Made with simple ingredients, everyone is going to love this delicious Mozzarella Chicken! This mozzarella and chicken recipe comes together quickly and thanks to the cast iron, you can quickly melt the cheese over top of the chicken without having to dirty another dish!
Rich, creamy, and flavourful, this one skillet chicken mozzarella is a family favourite! I just love how delicious the melted cheese over top of the chicken breasts is. I mean, who doesn't love cheese? This dinner comes together in a jiffy and the best part is most of the ingredients are already in my pantry and clean up is easy.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It's flavourful but simple. You don't need a bunch of fancy ingredients to make this chicken mozzarella recipe as it mostly calls for kitchen staples. And if you have a basil plant then there's a good chance everything is already in your kitchen!
- While the name of this blog might give away this part, the mozzarella chicken is made in a single pan. Since we are using a cast-iron skillet, you can go from stovetop to oven without worry.
- You can serve this with anything from noodles, to mashed potatoes, to just a simple salad. This delicious and easy mozzarella chicken recipe goes with pretty much everything.
Ingredients You'll Need
For the Chicken:
- boneless skinless chicken breasts — try to get breasts that are similar in size so they cook evenly.
- olive oil — or whatever oil you'd like
- butter — unsalted butter is ideal as we are already adding salt to the chicken.
- seasoning: I used Italian seasoning, paprika, dried basil, and salt and pepper.
For the Sauce:
- olive oil — or whatever oil you'd like
- garlic
- crushed tomatoes — or use passata if you have it.
- seasoning: I used dried oregano, dried basil, onion powder, and salt and pepper to season the tomato sauce.
- Fresh basil
- Mozzarella cheese — you can use shredded mozzarella or sliced mozzarella. It's up to you.
How To Make Mozzarella Chicken
- Pat dry the chicken if there is moisture. Season the chicken breasts with 1 tbsp of oil, Italian seasoning, dried basil, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Preheat oven to 400F In a cast iron, add the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil and the butter over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the chicken breasts.
- Cook for around 5 minutes per side, or until golden. Remove the chicken from the cast iron and set it aside.
- To the same cast iron, add in the olive oil and garlic, and cook for about 1 minute.
- Add in the canned tomatoes, dried oregano, dried basil, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
- Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add in the basil sprigs and simmer for 2 more minutes.
- Remove the sprigs of basil and add the chicken back to the pan.
- Spoon some of the sauce over the chicken.
- Top the chicken with mozzarella and bake until the chicken is cooked through and the cheese is melted for approximately 8 to 10 minutes. If your chicken is on the thinner side and has already been cooked through, simply remove the pan from the oven once the cheese has melted.
- Top with fresh basil before serving if desired.
Recipes Variations
- This recipe is pretty much interchangable with Chicken Marinara. Instead of using tomato sauce, you can use marinara sauce. Marinara sauce is seasoned with garlic, crushed red pepper, and basil so if you use pre-cooked marinara, you can skip the simmering and seasoning. It's such an easy shortcut for a weeknight dinner.
- Boneless, skinless chicken thighs can be used in place of chicken breasts.
- If you want to change the cheese (such as using buffalo mozzarella or provolone), you are more than welcomed to. Try a habanero cheddar cheese or pepper jack cheese for a spicier chicken recipe.
Tips and Notes
- I use both butter and oil for the chicken so the butter can provide flavour while the oil keeps them from burning in the pan.
- You can use sweet or smoked paprika for this recipe.
- If the chicken breasts are thick and uneven, either pound them to even thickness or cut them in half lengthwise. If they are too thick, the exterior of the chicken will be overcooked before the interior is ready.
- Make sure to pat the chicken dry before seasoning so that they stick onto the chicken breasts better.
- Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-4 days
Recipe
Mozzarella Chicken
Made with simple ingredients, everyone is going to love this delicious Mozzarella Chicken! This mozzarella and chicken recipe comes together quickly and thanks to the cast iron, you can quickly melt the cheese over top of the chicken without having to dirty another dish!
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RateServings: 4 servings
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- salt and pepper to taste
For the Sauce
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 can crushed tomatoes (796 ml/28 fl oz)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- handful fresh basil
- 4 slices mozzarella cheese or a cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
For the Chicken
- Pat dry the chicken if there is moisture. Season the chicken breasts with 1 tbsp of oil, Italian seasoning, dried basil, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- In a cast iron, add the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil and the butter over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the chicken breasts. Cook for around 5 minutes per side, or until golden. Remove the chicken from the cast iron and set it aside.
For the Sauce
- To the same cast iron, add in the olive oil and garlic, and cook for about 1 minute.
- Add in the canned tomatoes, dried oregano, dried basil, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
- Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add in the basil sprigs and simmer for 2 more minutes.
- Remove the sprigs of basil and add the chicken back to the pan, spooning some of the sauce over the chicken and top with mozzarella and bake until the chicken is cooked through and the cheese is melted, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. If your chicken is on the thinner side and has already been cooked through, simply remove the pan from the oven once the cheese has melted.
- Top with fresh basil before serving if desired.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 406kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 102mg | Sodium: 759mg | Potassium: 789mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 678IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 218mg | Iron: 3mg
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