A Caprese salad is a classic Italian summer dish, and this is a little chicken twist on it. You get all the flavours of the Caprese salad, but with some added protein too. Fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, some basil and finished off with a drizzle of balsamic. A really simple one pan chicken dish that the whole family will love.
Melty mozzarella cheese, fresh juicy tomatoes and finely chopped basil all layered on a chicken breast and then drizzled with balsamic vinegar just before serving. A delicious light dinner that goes well with some roasted potatoes or a salad. If you are looking for a new way to enjoy chicken, then give this a try.
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Why should you try it?
- A light and fresh meal
- A new way to enjoy chicken
- Less than 300 calories a portion
- High in protein
- All cooked in one pan
What you will need
- Chicken breast - We used chicken breast for this recipe as it keeps it nice and lean. You could swap it for boneless and skinless chicken thighs, but that would change the nutritional information.
- Mozzarella - This is essential for a caprese dish and try to use the best quality you can, as it will give it extra flavour.
- Cherry tomatoes - You would usually have larger tomatoes for a caprese dish, but we have used cherry tomatoes for this.
- Onion - You can swap this for diced shallots if you prefer.
- Basil - A sprinkling of fresh basil before serving adds lots of flavour.
- Garlic granules and dried oregano
- Balsamic vinegar - Try to use the best quality you can, as you really will be able to taste the difference. Cheap balsamic vinegar tends to be really vinegary.
- Olive oil
Step by step
One: On the hob (stovetop), heat some oil in a large, oven-proof pan and add the chicken breasts. Season with garlic granules, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Keep turning the chicken until it has browned on all sides.
Two: Add the cherry tomatoes and red onion to the pan.
Three: Add the balsamic vinegar to the pan. Put the pan in a preheated oven at 200°C/400°F/Gas6 for 30 minutes.
Four: Remove from the oven and cover each chicken breast with equal amounts of mozzarella.
Five: Return to the oven for 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese has melted. Sprinkle with chopped basil and serve.
This is a super easy meal to make, so it's perfect for an after work weeknight meal. But it's also impressive enough to serve up to guests. It's easy to make a big batch of these if you are feeding a crowd. They could be really good on the BBQ too.
The sauce
We love a good sauce, and this sauce is EVERYTHING! It's not even really a sauce as it's the natural juices from the chicken with a little oil, herbs, balsamic and juices from the tomatoes. We added some cherry tomatoes fresh from the garden with some shallots and garlic to the chicken with some olive oil, oregano and dried basil. The rest took care of itself.
What else can be added?
These are really easy to adapt. We like to put a layer of pesto on the check first before adding the toppings - any pesto will work, but sun-dried tomato just gives it that extra tomato burst.
You could also give this dish a vegetable boost by adding in some chopped spinach, or even some courgette (zucchini), aubergine (eggplant) or bell peppers.
What to serve with caprese chicken
You can serve with with pasta or rice, but we will to serve it with little crispy roast potatoes like our Italian Parmesan Roasted Potatoes. If you want to keep this meal lighter, then serve the chicken on top of a big green salad.
Here are some other side dishes that go really well with this caprese chicken:
Easy Greek Rice
Parmesan Truffle Fries
Oven Baked Onion Rings
Air Fryer Carrots
Easy Roast Potatoes
Cilantro Lime Rice
Crispy Air Fryer Broccoli
Roasted Lemon Asparagus
Frequently asked questions
We have used chicken breast to keep this nice and lean, but you could use boneless and skinless chicken thighs which would make this even juicier, but it would change the nutritional information.
If you have leftovers of caprese chicken, then you can store it in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. I then like to chops it up and fry it and then serve it over lettuce for a hot salad.
This meal (without sides) is less than 300 calories and is full of light and fresh flavours. You can easily add some vegetables to this and we have used chicken breast to keep it lean. If you want to keep the calories down, you could use reduced fat cheddar.
Yes, this recipe is low carb with just 6g of carbs per portion. Jut be careful what sides you serve it with if you want it to be low carb.
You might have heard people pronounce this differently, but Italians pronounce it “cuh-PRAY-zay.”
It's always best to check that chicken is cooked with a meat thermometer. Chicken should have an internal temperature of 75°C/165°F.
Yes, this recipe is naturally gluten free. Just be sue to check for any cross contamination in the products you use, and make sure to serve it with gluten free side dishes.
Yes, you could make everything up until just before the cheese is added and then allow to cool and then store in the fridge until you are ready to finish it off. Add the cheese and then put it in the oven to melt the cheese. It will need a little longer as it has been in the fridge.
Yes, this freezes really well. Allow it to cool and then put in freezeable containers and they will keep in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you are ready to cook them, defrost them in the fridge overnight and then reheat them in the oven for around 15 minutes, or until warmed through.
Extra tips
- You could make this recipe as a stuffed chicken breast. Slice the chicken at the side horizontally when it is uncooked and then add the slices of mozzarella and tomatoes and cook them at the same time as the chicken.
- Add even more flavour to this by putting a layer of pesto on the chicken before adding the tomato and cheese.
- Find the thinnest chicken breasts you can, as they will cook quicker and more evenly. You could always use a meat tenderiser to flatten them a little.
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Recipe
Caprese Chicken
Ingredients
- 600 g chicken breasts
- 100 g mozzarella grated
- 200 g cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 red onion finely diced
- 2 tbsp fresh basil chopped
- 1 tbsp garlic granules
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- On the hob (stovetop), heat some oil in a large, oven-proof pan and add the chicken breasts. Season with garlic granules, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Keep turning the chicken until it has browned on all sides.
- Add the cherry tomatoes to the pan.
- Add the balsamic vinegar to the pan. Put the pan in a preheated oven at 200°C/400°F/Gas6 for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and cover each chicken breast with equal amounts of mozzarella.
- Return to the oven for 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese has melted. Sprinkle with chopped basil and serve.
Notes
- You could make this recipe as a stuffed chicken breast. Slice the chicken at the side horizontally when it is uncooked and then add the slices of mozzarella and tomatoes and cook them at the same time as the chicken.
- Add even more flavour to this by putting a layer of pesto on the chicken before adding the tomato and cheese.
- Find the thinnest chicken breasts you can, as they will cook quicker and more evenly. You could always use a meat tenderiser to flatten them a little.
