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Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussels Sprouts

Name: Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussels Sprouts
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 1 pound bacon (diced); 1 pound Brussels sprouts (trimmed and quartered); Splash of water; 1 5.2-ounce block Boursin cheese; Splash of heavy cream (if needed); ½ pound rotisserie chicken (diced)

This creamy one-pan dinner turns browned Brussels sprouts, crispy bacon, chopped rotisserie chicken, and soft garlic-and-herb cheese into the kind of meal that feels cozy without being complicated. The sprouts cook right in the bacon fat, a quick steam keeps them tender, and a splash of cream brings the whole skillet together when it needs it.

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Matthew Bounds, creator of Your Barefoot Neighbor, holds a skillet with cooked Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussel Sprouts in his kitchen.

Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussels Sprouts

Some skillet dinners are built for nights when I have a plan. This one is for nights when I have Brussels sprouts, some cooked chicken in the fridge, and absolutely no interest in making a sink full of dishes. Cheesy bacon chicken and Brussels sprouts is rich, savory, creamy, and simple enough to pull together without turning dinner into a whole production.

What I love about this pan is that every ingredient earns its spot. The bacon gives you the crispy bits everybody wants, but it also gives you the fat that cooks the Brussels sprouts. The sprouts bring that browned, almost nutty flavor when you let the cut sides sit against the pan. Then the soft cheese melts into everything and turns all that goodness into a creamy sauce. Add chopped rotisserie chicken and suddenly those Brussels sprouts are not a side dish anymore. Dinner is handled.

Let the Bacon Do the Heavy Lifting

I start the bacon in a cold pan because I want that fat to render out as the pan heats. You end up with crisp bacon to stir back in later, plus a skillet full of flavor for the sprouts. That is doing two jobs with one ingredient, and I appreciate that kind of efficiency.

Once the bacon is crisp, it comes out, but the grease stays.Do not clean the pan. Do not get nervous about it. That is exactly where the next layer of flavor is coming from.

Give the Brussels Sprouts Some Color

The best part of a Brussels sprout is that deep brown, caramelized side. If your sprouts are big, quarter them. If they are smaller, cutting them in half is plenty. Either way, give them enough room in the skillet that the cut sides can actually touch the hot surface.

You can arrange every single one perfectly if that brings you joy. Do whatever you like. They are going to taste good either way. The important part is letting them sit long enough to pick up some real color before you start stirring them around.

After they have browned, a little splash of water and a lid finish the job. That quick steam softens the centers without taking away all the texture. I like mine with a little bite left in them, but this is your dinner. Cook them until they are where you want them.

Make it Creamy, then Make it Dinner

Once the sprouts are tender, in goes a block of soft cheese. Garlic-and-herb is an easy choice, but the video makes the point that you can use a soft cheese you like. Goat cheese would work here too if that is more your speed. Stir the crispy bacon back in and let all of that melt together.

If the sauce feels too thick, a splash of heavy cream loosens it right up. No need to turn this into a measuring-cup situation. Add a little, stir, and see what you think.

The rotisserie chicken is the shortcut that turns the whole skillet into a meal. It is already cooked, already chopped, and ready to soak up that creamy sauce. Feeding hungry people matters more than proving you made every single part from scratch, so use the shortcut and enjoy your evening.

Serve it Straight from the Pan

This is the kind of dinner I am perfectly happy eating right out of the skillet. You have smoky bacon, browned Brussels sprouts, creamy cheese, and tender chicken all in one bite. There is not much else it needs.

If easy, cozy dinners like this are your kind of cooking, join my weekly newsletter, and we will keep finding simple ways to get something good on the table without making life harder than it needs to be.

Serves people

Ingredients

1 pound bacon diced
1 pound Brussels sprouts trimmed and quartered
Splash of water
1 5.2-ounce block Boursin cheese
Splash of heavy cream if needed
½ pound rotisserie chicken diced

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Equipment

1 Large deep skillet or braiser with a lid

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Ingredients for Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussel Sprouts sit on the kitchen counter.

Halved Brussel sprouts sit in a bowl for Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussels Sprouts cooked by Your Barefoot Neighbor Matthew Bounds.

Sliced bacon sits in a bowl before it's added to the skillet to cook for Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussels Sprouts cooked by Your Barefoot Neighbor Matthew Bounds.

Bacon is cooked in a skillet for Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussels Sprouts cooked by Your Barefoot Neighbor Matthew Bounds.

Bacon drains after being cooked for Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Brussels Sprouts cooked by Your Barefoot Neighbor Matthew Bounds.

Instructions

Add the diced bacon to a cold large skillet. Set the skillet over medium-high heat and cook until the bacon is browned and crisp, letting the fat render into the pan.
Use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Leave the rendered bacon fat in the skillet, then reduce the heat to medium.
Add the Brussels sprouts in a single layer, placing as many cut sides down as you can. Let them cook for a few minutes so the cut sides can brown and caramelize. Stir once they have developed good color.
Add a splash of water and cover the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let the sprouts steam, stirring occasionally, until they reach the texture you like. Matthew leaves a little bite in his.
Uncover the skillet and add the soft cheese. Stir until it melts into the sprouts, then return the crispy bacon to the pan and mix well.
If the cheese mixture feels too thick, add a small splash of heavy cream and stir to loosen it.
Add the chopped rotisserie chicken and stir until everything is evenly coated and the chicken is heated through. Add another small splash of cream if needed, then serve hot.

Notes

Quarter larger Brussels sprouts so they cook evenly; smaller sprouts can simply be halved.
Garlic-and-herb soft cheese works well here, but Matthew notes that another soft cheese you like can work too. Goat cheese is one option he specifically mentions.
The heavy cream is only there to loosen the cheese sauce if it feels too thick, so add it a little at a time.
The rotisserie chicken is already cooked. Add it near the end and heat it through rather than cooking it from raw.

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