This chicken cheesesteak is made just like a traditional Philly cheese steak, but with thinly sliced chicken breast instead of ribeye. With sliced bell peppers and onions, sweet mini cherry peppers, and your favorite sliced cheese, this griddle sandwich recipe is a winner!
If you’ve been following along on my YouTube channel, you know that we love a good Philly cheesesteak around here. But sometimes you want all that melted cheese, sautéed peppers and onions goodness without quite as much red meat. Enter the chicken cheesesteak – all the flavor of a traditional Philly, just with thinly sliced chicken breast instead of ribeye.
This “white meat” cheesesteak sandwich is made using the same griddle cooking techniques as its beef counterpart, so if you’re familiar with make regular Philly sandwiches, then you can definitely make this chicken version.
The best part? This whole chicken cheesesteak sandwich comes together in about 15 minutes on the griddle. Quick, easy, and packed with flavor!
*Update Note – We originally made this chicken cheesesteak recipe in April of 2023, and we whipped up a simple onion petal sauce to go with it. The sauce pairs perfectly with chicken, peppers, and onions. If you want to try a new sandwich spread on your chicken Philly, then you can find the onion petal sauce recipe in the recipe card at the end of this post.
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Ingredients for the Chicken Cheesesteak
The ingredient list for this chicken cheesesteak sandwich is pretty straightforward. Here’s what you’ll need:
- thinly sliced chicken breast – I buy the pre-sliced chicken breast to save time, but you can also slice your own if you prefer. Just place the chicken breasts in the freezer for about 30 minutes to firm up before slicing against the grain.
- bell peppers – I like using a combination of red and yellow bell peppers for color and flavor. *I often have the mini sweet peppers in my fridge, so I like to use those for cheesesteaks as well.
- sweet onion – Yellow or white onion works great too.
- jarred sweet hot peppers – These are a must for me! They add just the right amount of sweet heat. If you can’t find these, you can substitute banana peppers.
- sliced cheese – I used a combination of pepper jack and smoked gouda, but you can use whatever cheese you like. American, provolone, or white American are all great choices.
- hoagie rolls – About 8 inches long, if you can find them.
- cooking oil – I prefer avocado oil for high-heat cooking on the griddle.
- all-purpose seasoning – I used my Shake That seasoning blend, but you can substitute your favorite all-purpose seasoning, or just use salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
How to Make Chicken Cheesesteak on the Griddle
This chicken cheesesteak comes together super quickly on the griddle, so make sure all of your ingredients are prepped and ready to go before you start cooking. Here’s the step-by-step process:
Step 1: Prep all of your ingredients.
Start by prepping all of your sandwich ingredients while your griddle is heating up. Here’s what you need to do:
For the chicken – If you’re using whole chicken breasts, place them in the freezer for about 30 minutes to firm up. This makes slicing much easier. Then slice the chicken against the grain into thin strips. If the chicken breast is too large, cut it in half first, then slice.
Add the sliced chicken to a bowl with about 2 tablespoons of oil and your favorite seasoning. I used my own Shake That All-Purpose Seasoning, a great all-purpose blend that’s perfect for chicken and veggies.
For the vegetables – Slice your bell peppers and onions into thin strips. Remove the seeds from the sweet hot peppers and chop them up. You want all of your vegetables cut roughly the same size so they cook evenly.
For the cheese – If you’re using individually wrapped American cheese slices, go ahead and unwrap them now so they’re ready when you need them. Trust me on this – you won’t have time to fight with cheese wrappers once the cooking starts!
Step 2: Start cooking the peppers and onions.
When all of your ingredients are prepped and your griddle is hot (about 350-400 degrees F), start sautéing the sliced onions and bell peppers. The vegetables will take longer to cook than the chicken, so you’ll want to start with those first.
Add a little oil to the griddle and spread it around with your spatula. Then add your sliced bell peppers and onions to the griddle. Season the vegetables with your all-purpose seasoning (or salt and pepper), and sauté for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Step 3: Add the chicken to the griddle.
Here’s a pro tip – the chicken is cut so thin that it’s going to cook really fast. You don’t want to overcook it and end up with dry, rubbery chicken. So let those vegetables get a head start!
Once the vegetables have been cooking for a few minutes and are starting to soften, add your seasoned chicken to the griddle in a thin, even layer. The chicken should cook in about 3-4 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when there’s no more pink visible.
Step 4: Add the chicken and vegetables together, then top with cheese.
When the chicken is almost done cooking, add it to the sliced vegetables and sauté everything together an additional 1-2 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
Then add cheese slices to the chicken and veggie mixture, about 2 slices for each sandwich. Allow the cheese to start melting for about 1 minute, and then mix the cheese with the chicken cheesesteak mixture, helping to melt it further.
Use your spatula to portion out the mixture into individual “piles” that are about the same length as your hoagie rolls. Then top with 1-2 more slices of cheese, spaced out so that the cheese covers the cheesesteak mixture evenly.
Step 5: Steam the hoagie rolls on top of the chicken cheesesteak mixture, then serve.
As the cheese is melting, add some of the chopped sweet hot peppers on top of each pile. Then place a cut hoagie roll opened up and cut-side down directly on top of each pile. This creates a “dome” effect where the steam from the chicken and cheese works its way up into the bread, making it even more flavorful.
After about 60 seconds, use your griddle spatula to carefully transfer the chicken cheesesteak to the bun.
There is a bit of an art to transferring the meat, cheese, and all of that griddle grease-goodness to your sandwich bread. This is what works best for me after making almost a hundred cheesesteaks on the griddle:
- Place one hand on top of the bread, and use your other hand to get your griddle spatula underneath the cheesesteak ingredients.
- In one fluid motion, use the spatula to lift the chicken cheesesteak ingredients from the bottom (griddle-side) and use your other hand to turn the sandwich bread right-side up at the same time.
- Scrape the spatula upside down across the bread to transfer the cheesesteak mixture from the spatula to the bread.
*Chef’s Tip: You can also place a piece of deli paper (sandwich wrap-style paper) on top of the hoagie roll before transferring the mixture to the bread. This helps to protect your hand from hot ingredients that may fall out.
If your sandwiches are on the messy side (and they probably will be – that’s a good thing!), you can wrap them in deli paper or parchment paper before cutting them in half. This also helps to trap in steam and soften the bread – great if you’re using a French bread loaf instead of hoagie rolls.
And there you have it – a perfectly melty, flavor-packed chicken cheesesteak that’s ready to devour!
Just the right amount of spice, and you still get all of the flavors from the peppers, onions, cheese, and chicken. A truly delicious griddle chicken sandwich!
Recipe Tips
- Slice the chicken against the grain – This is important for tender chicken! You can actually see the grain running through the chicken breast if you look closely. Cutting against those lines makes each bite more tender.
- Season everything – Don’t skip seasoning the vegetables AND the chicken. That all-purpose seasoning (or salt, pepper, and garlic combo) really makes a difference in the final flavor, because chicken is naturally pretty bland.
- Work quickly – Griddle cooking happens fast, especially with thinly sliced chicken. Have everything prepped and ready to go so you’re not scrambling once the cooking starts.
- Use multiple cheeses – The combination of pepper jack and gouda adds great flavor complexity. The pepper jack brings a little heat, and the gouda adds a nice smoky, creamy element.
- Steam the buns – Placing the toasted buns directly on top of the hot chicken and cheese pile is a restaurant trick that creates the perfect soft, slightly steamed interior while keeping the outside crispy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Boneless, skinless chicken thighs would work great in this recipe. They’re a bit juicier and more forgiving than chicken breast, so they might actually be a better choice if you’re worried about overcooking the meat.
You can substitute with banana peppers or mild jalapeños for a bit of extra kick. The sweet hot peppers add a unique flavor, but the sandwich is still delicious without them. You could also sauté some extra onions or mushrooms instead.
Yes! You’ll just need to work in batches since you won’t have as much cooking surface area. Use a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat and follow the same steps.
Use your favorite melting cheese. American cheese melts the smoothest, which is why it’s the classic choice for cheesesteaks. But pepper jack, provolone, white American, and gouda all melt beautifully and add great flavor. I’d avoid harder cheeses like sharp cheddar or parmesan, as they don’t melt as well.
Chicken Cheesesteak Sandwich
Equipment
- deli sandwich paper optional
Ingredients
- 1¼ – 1½ lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts sliced into thin strips against the grain
- 3 tablespoons cooking oil of your choice *I prefer to use avocado oil.
- 3 tablespoons Shake That All-Purpose Seasoning or substitute salt, pepper, and garlic powder
- 1 medium red bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 medium yellow bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 medium sweet onion sliced thin
- 6-9 slices cheese of your choice *I used a mix of sliced gouda and pepper jack.
- 4-6 jarred mini sweet cherry peppers de-seeded and chopped, optional
- hoagie or twin French bread of your choice about 8" long for each sandwich
Instructions
- Heat your griddle (or skillet) on medium heat. *For griddle cooking, aim for a griddle temperature of about 350-400℉.
- Add the sliced raw chicken breast to a large bowl with 2 tablespoons cooking oil and about 2 tablespoons of all-purpose seasoning. Stir to combine and set aside.
- Add about 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to the griddle and spread it around with your spatula. Add the sliced bell peppers and onions to the oiled griddle. Season vegetables with all-purpose seasoning or salt and pepper, and sauté for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- While vegetables are cooking, cut the bread for sandwiches about ¾ of the way through so that you can open it up, similar to a sub sandwich. Set aside.
- When the vegetables are almost done cooking, add the sliced chicken breast to a clear area on the griddle, spreading the pieces out into a thin even layer. Sauté until almost cooked through, about 2-3 minutes depending on the griddle temperature. Then combine the chicken and vegetables together. Sauté the chicken and veggie mixture just until chicken is cooked through.
- On the griddle, portion out chicken and veggie mixture into three long "piles" about the same length of your sandwich rolls. Top each meat and vegetable portion with 2 slices of cheese. Add some of the chopped sweet cherry peppers on top, if using. Allow the cheese to melt for about 1 minute, then mix each pile together to incorporate the cheese slices.
- Add 1-2 additional slices of cheese on top of each pile. Then place a hoagie roll opened up and cut-side down directly on top of each chicken pile. Let steam for about 1 minute.
- Use a griddle spatula to carefully transfer the chicken cheesesteak mixture to the hoagie rolls. Wrap in deli paper if desired, then cut in half and serve immediately while hot.
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Notes
- Optional Onion Petal Sauce – We originally served our chicken cheesesteaks with an onion petal sauce. To make the sauce, mix these ingredients together in a medium bowl: 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 2 teaspoons prepared horseradish, 1 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon sriracha, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon sugar, fresh cracked black pepper.
This recipe is sooooo incredible, the onion pedal sauce is amazing! Your right, It is just as good or better than any cheesesteak hoagie that I have had the pleasure of making!
This chicken cheesesteak is mouth-watering! Possibly the best thing I’ve made on my griddle so far.
trying these next week. Love the chicken version better than steak.
I have been wanting to try more chicken on my Blackstone, and this looks like a good recipe to try and compare to our local (Cary, NC) favorite restaurant chicken “Philly”.
agreed! just made this and sooooo much better than using steak!
great recipe and video!!!
I did this and my wife loved me for it! Congrats on 100k!
Congratulations on reaching 100k on YouTube!! That’s amazing!
The chicken cheese “steak” sandwich is my favorite.
This looks great! GBO!
I make a version of a Chicken Philly cheese steak as well I call it my Kung Pow Chicken Cheesesteak. It’s so good. I can’t wait to try this one.
I can’t wait to try this recipe. My new griddle is coming soon and I’ll be trying this recipe for sure.