Are there ever enough recipes for chicken? No matter what the season, a chicken dinner always hits the spot! What could be easier than grabbing a package of chicken breasts at the grocery store and taking advantage of their endless versatility? Boring, you say? Hardly! Here are four easy and flavorful chicken breast recipes that will be sure to please family and friends.
Mediterranean chicken is a delightful entrée you prepare, bake, and serve in the same dish. Serve it with hot rolls and crisp green salad, or add a side of chicken tortellini for a heartier meal. A pinot noir would pair nicely with Mediterranean chicken.
Mediterranean Chicken
Serves 4
Preheat oven to 350F.
Ingredients
- 1 small onion
- 6-8 Campari tomatoes, quartered
- 10-12 black or kalamata olives, halved
- 4 marinated artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning, divided
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ½ cup crumbled feta cheese, divided
- 1-2 tablespoons dry white wine or dry vermouth
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 2 small-medium skin-on bone-in chicken breasts, split
- Optional garnishes: 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or 2 tablespoons chiffonade of fresh basil.
Directions
- Roughly chop the onion into an oven-safe medium gratin dish or another shallow baking dish.
- Add the quartered tomatoes, halved olives, and quartered artichokes.
- Lightly salt and pepper, then sprinkle ¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning over all.
- Add ¼ cup feta cheese.
- Drizzle 1-2 tablespoons wine and 1 tablespoon olive oil over all.
- Pat dry the 4 chicken breast halves. Place on top of the tomato mixture.
- Lightly salt and pepper and sprinkle remaining ¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning over the chicken.
- Drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over the seasoned chicken breasts.
- Place uncovered in 350F oven, and bake for about 40 minutes, then add the remaining ¼ cup feta and continuing baking until the chicken is done (165F on a meat thermometer), the tomatoes are tender and the feta is melty, about 50 minutes total. Total cooking time varies with the thickness of the chicken breasts.
- Let rest for 10 minutes. Spoon some of the “sauce” from the baking dish over the top of the chicken and add the optional garnish to serve.
Additional read: Did you know that baking soda has more than 50 different uses?
Love fried chicken but hate the mess? Here’s a quick fake-out “fried chicken” you bake in the oven. It’s simple, and made from ingredients you are bound to have on hand. Serve this with coleslaw (recipe follows), bread-and-butter pickles, and warm cornbread. Any white wine will taste good with this meal–but so will iced tea!
Almost-the-Real-Thing “Fried Chicken”
Serves 4
Preheat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Ingredients
- 4 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts halves, lightly pounded to even thickness
- ¾ cup mayonnaise
- Hot sauce
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ cups crushed corn flakes (Just dump the cereal in a zip lock bag and squeeze with your hands; it’s fine to have some big pieces remain.)
Directions
- Pat the lightly pounded chicken breasts dry and arrange on the baking sheet.
- Add 2-3 dashes of hot sauce and freshly ground pepper to taste to the mayonnaise and mix well.
- Slather the seasoned mayonnaise on the top and sides of the chicken breasts,
- Generously cover the mayonnaise with the crushed corn flakes, pressing lightly and thoroughly covering all. Crush more corn flakes if you need to.
- Place in preheated oven and bake until done, until the thickest part of the breast registers 165F on a meat thermometer or about 50 minutes. Begin checking for doneness at 40 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Sure, you can buy deli coleslaw, but if you keep a bag of shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix in the fridge, you can whip up a batch anytime the craving strikes. Bagged cabbage and coleslaw mix last for a while when refrigerated, but with this easy and delicious recipe, you’ll restock often.
Quick Coleslaw
Serves 4
Ingredients
- ½ 11-ounce bagged shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix
- 1-2 teaspoons sugar or sucralose
- 1/3 teaspoon garlic power
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
- 2-3 tablespoons plain rice wine vinegar (if you use seasoned rice wine vinegar, omit the sweetener)
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise or more to taste
Directions
- Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl. If you prefer your coleslaw on the sweet side, add both teaspoons of sweetener.
- Distribute 2 tablespoons of vinegar over the coleslaw. If you like tangy coleslaw, add the third tablespoon.
- Mix in the mayonnaise thoroughly.
- Cover and chill until ready to serve.
NOTE: What’s great about homemade coleslaw is that you can make it taste exactly the way you want it. Like a lot of pepper? Go for it! Not crazy about creamy coleslaw? Reduce the amount of mayonnaise. Consider these measurements as a starting point, then let your tastebuds be your guide.
Additional read: Most common slow cooker mistakes to avoid
Finally, a recipe for an elegant white pizza. This versatile dish can be cut into appetizer servings, or, in larger portions, could be an entrée served with a simple salad. Again, any white wine will complement this dish, but a flinty Pinot Grigio would be especially good.
Pizza Bianco
Serves 4-6 as an entrée.
Preheat the oven according to the directions of the prepared pizza crust OR to 450F if using pizza dough.
Ingredients
- 1 12″ prepared pizza crust, any kind OR 1/2 pound pizza dough.
- 4-5 ounces shredded full-fat mozzarella (for best results, shred the cheese yourself)
- 1/2 cooked chicken breast, cut in fingers
- 1 small jar marinated artichoke hearts; quarter the hearts, drain and pat dry
- 1 jar/tub prepared pesto
- 1 small onion, thinly sliced into rings
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced sauteed mushroom slices
- 3 tablespoons freshly grated/shredded Parmesan
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Optional, all or any:
- Black olives, plain or Kalamata, sliced
- Sun-dried tomatoes, sliced and drained but still oily
- Sliced jarred banana peppers and/or red pepper flakes or Tabasco (red or green)
Directions
- If using pizza dough, stretch the dough and put it on the baking sheet/stone that has been dusted with cornmeal. Otherwise, prepare the ready crust as its package directs.
- Generously add the mozzarella.
- Arrange the chicken slices in a starburst pattern, then drizzle as much pesto as you want over the whole pizza. You won’t need the whole tub.
- Add the onions, mushrooms, and any/all of the optional ingredients (except the red pepper flakes and Tabasco–add them as needed as you eat the pizza).
- Top all with the Parmesan and oregano.
- Bake in the hot oven according to the directions on the prepared crust package for about 10 minutes, until bubbly and done.
- Drizzle the olive oil when it comes out of the oven.
NOTE: You can also use the pesto as the base as if it were tomato sauce, but this will make a saltier pizza. You can cube the chicken, but the fingers make the pizza look pretty.
Chicken is a starting point for many fine meals. It goes well with most vegetables and starches. Stock up when it’s on sale, and have some in your freezer so that a quick, yummy dinner is always within easy reach.
