This Easy Italian Chicken takes boneless skinless chicken breasts and turns them into something gorgeous and packed with flavor.
Healthy, quick and easy. And my kids love this. So that is pretty much the perfect dinner solution!
Chicken Breasts packed with flavor
I love easy meals! On busy weeknights when I need dinner on the table quickly these Italian Chicken Breasts are perfect!
The chicken is cooked in the skillet with plenty of garlic, some lemon, chicken broth, and briny capers. This keeps the chicken nice and juicy and also gives it so much flavor.
The quick topping of tomatoes, onions, and olives add a great freshness and wonderful pop of healthy color. Plus it means there is no need to add a side salad, as the salad is right there in the pan! Add some creamy ricotta to the top and serve with some fresh bread for an easy dinner!
Why use Chicken Breasts Fillets
If you are an S&S regular then you will be sick of me telling you how to fillet a chicken breast 😉
But I just love filleting chicken breasts because:
A) It turns two chicken breasts into dinner for four. Thus saving money. Budent winner.
B) It helps to keep the chicken breasts moist and juicy. Taste Winner!
C) It means the chicken cooks evenly and more quickly. Time Winner!
What is not to love, filleting chicken breasts is good for your sanity on a busy weeknight. I know it might seem like an extra step, but it helps with the final dish, saves money and means the chicken is tender and juicy!
You can use your chicken cutlets in this Easy Italian Chicken Breasts or also in my Grilled Sweet Cajun Chicken, or this Baked Chicken with Cherry Tomatoes and also in this family favorite, Creamy Chicken and Bacon Pasta.
How to fillet chicken breasts
To do this you lay the chicken flat on a chopping board and use a large knife to cut horizontally through the chicken breast.
By keeping the knife flat and parallel to the chopping board you will be left with two chicken cutlets.
Top Tip
If you buy your chicken breasts in bulk and freeze them for using later, try filleting them before you freeze them. They will defrost more quickly and half the prep is already done for you!
Making the fresh tomato topping
The fresh topping on this Italian chicken recipe is what really makes it sing. I want to call it a salsa but that doesn't really describe it fully. This is sort of a salad topping. I'm lost for the word! But whatever we call it, it is delicious! (If you have a suggestion for what to call it, drop me a comment below!)
Tomatoes, olives, red onion, and parsley are all chopped up and then dressed with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
This is left to mingle whilst the chicken is cooked. What happens is the salt draws out some of the juice from the tomatoes, this mixes with the olive oil and you get a delicious mixture at the bottom of the bowl. Please make sure that gets in with your chicken. It is the flavor bomb!!! (If you want to sneak a little bit of bread and mop a little bit up, I won't tell anyone....I mean cooks perks 😉 )
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FAQ'S
Yes!!! This is wonderful with chicken thighs. They take longer to cook so you need to allow extra time, but you can follow the recipe in exactly the same way, just cook the chicken thighs for 25-30 minutes until cooked through and golden.
You sure can, it will change the dish, but if your family aren't fans of olive then, by all means, leave them out.
Only like black olives? Just use the black ones.
Can only find green olives? Just use green olives.
If you haven't got parsley or aren't a fan, then you can use fresh basil in this recipe instead.
Red onion tends to be a little milder than the traditional brown onion. But you can use brown onion instead, just chop it very finely and use a little less.
Otherwise, you can use green onion or sweet white onion.
You can add some grated parmesan, mini mozzarella balls, goats cheese. Or just leave off the cheese completely.
What to serve with Italian Chicken Breasts
The beauty of this dish is the salad is already part of the dish! So you really just need to add some bread and you can call it dinner. We like these Mini Milk Bread Rolls as they are soft and delicious. But crusty bread is gorgeous here too.
If you want something more substantial then why not try serving this Italian chicken with:
Enjoy x
If you try these Italian Chicken Breasts, please leave a 🌟star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I really appreciate it, and it helps others to know that the recipe is trustworthy.
Any questions about the recipe? Use the comments section below.
Get the Recipe
Easy Italian Chicken Breasts Recipe
Ingredients
For the topping
- 1 large tomato
- ½ red onion
- ⅓ cup olives (see note 1)
- ¼ cup fresh chopped parsley
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the chicken
- 2 large chicken breasts
- salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
For the sauce
- 3 tablespoon butter
- 3 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup drained capers
- 1 lemon
- ⅓ cup chicken broth
To finish
- ¼ cup creamy ricotta
- flat-leaf parsley
- black pepper
Instructions
Start by mixing up the topping
- Finely chop the tomato and red onion and place in a non-metallic bowl.1 large tomato½ red onion
- Slice the olives and add them to the bowl.⅓ cup olives
- Add in the parsley, extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle over the salt.¼ cup fresh chopped parsley2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil½ teaspoon salt
- Stir gently and set to one side.
To fillet the chicken
- Lay your chicken breasts flat on a chopping board.2 large chicken breasts
- Use a large sharp knife to cut sideways through the breast, keep the knife parallel to the chopping board and continue to cut through the chicken breast until you have two cutlets.
- Repeat with the second chicken breast.
To cook the chicken
- Heat a large skillet or shallow casserole over high heat.
- Add in the olive oil and butter.1 tablespoon olive oil1 tablespoon butter
- Season the chicken on both sides with salt then fry for 2 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken from the pan, and tent the plate with foil.salt
Make the sauce
- Reduce the heat to medium then add the butter to the pan.3 tablespoon butter
- Add the sliced garlic, capers, and zest of the lemon.3 garlic cloves¼ cup drained capers1 lemon
- Stir gently then add the chicken broth to the pan.⅓ cup chicken broth
- Turn the heat up and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Return the chicken (and any juices that have collecteto the pan along with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.1 lemon
- Heat for a minute then remove the pan from the heat.
- Top with the tomato mixture, pouring over the juice from the bowl.
- Dot the top of your chicken with spoonfuls of the ricotta, and serve with black pepper and a little extra parsley.¼ cup creamy ricottaflat-leaf parsleyblack pepper
Notes
- You can use any olives that you like here. I like to use a mixture of black olives and pimento-stuffed olives. If I can find them the almond stuffed olives are amazing too!
Nutrition
Nutrition is per serving
Elizabeth S says
This was really juicy and delicious! I left out the ricotta cheese because I can never find it at my grocery stores (I live in the middle of rural no where land, HA!). Will make again.
Gina says
The creamy ricotta to finish this dish was the icing on the cake, so good!
Rose says
One pan chicken meals are my all time favorite. The chicken cooked beautifully tender and stayed moist. I'll make this again.
LIndsey says
My whole family loved this easy chicken recipe! It came together super fast and it was actually healthy and flavorful! So many recipes over promise and underdeliver on flavor with healthy recipes. Adding this to the weekly rotation!
Lisa says
One pan dishes are my favorite for busy weeknights and this recipe did not disappoint.