This is an excellent dish that I'm about to go through really quick step by step. I won't be giving out proportions because I guarantee you most people don't follow the recipe down to the letter. I'll list out some substitutes, but honestly, you can do with most things in your fridge and if you've got rudimentary knowledge, you'll still make something excellent.

Ingredients:
A shallot/Half an onion (preferably green)
3-4 cloves of garlic/garlic powder
Mushrooms
A dash of white wine/chicken stock/water
Most herbs will do (Basil/Oregano/Italian Herb mix)
Chicken (Breasts, thighs, little niblets - they all work)
Cream (around 200ml will work, but 300ml would be better if you're cooking a large portion)

1) Marinade the chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and whatever herbs you got around the house

If you're lazy, you can skip this step. I'm not joking. Most of the flavours we're adding here also exists in the sauce, but doing this intensifies the flavour to wonderful heights.

But please, at least salt and pepper the chicken before step 2. You can do this, right?

2) Sear your chicken over high heat

For big chicken thighs, I'd recommend 6-7 minutes per side to get a beautiful char and then we'll finish it off later in the pan.

Then, put the chicken to the side to rest (and absorb all those wonderful juices).

3) Dice up (mince if you can) onions and garlic

If you've got shallots, use shallots. If you don't, use onions! I used onions because man, who the hell has shallots in their house when onions are more general purpose (and most importantly, CHEAPER). YouTubers will throw out a lot of upgrades to ingredients, but you don't need to follow it to the letter. Face it, we're home cooking!

I will note this though: for an excellent sauce, I highly recommend mincing the onions as small as possible. Once you cook it enough, it dissolves wonderfully into the sauce. If you've got a grater, grate the garlic too. BUT IF YOU'RE LAZY, just chop em, or even better, just toss in some garlic powder. Again, we're HOME COOKING. Use what you have, and don't be afraid to take shortcuts.

4) Slice the mushrooms

Yeah, you've got this. Watch your fingers.

5) Cook the aromatics and mushrooms

Heat the pan (medium-high heat), add oil, you know the drill. Throw in the onions, cook out that raw flavour that every YouTube video tells you to do, just until they turn translucent. Then chuck in your mushrooms and sweat out the moisture so they develop that intense mushroom flavour.

I highly recommend you add salt at the stage you sweat the mushrooms.

Once the mushrooms are cooked down, deglaze the pan with a dash of white wine or chicken stock. (I use white wine) If you don't have either, a dash of vinegar with a pinch of sugar will do well. If you don't have that either, mate, use water. It'll be fine, trust me.

However, I'm going to recommend another potential substitute: soy sauce.

The point is to add some acidity to the dish. If you add soy sauce at this stage, you absolutely do NOT add salt earlier, and I would definitely cut down on the amount of salt used in the marinade. Adding soy sauce will also make your cream sauce a bit browner at the end step, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

6) Swap to low heat, add cream, and reduce for six minutes

Heavy cream works better, but guess what? I used regular cream. So I reduced it for eight minutes (instead of six) on low heat.

You REALLY want to use low heat, because high heat will break the cream and the fat will separate. (you'll know when the fat droplets separate and float on top of the sauce - that's when your cream is broken) You can fix broken cream if it's not too bad by adding cold water and whisking it, but try to avoid this step. Use low heat and put it on a simmer.

Make sure you're stirring.

7) Add some parmigiano reggiano if you're rich (man, what are these grocery store prices) or some cheaper cheese if you do

I'm not going to jump down your throat if you don't use the good stuff. A slice of parmesan costs $17 at the local grocers-what the fuck. Be careful with using other cheese as substitutes though, and definitely don't use american sliced cheese. You're going to alter the sauce consistency drastically, and I have found american sliced cheese burns really fast.

If you did add parmesan, this step will thicken the sauce nicely. Now is when you taste, taste, taste! Remember, the paremsan itself has salt in it, but add some salt or pepper until you're happy! Add some cayenne if you like it spicy!

Just remember, sauces are allowed to taste a little bit too salty, but don't go overboard. If you followed step one, the chicken is already slightly seasoned. (Excellent tip: you can cook pasta to this dish as well.)

You can also season with whatever herbs you've got at this step. That's right, I know you probably only have parsely or basil or oregano on the side. CHUCK IT IN. Coriander works too! If you have more chinese/indian spices, then hey, I'm going to let you do what you want. Sometimes, I like to throw in a bit of tumeric or garam masala - but I'd be running on the cautious side to begin with - maybe a few pinches to see if you like the taste!

8) Add the chicken back in on low heat for another 3 minutes

We're finishing up the chicken now. Throwing it back in the pan ensures it cooks all the way through. Again, we're still on low heat, and shake the pan a bit if you're worried the cream will separate.

9) Plate with whatever garnish you got

Here, I used some leftover spinach leaves and cut a bit of spring onion on top. Greens on the side act as an excellent palate cleanser in between bites, so if you've got a salad/cucumber/capsicum, you can chuck it on the side as well.

Home cooking is about what you've got.

My friend, you don't have to be perfect. I'm already proud of you.