You’ll love this healthy, gluten-free, juicy Italian baked chicken. Boneless skinless chicken breast prepared with a simple spice mixture, garlic, and olive oil, and finished with fresh parsley and basil!
Why This Recipe Works
- Mediterranean Diet Friendly: High-protein, low-fat, and heart-healthy.
- Fast & Convenient: Prep to table in under 30 minutes.
- Juicy Never Dry Chicken Every Time!
Juicy Italian Baked Chicken Breast
Boneless skinless chicken breast is a great source of lean protein, which is why it is a welcome part of the Mediterranean Diet and featured in countless recipes on this site. However, if not cooked properly they are also the least forgiving if all the chiken parts and prone to drying out. Don’t worry! I have you covered.
I use a few tricks to make sure my baked Italian chicken recipe comes out tender and juicy every time! It’s the same technique I use for my grilled chicken breasts, and it works every single time!
Important Tips for Juicy Baked Chicken Breast
Particularly for those who are new to cooking, one of the big questions is, “How do I bake chicken breasts without drying it out?” Here are a few tips that have worked well for me:
- Pound the chicken. I’m a big fan of pounding chicken breasts into thinner, more evenly flat pieces; it helps them cook faster and more evenly. And by pounding, you’re also tenderizing the chicken breast, which means you’ll end up with a juicier and tastier chicken dinner. If you don’t want to pound it you can also slice the breasts into thinner chicken cutlets.
- Avoid baking the chicken for too long. This is the thing about cooking chicken breast, one minute makes a difference! Always watch carefully, and test the chicken temperature using an instant-read thermometer. Once the chicken registers 165°F, it’s ready.
- Cover the chicken when baking? In this recipe, I have found covering the chicken breasts for the first 10 minutes was helpful in allowing steam to cook the chicken from the inside first. Then, once uncovered, it finishes cooking more quickly, which helps to avoid dry chicken breast.
- Let the chicken rest before serving or slicing through. This is a known rule, just like with a good steak, once the chicken hits that magic 165°F remove from heat and let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes so that the juices redistribute. And this time, I actually covered the chicken while it rested. I’ve found that to work even better.
How to Make Italian Baked Chicken
- Preheat oven to 425°F. First, pound chicken breasts into thinner, more even pieces. A clean way to do this is to place the chicken breast in a zip-top bag first, then pound on your cutting board.
- Season with salt and pepper, then combine with the remaining spices and fresh garlic. Add a generous drizzle of Early Harvest extra virgin olive oil and juice of about 1/2 lemon. Work it! Make sure the chicken is well coated with the spices etc.
- Prepare a lightly oiled baking dish like this one. Spread red onion slices on the bottom to make a bed for the chicken. Now Arrange chicken on top and throw in tomatoes (’cause Italian!)
- Cover and bake for 10 minutes, then uncover and finish baking until the chicken’s internal temperature reads 165°F, about 10 minutes more or so (depending on how thick your chicken pieces are). Don’t forget. Remove from heat and let chicken rest for 5 to 10 minutes (you can cover it during this time). Garnish with fresh parsley and basil.
How Long to Bake Chicken Breasts?
It’s important not to over-bake boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Baking time will vary, depending on the size of the chicken breast and your oven temperature. I prefer a high-heat oven at 425°F for this chicken recipe. In my experience, cooking them at a lower heat for 30 minutes will produce dry meat.
- To bake chicken breast at 425°F like in this recipe, it will take somewhere between 18 and 20 minutes.
- To bake at 400°F the chicken breast will cook in 22 to 26 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken breasts.
- To cook chicken breasts at 350°F this will take closer to 30 minutes.
Perfect Pairings
There are endless sides and salads I can recommend to serve with baked chicken breast, just make sure you start your sides first as this chicken recipe doesn’t take long to cook. Here are some favorites of mine:
- This easy Mediterranean olive oil pasta carries similar flavors.
- For something fresh, panzanella salad or my big easy Italian salad
- For a hot side dish, my Italian roasted vegetables are an obvious choice, but roasted fennel is an easy weeknight side, and you only have one vegetable to worry about cutting into quarters!
More Italian Chicken Recipes to Try
- Easy Stuffed Chicken Breast
- Chicken Putanesca
- Baked Sheet Pan Chicken Meatballs
- Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs
- Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients
- 2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tsp dry oregano
- 1 tsp fresh thyme
- 1 tsp Sweet paprika
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 medium red onion, halved and thinly sliced
- 5 to 6 Campari tomatoes, or small Roma tomatoes, halved
- Handful chopped fresh parsley for garnish
- Fresh basil leaves for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Pat chicken dry. Place a chicken breast in a large zip-top bag and zip the top (make sure to release any air in the bag first), then place it on your poultry cutting board. Using a meat mallet like this one, pound to flatten the chicken. Repeat the process with the remaining chicken breast pieces.
- Season the chicken with kosher salt and pepper on both sides and place in a large mixing bowl or dish. Add spices, minced garlic, extra virgin olive oil, and lemon juice. Combine to make sure the chicken is evenly coated with the spices and garlic.
- In a large lightly oiled baking dish or pan, spread the onion slices on the bottom. Arrange seasoned chicken on top, and add the tomatoes.
- Cover the baking dish tightly with foil and bake for 10 minutes covered, then uncover and bake for another 8 to 10 minutes or so. Watch carefully. This can take less or more time depending on the thickness of your chicken breasts. To be sure the chicken is cooked through, use an instant digital cooking thermometer. It should register 165 degrees F.
- Remove from the heat. Let the chicken breasts rest (cover with foil or another pan) for 5 to 10 minutes or so before serving. Uncover and garnish with fresh parsley and basil. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Important Cook’s Tips: Do not skip pounding the chicken (step #2). Pounding the chicken into thinner, and more evenly flat pieces helps it cook faster and more evenly. And by pounding the chicken breast, you’re also mechanically tenderizing it, which means you’ll end up with a juicer and tastier chicken dinner.
- Cook’s Tip: Let chicken rest before serving to allow juices to redistribute.
- Visit Our Shop to browse Mediterranean ingredients including extra virgin olive oils and spices.
Nutrition
Italian Recipes to Try Next!
Meat and Poultry
20-Minute Lemon Chicken Recipe
Meat and Poultry
Loobia Polo (Persian Beef and Green Bean Rice)
Meat and Poultry
French Onion Chicken
Meat and Poultry
Greek Chicken and Potatoes
Bundle and Save!
Four of our best-selling signature olive oils, perfect for everyday use.
Browse all Mediterranean recipes.
Visit Our Shop.
I substituted yellow onion for purple and added slivers of sweet red and yellow bell pepper to the bed of onions on the bottom. I added Kalamata olives along with the tomatoes on top and added Feta cheese after cooking, then served the chicken dish with a side of Cacio e Pepe. It’s a mixup of Mediterranean cuisines, but it was demolished by even my picky eater. Thank you so much for the recipe—it is fantastic as is plus makes a great foundation for exploring add-ins.
It sure does :). So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Sherry!
THANKS FOR THIS DELICIOUS RECIPE
Can I give this ten stars? Easy and so very, very good! My husband said he’d like to just keep eating bowl after bowl of the chicken, but he’d stop. My randomly picky boys liked it, too. This is a keeper! We served it with a pasta salad and cheesy garlic bread, and it was just about perfect. Fresh herbs from the garden were put to good use here. Thank you for something my whole family loves!
Delicious and easy to prepare! My husband sprinkled parmesan cheese over his serving. I cooked it and ate as described in your recipe. Husband said, “this recipe’s a keeper!” So I saved it to my “Tried and True” recipe board on Pinterest. Thanks for sharing!
Yay! Thanks, Cinn!
Thanks for the fantastic recipe!
I COUL NOT FIND CHICKEN STEW RECEPIES PLEASE HELP ME
Hi, Jean. You can click here for Suzy’s chicken stew recipe. Enjoy!
This was easy AND scrumptious! I used Whole Foods organic chicken breast cutlets and they worked very well without having to cut or tenderize them. They look beautiful once plated especially with the added touch of the Italian parsley and fresh basil leaves for garnish AND taste!
I followed Suzy’s suggestion and made the Italian Oven Roasted Vegetables to go with this ~ absolutely deeeeeelicious!
PS~You could make EITHER of these as the “main dish”…….but enjoyed them together so much💝
Suzy , this was outstanding! Typically I’m not a fan of chicken breast , I’m a thigh guy but this recipe with all the amazing seasonings made a not so exciting cut of meat very much so exciting. I’ve made many of your recipes and they never disappoint. We would love to visit the Mediterranean sometime but with your recipes we can have the cuisine here in the States and dream maybe one day . I love making your dishes because they always have amazing flavor. Thank you for sharing them with us .
Thank you so much, Greg! Your kind words mean a lot. So glad you’re enjoying the recipes here.
This was such an amazing dish. So full of flavor. I cut the chicken breast in half and used thighs as well since I was making dinner for a friend also. I’m always apprehensive when cooking for others, but this recipe nailed it.
Thank you so much Suzy for helping me prepare healthy meals that are budget friendly. Watching your videos, recently purchased your cookbook and following you on FB and Instagram I have rediscovered my joy of cooking again.
Cheers to the joy of cooking….much joy and hugs
Love hearing this! Thanks so much, Dena!
Hi
I followed the recipe to the T but I ended up having to cook the chicken for a lot longer.
I am wondering – whether your recipe oven temperature is for a standard or a convection (fan-forced oven)? Maybe this is the reason.
I had to increase temperature to 435F and cook for longer. I pre-heat the oven also.
Otherwise the flavors were great!
Hi, Katerina. This recipe was developed in a standard oven. Oven temps can vary, though, from brand-to-brand.
Unfortunately ovens can be 25 degrees over or under and pass inspection models, which can be a huge swing in baking. You might try an internal thermometer to see if yours is over under. I’m guessing under based on your cooking time good luck and know times it’s frustrating.
Tried this during our family and friend holiday get together this year and everyone loved it. Thank you very much. This one goes into my personal recipe binder.
It’s great to hear that the recipe was a hit with you and your family. Thanks, Manvendra!
It was delicious, thanks for the recipe.
Thank you for your good healthy
food and delicious,I can’t wait to have your first CD recipes,I promise to be the first one to buy
You’ve probably answered this before, if so, sorry to ask you to repeat.
Question: Why do you use “kcal” units (in the Nutrition section)? I don’t always pay attention, but today “kcal” caught my eye. I was thinking this delightful chicken recipe would be about 191 cal/serving. But when I google “kcal” I see that it equals 1,000 calories….so a serving of this dish is 1,910 calories. Isn’t “cal” (not “kcal” the usual standard for recipes? Is “kcal” more global? BTW–love your recipes. Best of luck with your new book.
This was so good! The chicken came out nice and tender, not overcooked. I did broil it for a few minutes after baking, though. Just because I thought it needed a little color. I also served it with some homemade crunchy, herby breadcrumbs tossed with Parmesan. Almost like a reverse chicken parm haha. But better because it’s healthier and not soggy!