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    Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake

    By Julia | Updated: Sep 12, 2022 | Published: May 07, 2018 | 241 Comments

    826.7K shares
    • Facebook7.0K
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    Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake - low carb and gluten-free recipe.  It's easy to make, and only one pan is needed.

    Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake in a white casserole dish

     
    Just pile all the ingredients on top of the chicken breasts in a baking dish and bake everything in the oven. Once the chicken is cooked, you'll have lots of juices in the pan. Pour these delicious juices over cooked rice or cooked pasta, such as spaghetti or angel hair pasta, and serve these side dishes with this Mozzarella chicken. Because you bake everything in one pan, the cleanup is minimal.

    Mozzarella Chicken Bake

    This chicken bake has a similar style to Chicken Parmigiana (or Chicken Parmesan) because many ingredients are similar, and the chicken is baked in the oven. But unlike Chicken Parmigiana, my Mozzarella Chicken is gluten-free (no bread crumbs or flour is involved), I use fresh tomatoes and basil pesto, and I use Mozzarella cheese only. The resulting dish is so delicious and refreshing! Perfect for Spring and Summer season!

    tBasil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake in a white casserole dish

    Ingredients you need for Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken

    • chicken breasts boneless, skinless
    • salt
    • garlic cloves
    • basil pesto
    • fresh tomatoes
    • fresh Mozzarella cheese
    • fresh basil

    To make this mozzarella chicken bake, I like to use thin chicken breasts. You can buy thinly sliced chicken breasts in the store, or flatten the chicken as described below.

    How do you flatten the chicken

    • To flatten the chicken, first, cover your work surface with plastic wrap.
    • Lay the chicken breasts on top and cover with another piece of plastic wrap.
    • Pound the chicken breasts with the flat side of a meat mallet to even their thickness.
    • Alternatively, you can slice each chicken breast horizontally to make two thinner and flatter chicken breasts out of each large chicken breast.

    Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake in a white casserole dish

    What to serve with Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken

    This Mozzarella chicken bake can be served with spaghetti, angel hair pasta, or rice.    When the chicken is done, there will be a good amount of juices at the bottom of the pan.  Since those juices are pretty tasty, toss cooked pasta or rice with those juices (which are plenty as you can see on the photos) from the pesto chicken bake, and you'll have a delicious meal!

    Alternatively, you can serve your Mozzarella chicken with roasted asparagus, green beans, roasted broccoli, or roasted potatoes.

    Here are some of my favorite side dishes to go with this pesto chicken bake:

    • Asiago, Bacon, and Garlic Roasted Asparagus
    • Garlic and Bacon Green Beans
    • Asiago Roasted Broccoli

    Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake

    How to cook Mozzarella Chicken with Basil Pesto and Tomatoes

    Preheat oven to 400 F. Place chicken breasts in a casserole pan. Season the chicken with salt and top with minced garlic.

    add chicken breasts and garlic to a casserole pan

    Top with basil pesto.

    add basil pesto

    Add tomato slices on top.

    add tomatoes on top of chicken

    Add thickly sliced fresh Mozzarella cheese on top.

    add mozzarella on top of tomatoes in the casserole pan

    How to bake mozzarella chicken with pesto

    Bake chicken breasts, uncovered, at 400 F in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes, depending on the thickness of your breasts.

    baked chicken, baked tomato mozzarella chicken

    When serving, top each chicken breast with fresh chopped basil, and a fresh slice of tomato. Pour the juices from the bottom of the casserole pan over cooked pasta (such as angel hair or spaghetti) or cooked rice (such as Jasmine rice).

    keto chicken recipes, keto recipes, low carb recipes, how to bake chicken

     

    4.75 from 597 votes

    Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake

    Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake - low carb, gluten-free recipe.  Once the chicken is cooked, use the delicious juices from your baked chicken to pour over cooked rice or cooked pasta, such as spaghetti or angel hair pasta, to serve as side dishes with this Mozzarella chicken. Because you bake everything in one pan, the cleanup is minimal.
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save RecipeSaved!
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 30 minutes mins
    Total Time 40 minutes mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine American, Mediterranean
    Servings 4 people
    Calories per serving 563 kcal
    Author: Julia

    Ingredients

    • 4 chicken breasts , boneless, skinless
    • salt
    • 4 garlic cloves , minced
    • ½ cup basil pesto
    • 2 tomatoes , sliced
    • 8 oz fresh Mozzarella cheese , sliced
    • 2 tablespoons fresh basil
    US Customary - Metric

    Instructions 

    • Preheat oven to 400 F.
    • Place chicken breasts in a medium size casserole pan. 
    • Sprinkle the chicken with salt. Top with minced garlic.
    • Spread basil pesto evenly over each chicken breast.
    • Add tomato slices on top.
    • Add thickly sliced fresh Mozzarella cheese on top.
    • Bake at 400 F in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes, depending on the thickness of your breasts. 
    • When serving, top each chicken breast with fresh chopped basil, and a fresh slice of tomato.  Pour the juices from the bottom of the casserole pan over pasta or rice. 

    Notes

    • Want to make basil pesto from scratch?  Here is the best, the most flavorful, and the creamiest 20-Minute Homemade Basil Pesto Recipe.

    Nutrition

    Nutrition Information
    Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake
    Amount per Serving
    Calories
    563
    % Daily Value*
    Fat
     
    30
    g
    46
    %
    Saturated Fat
     
    10
    g
    63
    %
    Cholesterol
     
    191
    mg
    64
    %
    Sodium
     
    911
    mg
    40
    %
    Potassium
     
    1037
    mg
    30
    %
    Carbohydrates
     
    7
    g
    2
    %
    Fiber
     
    1
    g
    4
    %
    Sugar
     
    3
    g
    3
    %
    Protein
     
    62
    g
    124
    %
    Vitamin A
     
    1640
    IU
    33
    %
    Vitamin C
     
    12
    mg
    15
    %
    Calcium
     
    359
    mg
    36
    %
    Iron
     
    1.5
    mg
    8
    %
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    Nutrition Disclaimer:

    The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

    Keyword pesto chicken bake
    Tried this recipe?Be sure to leave a comment and provide a Star Rating below - I love your feedback and try to respond to every comment!
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    Comments

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      Recipe Rating




    1. suzanne

      April 15, 2025 at 6:45 pm

      OK made tonight. Very tasty but Very heavy. I will make it again and this is what I would do. Pound chicken thinner. More Pesto. Shredded parm not Mozzarella Chopped tomatoes on top. Still keep the garlic. I also brine all my chicken helps keep the moisture in . Meanwhile I have made many of your recipes that are spot on!!

      Reply
      • Julia

        May 08, 2025 at 7:39 pm

        Thank you, Suzanne, for your honest (and very helpful!) feedback! Great tips and suggestions!

        Reply
    2. Gary

      March 31, 2025 at 10:41 pm

      Julia, this dish is really, really delicious! I’m a couple of years late in my rating, but it is so good. My husband loves tomatoes, so your recipe is perfect; I’m not a tomato fan, but I do find a large cremini mushroom and cut it in half or thirds rather than the tomato and it works amazingly well. I gently toss the delicious leftover baking au jus with a cooked low carb pasta (made with lupini flour, like Kaizen is our favorite) and it tastes perfect; especially comforting on a cold, wet PNW night!

      You do a fantastic job, and thank you for sharing your delicious recipes! No criticism from us. Please keep your recipes coming!

      Thank you so much for a wonderful recipe!

      Reply
      • Julia

        April 01, 2025 at 10:16 am

        Thank you so much for your kind words! It really means so much to me! 🙂 Tossing the leftover au jus with low-carb pasta sounds absolutely delicious and cozy, especially for a chilly night. 🙂

        Reply
    3. Elaine Millikin

      February 25, 2025 at 7:45 pm

      I love this recipe ! Only thing I do different is use provolone cheese, i don't care for mozzarella so much ,. It's absolutely delicious!

      Reply
    4. Ruth

      September 26, 2024 at 12:36 pm

      I like many of of your recipes but Often give up trying to get one. After clicking on recipes there is loads and loads of verbi,age and I often give up. I cook. I just want the recipe up front and no more.

      Reply
      • Julia

        September 27, 2024 at 1:03 pm

        Hi Ruth! I'm sorry to hear about that, reviewing my ad setup is an on-going process for me. You can also try using "jump to recipe" or "print" buttons at the top or within the recipe card for the cleaner view.

        Reply
    5. Heather

      September 11, 2024 at 9:19 am

      Made this last night family liked it only thing they said was the chicken could have more seasoning. Maybe more salt and pepper or add an Italian seasoning before all the other ingredients. Chicken was not dry and the pesto was so good with it.

      Reply
      • Julia

        September 16, 2024 at 6:55 pm

        Thank you for the review, Heather! Another seasoning you can try is dry Italian Dressing seasoning (sold in small packets).

        Reply
    6. Audri

      July 23, 2024 at 5:12 pm

      Hello! Our family of 5 loves this recipe! I’d like to prep this as a freezer meal for a new mama. Has anyone tried? I assume I’d follow directions up until cooking? When ready to eat… remove from freezer, defrost, and cook at same time and temp? Just making sure it’ll turn out. Thank you 🙂

      Reply
      • Julia

        August 04, 2024 at 7:15 pm

        If I was prepping this, I would cook this meal completely, cool it off, and then freeze the completley cooked meal. It works well and it's the best food safety practice.

        Reply
    7. Elaine Cherry

      July 01, 2024 at 6:49 pm

      I was wondering if I can cook in an air fryer instead of oven, and if so, what should I do differently? Thanks.

      Reply
      • Julia

        July 23, 2024 at 5:04 am

        Hi Elaine, I don't own an air fryer, so I am of no help here. 🙂

        Reply
    8. Mary S

      June 23, 2024 at 6:58 pm

      Can i substitute boneless pork chops for the chicken?

      Reply
      • Julia

        June 25, 2024 at 4:10 pm

        Hi Mary, you probably can. But depending on the thickness of your boneless pork chops you might have to reduce the baking times and increasing baking temperature to 375 F.

        Reply
    9. tina

      April 02, 2024 at 4:55 pm

      picture has mozzarella and then tomato but recipe is opposite. which was is better/correct?

      Reply
      • Julia

        April 02, 2024 at 10:58 pm

        Tina, it's actually both. 🙂 The final step of the recipe (step 8) mentions to add another slice of fresh tomato on top when serving.

        Reply
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    Julia is the author of JuliasAlbum.com (a food blog focused on easy dinner recipes, pasta dishes, salads made with seasonal ingredients). In this photo, Julia is pictured wearing a yellow sweater against an Autumn background.

    Hi, I'm Julia!

    I am a full-time food blogger living in beautiful Colorado. I focus primarily on savory recipes (protein-based & fiber-rich main dishes, pasta, salads) using fresh & seasonal ingredients. A food blogger since 2012, I help home cooks create well-balanced and visually appealing dinners (many of which are 30-minute ONE-PAN meals). Find out more about me and my cooking philosophy. 

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