Caprese Chicken Skillet – Delicious pan seared chicken topped with mozzarella, tomatoes, basil and balsamic. This dinner has a gourmet flair and is ready in just 15 minutes!
Love easy dinner recipes? Try our family’s favorite Meatloaf recipe for comfort food with a modern taste! Pair it with some Instant Pot Potatoes for a quick and easy side.
Chicken Caprese
I took a look at my cookbook shelf the other day and I realized I have well over 200 cookbooks.
My latest addition to my cookbook collection comes from my sweet friend Mary who blogs at Barefeet in the Kitchen. I love her and her new cookbook, “The Weeknight Dinner Cookbook.”
I love cookbooks that have drool-worthy photos for EVERY recipe, and Mary’s cookbook does NOT disappoint!
But, I knew the first recipe I was going to try would be her Caprese Chicken Skillet recipe.
Friends, I knew this meal would be good but I was blown away by how wonderful the chicken tasted! The zing of balsamic, the juicy tomato and the tender chicken all tasted like something from a high end restaurant.
Do you want to know my favorite thing about today’s dinner recipe?
From start to finish it was ready in 15 minutes. No joke.
Ingredient Notes
Have you ever wondered what the “caprese” in chicken caprese means? It refers to the combination of mozzarella, basil and tomato that give this meal the bulk of its flavor.
You add these to the top of seared chicken breasts, along with balsamic vinegar and dried Italian herbs to turn an ordinary piece of chicken into a dinner that does everything but transport you to the Italian countryside.
Chicken thighs work well in this recipe too! Just make sure they are skinless and boneless.
PRO TIP: Make sure your chicken is pounded to the same thickness for even cooking.
Step by Step Instructions
STEP 1. Tenderize the chicken
Place your chicken breasts into a zip plastic bag, and pound them to about 1/4-1/2 inch thick using a meat tenderizer.
STEP 2. Sear
Warm a large skillet over medium high heat then add olive oil to the pan. Once the oil is warm, ddd the chicken in a single layer and sprinkle with half of the salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
Cook without touching for about two minutes (you’ll notice the edges of the chicken cook while the center appears pink). Flip the chicken over and sprinkle with the remaining salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
STEP 3. Add the tomato and cheese
Top each piece of chicken with cheese followed by tomato slices. Cover with a lid and cook an additional 3-4 minutes.
Check the chicken for doneness before serving. I use this meat thermometer to make sure the internal temperature is at least 165 F.
STEP 4. Serve
Serve chicken caprese with fresh basil (and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar if desired).
Tips and Tricks
- Cutlets – If you prefer, you can also cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise to form cutlets, and skip the tenderizing step altogether.
- How to tell when chicken is done: I highly recommend investing in a meat thermometer to help you know when your meats like chicken and pork are fully cooked. In the even you don’t have one, you can check the chicken for doneness by piercing the center with a knife and fork. The juices will run clear when the chicken is fully cooked. If they are pink, the chicken needs more time.
Serving Suggestions
- I served our Caprese Chicken Skillet with a side of angel hair pasta (greatly appreciated by my athletic kids who need the extra carbs). I’m pretty sure the pasta took longer to boil than the chicken took to make!
- This chicken would also pair beautifully with rice, a simple copycat Olive garden salad or some sauteed Zucchini Noodles for a low carb dinner. You could also serve chicken on toasted garlic bread for one out-of-this-world sandwich.
Got leftovers? Dice up the chicken and enjoy cold it in a tossed salad for lunch the next day!
Want more amazing easy weeknight dinner recipes from Mary? Order a copy of the cookbook for yourself and tell me which recipe you tried first!
More Easy Dinner Recipes
- Chicken Pesto Pasta: another delicious dinner on the table in 30 minutes!
- Buffalo Chicken Pasta
- Cajun Chicken Pasta: easy, spicy meal that our family loves!
- Bacon Cheeseburger Soup: all your favorite burger flavors in an easy to make soup recipe!
- Barbacoa
- Penne Rosa
Easy Weeknight Dinners
See all Main Dish recipes
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Chicken Caprese Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 6 ounce fresh mozzarella I used sliced mozzarella
- 3 Roma tomatoes sliced
- 8 large fresh basil leaves sliced in thin strips
- 2-4 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Place your chicken breasts into a ziploc bag, and pound them to about 1/4-1/2 inch thick using a meat tenderizer. Alternately, you can slice then in half lengthwise, making thin cutlets.
- Warm a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil and heat until warm. Add the chicken in a single layer and sprinkle with half of the salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Cook without touching for about two minutes, you'll notice the edges of the chicken cooking, while only the center is pink. Flip the chicken over and sprinkle with the remaining salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Top each piece of chicken with cheese and then tomato slices. Cover with a lid and cook an additional 3-4 minutes.
- Check the chicken for doneness. I use this meat thermometer, and the temperature should read 165°F.
- Sprinkle with fresh basil and drizzle with the balsamic vinegar right before serving. ENJOY!
Notes
- Cutlets – If you prefer, you can also cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise to form cutlets, and skip the tenderizing step altogether.
- How to tell when chicken is done: I highly recommend investing in a meat thermometer to help you know when your meats like chicken and pork are fully cooked. In the even you don’t have one, you can check the chicken for doneness by piercing the center with a knife and fork. The juices will run clear when the chicken is fully cooked. If they are pink, the chicken needs more time.
- Excerpted from The Weeknight Dinner Cookbook by Mary Younkin. Copyright © 2016. Reprinted with permission from Page Street Publishing Co.
Awesome results!!The recipe was so easy and the dinner was made in no time. Definitely, a keeper. Thanks so much!
Balsamic Glaze, which is thicker and you can make it from scratch or buy it, would be even more outstanding in this.
This looks great – I’m about to make it for dinner tonight. One question though (probably a dumb question) – The ingredients list calls for balsamic vinegar, but the steps don’t reference it again. Do you cook it with the chicken or is that like a dressing for afterward? Sorry I have never used balsamic vinegar before and I don’t cook a whole lot.
Oh my gosh it is in the last step – I did a snippet and printed it without that step. Disregard! LOL
This is such a beautiful dish! Perfect for special occasions or simply because. My hubby loves it!
This looks so incredible!
I love this cookbook and this delicious recipe. Your photos rock by the way (just like you).
I’m so happy that you liked the chicken and that you’re enjoying the book, Aimee. Your photos are making me crave this all over again now too. Thanks so much!
That looks like such a great cookbook and this caprese chicken is going on my weeknight menu…it looks superb! xo, Catherine
That is actually one of the recipes I have bookmarked in Mary’s book to make too! It sounds amazing and I love how quick it cooks. Of course, I have quite a few others I need to try out too! So many yummy recipes!!!
I really need to get my hands on that cookbook!! everything sounds so delicious, and 15 minutes for dinner is perfect!
MUST MUST MUST get my paws on this book. This looks dreamy, and it’s the perfect theme!
This looks delicious! I love how easy and quick it is!