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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.
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!
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.
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:
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.
Top with basil pesto.
Add tomato slices on top.
Add thickly sliced fresh Mozzarella cheese on top.
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.
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).
Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake
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
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 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.
Was very good!!! Made tonight. I just was expecting less …juice. Made to directions. Served over angel hair pasta. Taste was delicious!!!
I absolutely loved this recipe. I am a mom of 7, oldest 21 youngest 5 with a bunch in between and of course they all have different tastes. It’s not always easy to find a meal that we all like. Well this one is definitely one of them. Everyone loved it, definitely more “fancy” then spaghetti and meatballs(which is a staple in this family) and the best part is it was so easy to make. Thank you!!!!
I made this recipe and it turned out delicious! I'm grateful to have a new recipe that my husband, son, and I all loved. This dish has layers of flavor. I doubled the recipe to make up plenty for leftovers for the week. I highly recommend this recipe. Thank you Julia!
What is the liquid that is shown in the pre baked photo. Looks like outlive oil but oil is not mentioned.
I was trying to figure out the same thing
It's the juices from the chicken mixed with the pesto.
Yes, Kris, that is correct - those are the juices from the pesto (pesto is made with olive oil).
Totally awesome recipe. Delicious! Now one of my faves. Thank you for sharing it.
Carol, I am so glad to hear that! 🙂
Do you bake it covered or uncovered? Thanks.
I baked this uncovered.
Great recipe! Thank you. How do I reheat leftovers?
Sarah, I would reheat the leftovers in an oven-safe dish in the preheated oven at 350 F for about 20 minutes or until heated through.
Followed the recipe except I marinated the chicken the night before and I used 6 Italian cheeses shredded since I did not have fresh mozzarella. It was delicious. I accompanied it with Lebanese rice made with brown jasmine rice and toasted noodles in a combination of olive oil and butter with turkey bone broth.
Mari, I love that you used an Italian cheese blend and serve this with Lebanese rice - sounds so good!
Love this recipe! Have shared with many and it doesn't disappoint!!
Used different mozzarellas, used tenderloins with the variety of cherry tomatoes halved, which was a hit and great for a large group, sometimes get four pack of breasts and butterfly them for two dishes!!
We love it with Angel Hair pasta!!
Definitely recommend. I use the pesto at Aldi. .
Courtenay, thank you for this positive and detailed review! 🙂 So glad you enjoyed this dish! 🙂
I absolutely love this recipe!! My fiancé even loves it and he’s not a huge pesto fan. The chicken turns out to be some of the most tender I’ve ever had.
The only thing I do a little differently is layering the tomato first and topping with mozzarella. I use a bigger baking dish where they’re not as closely pressed together and find that it stays together better in that case. Just a tip for anyone with a bigger baking dish
Kathleen, your comment really made my day! Thank you for taking the time to share this positive feedback! And, thank you for the tips about using a bigger baking dish.
How thin should I pound my chicken? 1/2 inch thick?
Emily, I am not sure about the exact thickness of the chicken breasts - but I did use thinly sliced ones.
Absolutely Loved it!! So fast and easy to for after work. I had pesto from Costco already in the fridge and it was great! Thanks
Cindy, I am so happy this recipe was a success! I really appreciate that you took the time to share such a positive comment and the 5-stars! 🙂
Delicious!!!
Thank you and I really appreciate the 5-stars! 🙂
First made this early in the pandemic lockdown when experimentation all the rage! Family loved it so much that it's now requested frequently. I've changed toppings based on what's on hand. Minced/sliced/crushed garlic, sliced mozzarella/provolone/shredded mozzarella/mex-blend. Always comes out great!
Colleen, I am so happy your family loves this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing such a positive comment and sharing your changes - very helpful to other readers!
My whole family loves this!- ages 13-67! I didn’t have fresh tomatoes so I substituted Dei Fratelli Chopped Italian Canned Tomatoes. And I only had Italian blend shredded cheese.
I made it for my husbands birthday and I’m making it again!
Sarah, I am so happy that everyone enjoyed this recipe! And so nice that it worked with canned tomatoes, too! Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing such a nice comment! 🙂
This is really good! Made it a couple of weeks ago, and everyone loved it. Making it again tonight! Very tasty....definitely a keeper recipe.
Claudia, your comment made my day! Glad you loved the recipe!