These easy baked chicken breast recipes are perfect for nights when you need to get dinner on the table without the stress. Each one requires 20 minutes or less of active cooking time, making them ideal for busy weeknights. Plus, chicken breast cooks in no time and delivers a boost of lean protein to help you stay full and energized. Recipes like Sheet-Pan Chicken Fajitas and Bruschetta-Topped Crispy Baked Chicken are healthy, delicious and will become your new go-to meals.
Creamy Basil-Tomato Chicken Pasta Bake
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey, Prop Stylist:Hannah Greenwood
This creamy tomato-chicken pasta bake is comfort food at its finest. Tender chicken breast is baked along with juicy cherry tomatoes and creamy Boursin cheese for a rich, herby sauce. The chicken is shredded and returned to the dish with cooked pasta and fresh basil, then baked with fontina cheese on top until bubbly. This easy pasta bake is a complete meal that delivers big flavor.
Sheet-Pan Balsamic Chicken & Asparagus
Ali Redmond
This chicken and asparagus dinner is a simple one-pan meal that’s perfect for busy weeknights. Chicken cutlets are coated in a tangy-sweet balsamic glaze, roasting right alongside tender asparagus for an easy, well-balanced dinner. If you don’t have chicken cutlets on hand, you can easily make your own by slicing two 8-ounce chicken breasts in half horizontally. The thin cut ensures quicker, more even cooking, so everything on the sheet pan finishes at the same time for a fuss-free, delicious dinner.
Chicken & Green Bean Casserole
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless
This chicken and green bean casserole is our spin on a classic Thanksgiving favorite. By adding tender, juicy chicken to the traditional ingredients of green bean casserole, we transform it into a main dish, the perfect meal for any night of the week. It’s a nostalgic nod to the flavors of Thanksgiving, wrapped up in a convenient, one-dish dinner that’s just as cozy and delicious!
Bang Bang Chicken Checks All the Boxes
Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster
This bang bang chicken is a twist on the popular Bonefish Grill Bang Bang Shrimp, with crispy panko-coated chicken pieces served with a creamy, sweet and spicy chili sauce. Coating the chicken in mayonnaise keeps it tender and juicy when baking and eliminates the need to coat the chicken in a traditional egg wash. If you want to turn up the heat, serve with extra Sriracha.
Green Chile & Chicken Enchiladas
Photographer / Jen Causey, Prop Stylist / Kay Clarke, Food Stylist / Chelsea Zimmer
Broiling peppers, tomatillos, onion and garlic heightens the flavor of the sauce in these green chile, chicken and bean enchiladas. Sour cream and melted cheese help to tame the spice.
Cheesy Chicken Pasta Bake
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Torie Cox, Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen
This chicken pasta bake is cheesy with a smoky kick, thanks to the combination of chipotle peppers and smoked Gouda cheese. If you want to mellow the smoky flavor, regular Gouda works just as well. Spray the foil lightly with cooking spray or brush it with a little oil to prevent the cheesy topping from sticking. Serve with a simple side salad or garlic-roasted broccoli.
One-Pan Chicken & Asparagus Bake
Photography: Caitlin Bensel, Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall
In this chicken and asparagus bake, we use one baking sheet to whip up dinner quickly, veggies included. Pounding the chicken thin helps it cook quickly alongside the carrots and potatoes, with asparagus rounding out the meal.
Chicken Milanese with Arugula-Cherry Tomato Salad
Photographer: Rachel Marek, Food stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop stylist: Gabriel Greco
Chicken Milanese—referring to the city of Milan, Italy, where the dish is believed to have originated—features breaded and pan-fried chicken cutlets, usually served with a side salad and a generous squeeze of lemon. Here we stick mostly to tradition, but we skip the pan-frying in favor of cooking the chicken in the oven.
Lemon-Panko Chicken
Ali Redmond
Juicy chicken breasts scented with oregano and paprika get coated with lemon zest and breadcrumbs to create a crispy, flavorful coating that will win you over every time. Serve over whole grains or with a side salad for a satisfying meal.
Chicken Alfredo & Broccoli Rice Casserole
Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Lydia Purcell
This cheesy, creamy rice casserole is full of flavor and exactly what you’re looking for when you need a delicious, quick meal with little to no effort. Packages of microwaveable rice help to expedite the cooking process, but leftover rice works well too as an easy swap.
Baked Lemon-Pepper Chicken
This baked lemon-pepper chicken is cooked in a skillet, then finished in the oven with lemon slices that soften and become part of the sauce, with a touch of maple syrup and butter to carry the flavor. It’s so simple and delicious, you’ll be making this healthy dinner again and again.
Sheet-Pan Chicken Fajitas
Photography: Carson Downing, Food: Holly Dreesman, Props: Gabe Greco
One sheet pan is all you’ll need to whip up these chicken fajitas. They’re quick and easy to make, and cleanup is even faster!
Skillet Chicken Parm
We skipped breading in this healthy one-dish chicken Parm to save time. There’s still plenty of gooey cheese, and the garlic, pepper flakes and oregano lend big flavor. Serve with pasta or in a hoagie roll with the sauce (there’s lots of it) spooned on top. In sandwich form, it’s easily wrapped in foil and eaten on the go.
Chicken & Cauliflower-Rice Casserole
Photographer: Jacob Fox, Prop Stylist: Gabriel Greco, Food Stylist: Sammy Mila
Get your veggies and your protein fix in this easy, gluten-free chicken and cauliflower-rice casserole. Riced cauliflower stands in for traditional rice, making this creamy casserole low in carbs but—with the simple combination of Cheddar cheese and chicken—suitable for even the pickiest of eaters.
Salt & Vinegar Sheet-Pan Chicken & Brussels Sprouts
A strong vinegar, like malt or sherry, gives this baked chicken a pucker factor reminiscent of salt-and-vinegar chips. Everything cooks in one pan, making this chicken sheet-pan dinner perfect for weeknights when you want big results for little effort (so, pretty much every weeknight!).
Lemon-Garlic Dump Dinner with Chicken, Potatoes & Brussels Sprouts
Caitlin Bensel
Tender chicken breast is bathed in a lemony marinade that brings a bright pop of flavor to this one-dish meal. The vegetables get crispy edges and, along with the juicy chicken, make this a winning combo.
Pesto Chicken Bake
This pesto chicken bake is easy to make as well as delicious! The chicken stays moist while the cheese on top gets bubbly and crispy. The pesto, mozzarella and tomato combination is a home run every time. Serve the chicken over pasta or your favorite grain.
Sheet-Pan Harissa Chicken & Vegetables
This one-pan dinner gets a hit of flavorful heat from harissa, the popular North African chile-and-garlic paste. We use harissa paste from a tube for this recipe. It’s got a concentrated chile flavor that makes an excellent spice rub for chicken and adds a subtle punch of heat to a refreshing herbed yogurt sauce.
Sheet-Pan Chicken with Roasted Spring Vegetables & Lemon Vinaigrette
This Greek-inspired chicken and vegetable sheet-pan meal is bursting with flavor. The chicken is coated in a mayonnaise and bread crumb mixture, roasted alongside asparagus, cremini mushrooms and grape tomatoes and then served with a lemon-feta vinaigrette.
Chili-Rubbed Chicken with Coconut Rice & Mango Salsa
This recipe is great for meal prep. Divide the salsa, rice and chicken among 4 food-storage containers and you’ve got 4 days of ready-made meals in your fridge.
Hasselback Caprese Chicken
Using the hasselback technique (cutting crosswise slits every half-inch along the chicken breast) cooks the chicken faster and ensures you get a burst of flavorful gooey filling with each bite. This quick one-pan high-protein, veggie-packed dinner is easy to make and the whole family will love it.
Hummus Chicken
Hummus goes from appetizer to main dish as a rich, tangy coating on chicken breasts. In the oven, the hummus coating caramelizes slightly and the sprinkle of sesame seeds turns extra-crunchy and nutty. For leftovers, you could slice up the chicken and tuck it into a pita with crisp lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes.
Chicken Enchiladas Verdes
This easy, creamy chicken enchilada recipe uses premade green salsa for a quick enchilada sauce. Not in a verde mood? Use tomato salsa instead.
Bruschetta-Topped Crispy Baked Chicken
A fresh tomato-and-basil topping on panko-crusted chicken cutlets makes an easy meal for family or casual entertaining.
Sheet-Pan Lemon-Pepper Chicken
This easy-to-assemble combination of citrus, fresh herbs and pepper comes together quickly, uses very few dishes and leaves you time to prepare a side dish while the chicken cooks in the oven. This easy sheet-pan dinner feels like a fancy French chicken dish, but you probably have all the ingredients in your pantry.
Sheet-Pan Poblano-&-Corn Chicken Fajitas
Photographer / Antonis Achilleos, Prop Stylist / Christine Kelly, Food Stylist / Karen Rankin
These sheet-pan poblano-and-corn chicken fajitas are seasoned with mild ancho chile powder, paprika and cumin. The chicken and vegetables cook on a sheet pan under the broiler, so you can forget working over a hot stove or grill to get dinner on the table fast. Plus, with only one pan, cleanup is a breeze!
Sheet-Pan Lemon-Pepper Chicken with Broccoli & Tomatoes
Ali Redmond
This sheet-pan lemon-pepper chicken with broccoli and tomatoes offers a blend of vitamin-rich vegetables and lean protein with a healthy dose of fiber to fill your plate. Lemon pepper seasons the dish, adding brightness and spice.
