried oregano – This simple but delicious seasoning combo helps make the chicken super flavorful while not overpowering the cream sauce and veggies.
• boneless skinless chicken thighs – For this recipe, look for a package of 4 large chicken thighs. This weighed about 1.25 pounds for me. You can also use boneless skinless chicken breasts. Look for the same weight and cut thick breasts in half for even cooking.
• olive oil – You can use either olive oil or avocado oil, but olive oil lends the best taste for this type of Italian-inspired recipe.
• yellow onion & garlic – A must for the best tasting sauce! Measure that garlic with your heart!
• kosher salt & fresh ground black pepper – My go-to cooking basic ingredients. I always prefer fresh ground black pepper for the best taste!
• tomato paste – Here’s my best tomato paste tip: look for the kind sold in a tube with a lid (the tube might be packaged in a box) instead of the kind in the can. This way, no tomato paste is wasted since you can put the lid back on and easily store the rest for another recipe.
• sun-dried tomatoes – Look for the kind packed in oil, generally sold in a jar by the canned tomatoes. Be sure to drain the sun-dried tomatoes before roughly chopping and adding them to the pot.
• dry white wine – For ultimate Tuscan chicken fancy restaurant vibes, dry white wine is the base of the sauce! I used sauvignon blanc. Check with Martha if you need help choosing a wine for cooking!
• heavy cream – This, of course, is what makes the sauce creamy and rich. You’re welcome to use either heavy cream or half and half. I also love plain Nutpods for a dairy-free cream option.
• baby spinach – Some fresh spinach leaves stirred into the sauce is a signature part of Tuscan chicken. Feel free to chop them up a bit if you don’t like the huge leaves!
• lemon – A fresh burst of lemon added right at the end of cooking gives the whole dish a bright flavor that brings it all together.

How do you make this Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep?

For this recipe, you’ll definitely want all your ingredients prepared and measured out ahead of time. Choose your grain and cooking method as well (I use my Instant Pot to cook rice).

Start by coating the chicken thighs in the seasoned flour mixture. I like to use a plate for staging the chicken after coating. I’ll also use it later after browning the chicken.

Heat the oil and then brown the chicken thighs on both sides. They should not be cooked through at this point – that will happen later when they simmer in the sauce. Set the browned chicken aside while you move on to the veggies and sauce.

Cook the onions in the leftover oil from the chicken. Add the garlic later and cook for a minute. Follow this with the tomato paste, and stir until the onions and garlic are coated. The bottom of the pan should start to brown as well.

Next, add the sun-dried tomatoes and then the white wine. Deglaze the bottom of the pot by adding a small amount of wine at first then scraping the brown bits from the pan with a wooden spoon. They should lift off easily as the wine quickly heats and steams.

Add the rest of the wine and season the sauce with salt and pepper. Return the chicken back to the pan and let everything simmer with the lid on for about 15 minutes.

The sauce will thicken slightly and the chicken will fully cook during this time. You can also use this time to cook the rice if not already done. I like to use my Instant Pot to cook the rice so it’s totally hands off while I make the rest of the meal.

Once the chicken is cooked, finish the sauce by adding the spinach and cream. If you need to remove the chicken thighs to make stirring easier, feel free to do that briefly, but it’s not required. Continue to cook until the spinach has wilted, about 4-5 more minutes.

Complete the dish by squeezing some fresh lemon juice over the top for a bright burst of flavor. You can serve it for dinner with your rice or pasta. Or, divide the chicken, sauce and rice into 4 meal prep containers and enjoy during the week.

Can I use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs?

Yes, feel free to make the swap if you prefer chicken breasts. The recipe calls for 4 large chicken thighs which is around 1.25 pounds of chicken thighs. If you plan to swap for chicken breasts, look for about the same weight of breasts.

This will probably come as two large chicken breasts – slice them in half so they cook at the same rate as the thighs would have. Otherwise, follow the recipe exactly!

Can I use a dairy free option instead of heavy cream?

Yes, if you need to swap the cream for a dairy-free option, I prefer plain Nutpods.

Be careful, some dairy-free ‘cream’ brands are too sweet for savory cooking. Plain Nutpods are the only dairy-free sub I’ve found that work exactly the same as cream in cooking recipes such as this one.

Best tips for making this Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep:

Here are my best tips for making this Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep:

• Don’t overcook the chicken. As with all dishes you intend to reheat, it’s important not to overcook the chicken so it doesn’t turn rubbery later when you heat it up again.
• Use a wooden spoon. In my experience, a wooden spoon or utensil is the best tool for scraping the brown bits off the bottom of the pan in recipes like this. More brown bits in the sauce = more flavor!
• Add more liquid if you want more sauce. I would recommend adding extra about 1/2 cup of chicken broth if you want a little more sauce with each portion.

What should you serve with this dish?

This dish includes chicken thighs in a creamy veggie sauce with your favorite grain on the side, so it can definitely be served for meal prep by itself.

However, if serving immediately, it would also go really well with a small dressed salad, some roasted broccoli, garlic bread, or other simple side.

How do you meal prep this recipe?

This recipe was developed specifically for meal prep and makes delicious leftovers for lunch or dinner. There are also a couple different ways to do some prep and save time later if that’s your thing. Here are some options:

1. Ingredient prep: If you’re doing a mini prep session to help your dinner recipes go faster during the week, you can save yourself a few minutes by chopping up the onion and garlic ahead of time, as well as by measuring out your spices and flour for coating the chicken.
2. Prep for the week: Make the recipe as written, then portion the ingredients evenly into four meal prep containers and enjoy throughout the week.
3. Make & freeze: Cook the recipe as written, then portion into four individual servings using airtight containers or 2-cup Souper Cubes. Be sure to label and enjoy within 3 months for best quality. *This recipe was specifically tested after freezing/thawing and it worked well!*
4. Enjoy now & later: Prepare the recipe as written. Eat some for lunch or dinner right now, then save the rest in an airtight container and enjoy in the next 4 days. This is what I do most often!

Where do you get those containers?

It’s so important to have dependable containers for your meal prepped meals (see ALL my recommendations here!). Airtight, glass, freezer safe – those are some of my requirements.

For this meal, I used my 2 Compartment Glass Meal Prep Containers (affiliate link!) made by Prep Naturals. I got them on Amazon. These are my favorite containers for meal prep rice bowl style meals like this.

How to store Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep:

Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer.

How to freeze Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep:

You can freeze these meals in freezer safe containers for up to 3 months for best quality. Remove from the freezer the night before you plan to enjoy it and then reheat normally.

Another option is to freeze portions in 2-Cup Souper Cubes Trays (affiliate link!) and then transfer to freezer safe storage bags once frozen. For more helpful info on this method, check out this article from Meal Plan Addict all about how to use Souper Cubes for single serving freezer meals.

How to reheat Creamy Tuscan Chicken Meal Prep:

Drizzle 1-2 tablespoons of water over the rice if contained separately from the chicken and sauce to help create steam. Loosely cover the meal with the lid and microwave on High for 90 seconds, stirring and then continuing to heat in 30 second increments until it’s hot and steamy all the way through.

This meal would also work well reheated in a HotLogic Mini Portable Oven – see my full review here!

Recipe developed by Rachel Phipps.