How to Cook One-Pan Caprese Baked Chicken for a Simple Dinner

What’s brilliant about this dish is how roasting just concentrates the innate sweetness of these tomatoes and sends them over the top, even when they’re flavourless. You’ll get tender, juicy chicken in just 30 minutes, wrapped in melty mozzarella and nestled in sweet, jammy tomatoes. I do recommend serving it with couscous, pasta, roasted potatoes, or a loaf of bread to mop up literally every drop of the amazing sauce.

Why You’ll Love It

• This one-pan dinner is super fresh. Yet, it is comforting without ever being heavy.
• It keeps everything to an absolute minimum. This recipe requires just one 9 x 13 casserole dish, fewer than ten ingredients, and cooks in less than 30 minutes.

Key Ingredients in One-Pan Caprese Baked Chicken

• Boneless skinless chicken breasts: I use medium-sized chicken breasts; four pieces will be about two pounds. This lean protein is fairly mild, so the tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, and balsamic are the stars here.
• Grape or cherry tomatoes: Either of these work well, so use either of these, based on what you have on hand and what looks best to you. You will want to use one pint, or about 10 ounces.
• There are loads of amazing bottled balsamic glazes you can buy in stores. If you have some time to kill and feel like undertaking a tiny project, you can make your own balsamic glaze.
• Fresh mozzarella cheese: There are many varieties of mozzarella, but fresh is what you want for any caprese.

How to Make One-Pan Caprese Baked Chicken

1. Pound the chicken: Place the chicken in a large zip-top plastic bag and pound each breast one at a time to 1/2-inch thickness. If you don’t have a meat mallet, a rolling pin will do. The even thickness ensures all components will cook at the same rate.
2. Brush with balsamic mixture: using the balsamic glaze and olive oil, brush each piece of chicken on the baking dish, then arrange in an even layer.
3. Roast the tomatoes and chicken: roast the chicken until it reaches the thickest part to be well cooked. The tomatoes will be also split and jam-packed.
4. Melt the cheese: Broil the baking dish until the cheese is melted. This will only take a minute or two so keep an eye on things.
5. Serve with garnish: Drizzle the chicken with a little extra balsamic glaze, and top with chopped fresh basil.

Helpful Swaps

• An equal amount of low-moisture mozzarella cheese can be used instead of fresh.
• Boneless, skinless chicken thighs also work beautifully. You’ll want to use two pounds-six to eight pieces total. You won’t have to pound the thighs and can cook them for the same amount of time using the same methods.

Dinner Therapist is a column that helps you solve your dilemmas about the most important — and, yes, often most detested — meal of the day.
It’s a chore to fix dinner every evening. I offer practical, and hopefully humorous, suggestions to make dinner easier and more enjoyable. Continue reading for the whole list of recipes. Ever had one of those nights where you just didn’t know what to do about dinner? We’d love to hear about it! Take this quick survey for a chance to be included in a future column. Preheat the oven to 425℉ with a rack in the middle.

Ingredients

• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes (about 10 ounces)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic glaze, plus more for serving if desired
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
• 4 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds total)
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 small bunch fresh basil

Instructions

1. 3 cloves of garlic, minced, into a broiler-safe 9×13-inch baking dish go along with 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, 3 tbsp. olive oil, 2 tbsp balsamic glaze, and ½ tsp kosher salt. Mix well.
2. Pound 4 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts: Place one at a time in a large resealable plastic bag and pound to an even 1/2-inch thickness. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and 1 teaspoon kosher salt.
3. Add the chicken to the baking dish, one piece at a time, and turn to coat with the balsamic mixture. Push the tomatoes to the sides of the baking dish and place the chicken in a single layer in the centre.
4. Roast 20 to 25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest section reads at least 165°F. Meanwhile thinly slice 4 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese.
5. Pick the leaves from 1/4 small bunch of fresh basil and thinly slice them until you have 2 tbs.
   Turn off oven and remove chicken. Heat broiler. Scatter the tomatoes over the top of the chicken.
6. Lay the mozzarella out in a single layer over the chicken and tomatoes. Broil for 1 to 2 minutes, or until cheese is melts.
7. Drizzle with additional balsamic glaze if desired and top with basil.

FAQs