Carrabba’s Chicken Bryan Recipe
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Learn how to recreate this flavorful, and savory Italian-inspired Carrabba’s Chicken Bryan recipe at home.
This simple chicken dish starts with tender, grilled chicken breast, topped with creamy goat cheese, tangy sun-dried tomatoes, and a velvety lemon butter sauce that is mind blowingly delicious!
Check out these copycat recipes for even more delicious meal ideas!
I usually order the Shrimp Scampi topped Filet Mignon when we go to Carrabba’s, but sometimes you need to change things up a bit and go with chicken. This Chicken Bryan recipe is guaranteed to impress your family and dinner party guests!
If you love making restaurant chicken meals at home, you might also like this Alice Springs Chicken recipe (Outback copycat) from Dinner in 321.
What you’ll need
Seasoning Mixture
- Sea salt or Kosher salt
- Ground black pepper
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- A bit of cayenne pepper – just enough to add some flavor but not heat.
Lemon-Butter Sauce
- Cold butter – divided
- Diced yellow onion
- Minced garlic
- White wine
- Lemon juice
- Sun-dried tomatoes – packed in oil
Assemble
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts – 1 to 1.5 pounds
- Olive oil
- Creamy goat cheese
- Fresh basil
Be sure to check out the detailed printable recipe card below
Now that you know what is in it, how about we make it! I was originally planning to make this a dinner for two meal, but didn’t want to be stuck with half a package of goat cheese and almost full jar of sun-dried tomatoes. Making a meal for four just makes more sense, and you get leftovers!!
How to make Carrabba’s Copycat Chicken Bryan
How to butterfly chicken breasts
Place your chicken breast on a cutting mat/board.
Slice the chicken horizontally through the center of the thickest part of the breast.
Do not go all the way through, stop just before you slice the chicken in half. Unfold the chicken and place on a baking sheet.
Brush both sides of the chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle with the seasoning mixture.
Grill the chicken until golden brown and cooked through, 165° F. internal temperature on a meat thermometer stuck into the thickest part of the chicken. Approximately 5 to 8 minutes per side.
While the chicken is grilling, melt two tablespoons of butter in a large skillet. Add the onion and cook until softened. Add the garlic and cook for one additional minute.
Pour in the wine and lemon juice.
Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 10 minutes to reduce.
Go flip the chicken over while the sauce is reducing.
Add the butter 2 tablespoons at a time whisking to combine. You want the sauce to be emulsified/blended together.
Check on the chicken. When it is just about ready, place the goat cheese on top of each chicken breast so it can melt.
Stir the tomato strips into the sauce. Remove from heat and set aside.
To serve, place chicken breast on a plate and spoon the sauce over the top. Garnish with the fresh basil and serve immediately.
Carrabba’s Italian Grill serves their meals with capellini pasta with marinara tomato sauce, garlic mashed potatoes or steamed broccoli…so I decided to make mine look like the picture on their menu.
Is this an exact copycat Carrabba’s recipe?
No, it is not. I have no idea what is in their grill seasoning, but this is my go-to combination that I use on everything! My chicken breasts were ginormous, so the scale is a bit off.
My version contains more sun-dried tomatoes, because I like them. I also chose to slice my basil leaves, they tear them for the official images and chop them in the restaurant. Do what feels right to you, these are all just guidelines.
Why is it called Chicken Bryan?
Founder Johnny Carrabba dedicated this dish to his grandfather and named it after the town of Bryan, Texas – where the family first moved to from Sicily over one hundred years ago.
Recipe Note and Tips
- Cooking time for the chicken will depend on how thick your chicken is, how cold your chicken is when you put it on the grill, and how hot your grill is.
- If you do not want to use wine, substitute chicken stock.
- Not a fan of goat cheese? It happens. Substitute your choice of cheese.
- Sauces made with butter tend to break if you get them too hot, or sometimes when they start to cool. It may look different, but it will still taste delicious.
- Store leftover Chicken Bryan in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
More delicious chicken recipes
- Mediterranean Chicken
- Chinese Orange Chicken
- Creamy Mushroom Chicken
- Chicken Cordon Bleu
- Skillet Chicken Pot Pie
- Chicken Enchilada Pasta
Did you try this recipe? I’d love to see it!
Tag @cookingwithcurls on Instagram & Facebook and leave a ⭐️⭐⭐⭐⭐ review below!
Enjoy!!
Chicken Bryan Recipe
Equipment
- Grill
Ingredients
Seasoning Mixture
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 0.5 teaspoon garlic powder
- 0.5 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/16 teaspoon cayenne pepper it's just for background flavor, not heat.
Lemon-Butter Sauce
- 8 tablespoons cold butter cut into small pieces – divided
- 0.5 cup yellow onion finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 0.5 cup white wine
- .25 cup lemon juice
- 3 ounces oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes cut into strips (about 10 whole pieces)
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts butterflied – 1 to 1.5 pounds
- olive oil to brush on chicken
- 4 ounce goat cheese cut into 8 slices
- .25 cup fresh basil thinly sliced or chopped
Instructions
How to butterfly chicken breasts
- Place your chicken breast on a cutting mat/board.
- Slice the chicken horizontally through the center of the thickest part of the breast.
- Do not go all the way through, stop just before you slice the chicken in half. Unfold the chicken and place on a baking sheet.
- Brush both sides of the chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle with the seasoning mixture.
- Grill the chicken until cooked through, 165° F. on a meat thermometer stuck into the thickest part of the chicken. Approximately 5 to 8 minutes per side.
- While the chicken is grilling, melt two tablespoons of butter in a large skillet. Add the onion and cook until softened. Add the garlic and cook for one additional minute.
- Pour in the wine and lemon juice. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 10 minutes to reduce.
- Go flip the chicken over while the sauce is reducing.
- Add the butter 2 tablespoons (6 total) at a time whisking to combine. You want the sauce to be emulsified/blended together.
- Check on the chicken. When it is just about ready, place the goat cheese on top so it can melt.
- Stir the tomato strips into the sauce. Remove from heat and set aside.
- To serve, place chicken breast on a plate and spoon the sauce over the top. Garnish with the fresh basil and serve immediately.
Notes
- Cooking time for the chicken will depend on how thick your chicken is, how cold your chicken is when you put it on the grill, and how hot your grill is.
- If you do not want to use wine, substitute chicken stock.
- Not a fan of goat cheese? It happens. Substitute your choice of cheese.
- Sauces made with butter tend to break if you get them too hot, or sometimes when they start to cool. It may look different, but it will still taste delicious.
- Store leftover Chicken Bryan in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
