Pesto Chicken Bake

This post may contain affiliate links. Read full disclosure.

This creamy basil pesto chicken bake is beautifully aromatic and deeply-delicious. The chicken is tender and juicy with incredible flavor. Assembled on stovetop then baked until done, it’s a 35-minute recipe.

📌 PIN PESTO CHICKEN BAKE

This easy recipes features lean chicken breasts baked in a creamy basil pesto with Kalamata olives, capers and cherry tomatoes. It’s a restaurant-quality meal made with simple ingredients that are easy to find at the market.

Serve pesto chicken bake as a satisfying weekday dinner. Place the pieces of chicken and sauce over thin pasta, mashed potatoes, zucchini noodles, or cauliflower rice. Or enjoy with a simple green salad.

For busy parents, getting a hot meal on the table can be a daily struggle. There’s not enough time in the day for spending hours in the kitchen cooking or baking. In my house, this quick chicken recipe is a real lifesaver.

This pesto chicken bake is a great make-ahead recipe. It can be assembled and baked 1 to 2 days in advance. Cool and refrigerate in an air-tight container. When ready to enjoy, reheat in the oven.

🛒 ingredients

• Chicken breasts or thighs, boneless/skinless
• Sea salt
• Black pepper, freshly-ground
• Virgin olive oil
• Heavy whipping cream
• Butter
• Garlic powder
• Basil pesto, homemade or store-bought
• Grated parmesan cheese
• Cherry tomatoes
• Pitted Kalamata olives
• Non-pareil capers
• Fresh basil leaves, for garnishing

👉🏻 ESSENTIAL KITCHEN TOOL FOR POULTRY

When cooking meat and poultry it’s essential to have an accurate instant-read thermometer. It helps make sure sure your meat and chicken are completely cooked through to avoid food-borne illness.

Bookmark this page from the USDA. It’s a temperature chart that provides helpful information on minimum temps for safe consumption of chicken, meat, and fish and more.

📖 pesto chicken BAKE recipe

Sear the Chicken

• STEP 1: Preheat oven to 400°F. Rinse chicken. Pat the pieces dry between paper towels. Season all sides with salt and pepper.
• STEP 2: In a large cast-iron skillet, warm olive oil over medium heat.
• STEP 3: Sear chicken 4 minutes on each side until golden brown, then remove pan from heat.
• STEP 4: While chicken is searing, warm cream and butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Do not allow liquid to boil.

Prep the Sauce & Bake

• STEP 5: Add a pinch of garlic powder and pinch of salt to the warm cream-and-butter mixture. Stir in the basil pesto.
• STEP 6: Grate parmesan cheese directly over the pan of creamy pesto. With a wooden spoon, stir briefly until cheese is melted.
• STEP 7: Add seared chicken back to the cast-iron skillet. Sprinkle with cherry tomatoes, Kalamata olives, and capers .
• STEP 8: Pour the creamy pesto sauce over the chicken. Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes, or until poultry is done. The internal temperature of chicken should be 165°F in the thickest part. Once out of the oven, garnish this dish with hand-torn basil leaves.

👩🏻‍🍳 EXPERT TIPS

• Best substitute for heavy cream: Half-and-half or evaporated milk.
• Try more delicious add-ins: Marinated artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes, or feta cheese.
• How to stretch this recipe so it feeds more people: Once the pesto chicken bake is done, transfer the pieces of chicken to a cutting board. Slice up the breasts. Return them to the pan to get covered in sauce. Divide the chicken between the number of diners. Serve over noodles.
• Ways to serve basil pesto chicken: Serve over a base of thin pasta, mashed potatoes, rice, cauliflower, or cooked zucchini noodles.

🥘 GET THIS DINNER ON THE TABLE FASTER!

Here are simple time-saving ways to get pesto chicken bake on the table faster. Less time cooking in the kitchen means more quality time you can spend with your family.

• Use thinner, flatter, chicken breasts: Thinner fillets cook quicker than thicker pieces. You can buy them from the butcher already flattened.
• Use pre-grated Parmesan cheese: Rather than grating Parmesan from a block, buy pre-grated parmesan from the deli.
• Multi-task in the kitchen: Before starting the recipe, read it through so you’re familiar with all the upcoming steps. It’ll help things move along faster. Then prep the base (whether pasta, potatoes, veggies, or rice) while the poultry is baking or assemble a simple salad.

🍽 MORE EASY DINNER RECIPES

If you enjoyed this savory pesto chicken bake, you’ll also appreciate these family favorites. Add them to your monthly meal plan.

• Chicken Piccata
• Air Fryer Orange Chicken
• Minestrone Soup
• Steak Fajitas
• Baked Ziti
• Swedish Meatballs
• P.F. Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps

RATE THIS RECIPE! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Flavor testers rated this the BEST pesto chicken bake. They fell in love with the tender juicy chicken in the flavorful, creamy pesto sauce. They greatly enjoyed the added flavor from the tomatoes, Kalamata olives and capers.

If you agree this recipe’s a keeper, give it a 5-star rating in the comments. Then be a recipe hero. Share it with friends. 📌 Pin it to Pinterest.

Print

PESTO CHICKEN > JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Have you added this pesto chicken bake to your recipe arsenal? What sides will you serve with this yummy entree? Join the conversation below!