Baked Chicken Caprese Recipe

You’ll love this EASY baked chicken Caprese recipe. It’s juicy and flavorful, yet healthy, made with simple ingredients, and ready in just 30 minutes!

Full ingredients + instructions are on the recipe card at the end. Before you scroll or jump down, don’t miss the useful tips in the post!

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If you love classic Italian flavors, this baked chicken Caprese recipe is for you! It features a juicy chicken breast that’s topped with tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil, and a balsamic glaze.

When the summer tomatoes are ripe, I love using them in anything I can, but I especially love coming up with twists on Caprese salads. Be sure to try these flavors on salad skewers, avocado Caprese salad, crustless quiche, or Caprese stuffed avocado.

What Is Chicken Caprese?

Chicken Caprese is a delicious, easy chicken dinner made by topping chicken with the classic Caprese salad components: tomato, mozzarella, and fresh basil.

Why You’ll Love This Chicken Caprese Recipe

Bursting with classic Italian flavors
Juicy chicken
Very simple to make
Just 5 minutes to prep and it’s ready in 30

Close up Caprese chicken in a baking dish

Caprese Chicken Ingredients

This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for Italian chicken Caprese, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.

Chicken breasts – I prefer to use free-range chicken, but you can use whatever type you like best. Look for medium-sized chicken breasts, about 8 ounces is a good size.
Olive oil – Olive oil imparts a traditional flavor, but you could also use avocado oil.
Sea salt & black pepper
Fresh mozzarella cheese – I prefer fresh mozzarella for the perfect melty cheese topping, but hard shredded or sliced mozzarella would also work.
Roma tomatoes – Look for bright, red tomatoes. Roma is a great size, but you can also use other small tomatoes.
Balsamic glaze – I love the flavor of homemade balsamic glaze, plus it has no added sugar. You can buy it as well, but be aware that most store-bought glazes do have added sugar.
Fresh basil – A must for any Caprese recipe!

Ingredients to make chicken Caprese recipe

How To Make Chicken Caprese

This section shows how to make Caprese chicken with step-by-step photos and details about the technique. For full instructions, see the recipe card below.

Season. Place chicken breasts in a large baking dish and brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper on both sides.
Bake. At this point the chicken won’t be fully cooked through, about 145 to 150 degrees F.
Top. Top chicken with mozzarella and tomato slices.
Bake again. This time, bake until the chicken is fully cooked.
Finish. Let the Caprese baked chicken rest for 5 minutes, then drizzle with balsamic glaze and top with fresh basil.

Variations

Swap in sun-dried tomatoes – Try using sun-dried tomatoes instead of the fresh romas.
Use chicken thighs – Swap the chicken breasts for boneless chicken thighs. The cook time might vary a bit.
Caprese stuffed chicken – Instead of adding the Caprese toppings over the chicken, cut a slit in each chicken breast and stuff the tomatoes and mozzarella inside before baking.
Add pesto – Baked pesto chicken is a very similar dish, with pesto sauce on the chicken before adding the toppings.
Grilled chicken caprese – Follow the same steps, but cook the chicke non the grill instead of in the oven.

Storage Instructions

To store: Store leftovers in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
To reheat: Reheat in a 350 degree F oven for best results, or microwave until just warm.
To freeze: Freezing is not recommended, as the tomato will get mushy.

Chicken Caprese on a plate with fresh basil

What To Serve With Caprese Chicken

Serve the oven baked Caprese chicken with one of these simple sides:

More Easy Chicken Recipes

If you like this balsamic Caprese chicken recipe, you might also like some of these other chicken recipes:

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Ingredients

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Instructions

Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (204 degrees C).
Place chicken breasts into a large baking dish, with enough room to have space between them. Brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, then repeat on the other side.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees F (65 degrees C).
Top the chicken with mozzarella, then tomato slices. Bake for 5-10 more minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes. Drizzle with balsamic glaze and top with fresh basil.

Recipe Notes

Serving size: 1 chicken breast

Nutrition Facts

Amount per serving. Serving size in recipe notes above.

Calories 295

Fat 16.4g

Protein 30.7g

Total Carbs 5.5g

Net Carbs 5g

Fiber 0.5g

Sugar 2.6g

Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.

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