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Baked Pesto Chicken is one of the easiest chicken dinners you will ever make! Coated with pesto, smothered in cheese, and topped with fresh tomatoes, this recipe feels a little special while requiring very little effort to make.
When it comes to dinner, my motto is to keep it simple without sacrificing flavor. This Pesto Chicken, right along with Stir-Fried Chicken and Bok Choy and Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu, is one of those recipes I rely on when I don't have much energy left to cook but still want dinner to feel a little special.
Baked Pesto Chicken at a Glance
- Serves: 4, easy to scale
- Time Needed: Ready in under 30 minutes start to finish
- Perfect For: Busy weeknight dinners, casual entertaining, and anyone looking for a flavorful gluten-free or low-carb meal.
- Flexible: Works beautifully with store-bought or homemade basil pesto and pairs with pasta, vegetables, salads, or crusty no-knead whole wheat bread.
- Why You'll Love It: Bright basil pesto, melty mozzarella and Parmesan, juicy chicken, and a fresh tomato topping create restaurant-quality flavor with almost no effort.
Recipe Highlights
Kristen's Keys for Perfect Pesto Chicken
I've made countless versions of pesto chicken through the years, and this is the one I keep coming back to. It has just the right balance of pesto, cheese, and chicken, while the fresh tomato topping takes it from really good to restaurant-worthy.
For the same results, pay attention to the following tips:
- Use thin chicken cutlets. They cook quickly and give every bite more surface area for the pesto and cheese. I have included instructions on how to make cutlets from chicken breasts to help save you money.
- Don't skimp on the pesto. Coat both sides generously so the chicken stays flavorful and moist.
- Add the cheese near the end. This keeps it perfectly melted and lightly browned instead of overcooked.
- The tomato topping is what differentiates this recipe from the rest! Rather than topping the pesto chicken with sliced tomatoes prior to baking, I prefer baking the chicken, then finishing it with marinated grape tomatoes. They are juicy, bright, and add so much freshness to the dish.
Happy Cooking! xo Kristen
Notes on Ingredients
- Chicken: Purchase thin chicken cutlets or cut boneless, skinless chicken breasts in half horizontally to form cutlets and save yourself a few dollars.
- Basil Pesto: Use store-bought or homemade basil pesto. If opting to use store-bought pesto, choose one sold in the deli or refrigerated section over a shelf-stable jar. The flavor is noticeably different.
- Mozzarella Cheese: You can use fresh sliced mozzarella or grated mozzarella. If using shredded mozzarella, grate it yourself for the smoothest melt.
- Parmesan: Freshly grated is best here. I typically have a wedge in my fridge that I grate on a Microplane, but you can find tubs of pre-grated parmesan cheese in the deli section of your grocery store.
- Tomatoes: I typically opt to use grape or cherry tomatoes, as they are delicious year-round, but feel free to use any variety of ripe tomatoes. In the summer, heirloom or vine-ripened tomatoes are especially delicious.
Have Leftover Pesto?
Let it shine in my Pesto Pasta Recipe, Easy Homemade Pesto Pizza, and Antipasto Skewers.
How Make Baked Pesto Chicken
- Prepare chicken cutlets (if needed). If you are starting this recipe with chicken breasts, cut them in half horizontally to form two evenly sized cutlets.
- Coat chicken with pesto. Place the chicken into a lightly greased baking pan. Coat one side with pesto, flip and coat the other side. I recommend putting the pesto into a small bowl to prevent cross contamination.
- Add cheese midway through baking. After baking the pesto chicken for 15 minutes, remove the pan from the oven, top the chicken with both mozzarella and parmesan cheese, and return to the oven to melt the cheese and finish baking the chicken.
- Prepare tomato topping. While the chicken finishes baking, toss together grape tomatoes with olive oil, salt, pepper, and basil in a small mixing bowl. It only takes a few minutes and adds freshness that perfectly balances the rich pesto and melted cheese.
- Serve pesto chicken with tomatoes. Serve with the marinated tomatoes and plenty of fresh basil for a simple chicken dinner that tastes anything but simple. Fresh, cheesy, and incredibly flavorful!
Serving Suggestions
This pesto chicken is simple enough for busy weeknights but impressive enough to serve when friends or family are coming over.
- Pair with a Salad: Keep dinner on the lower-carb side and pair this baked chicken with a grilled zucchini salad, or copycat Panera Greek salad. And it obviously pairs beautifully with a classic caprese salad.
- Add a Starchy Side: I find I can feed more people by adding a hearty side dish, like pesto pasta, orzo rice, or smashed red potatoes.
- Round Out Dinner with Veggies: Complete dinner with a side or Instant Pot steamed green beans, parmesan roasted broccoli, or air fryer asparagus.
Pesto Chicken FAQs
This recipe is designed using classic basil pesto. While homemade basil pesto will give you the freshest flavor and least amount of sodium, you can use fresh, refrigerated store-bought basil pesto to keep prep simple. If you are looking for a recipe to use a different variety of pesto try my Grilled Chicken Kabobs with Cilantro Pesto.
Technically, no. The pesto chicken is flavorful and cheesy and stands alone without the tomatoes. But the tomatoes add a fresh element that makes the dish feel complete.
Yes. Thin cuts of chicken cook much faster which ensures the pesto does not brown while the chicken bakes. You can purchase chicken cutlets or cut boneless, skinless chicken breasts in half to form thin cutlets yourself.
You can prepare the pesto and slice your chicken into cutlets up to 24 hours in advance, but I would wait to assemble, bake, and prepare tomatoes until ready to serve. This keeps the pesto vibrant and the tomatoes fresh.
More Easy Chicken Recipes
- Honey Lemon Chicken Skillet
- Easy Marry Me Chicken
- Chicken Florentine
- Homemade Chicken Piccata
- Lemon Pepper Chicken
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Baked Pesto Chicken
Video
Ingredients
For the Pesto Chicken
- olive oil for greasing pan
- 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or 4 thin chicken cutlets
- ¼ cup basil pesto
- ½ cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
Tomato Topping (Optional)
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 4-5 fresh basil leaves, cut into ribbons
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200℃). Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray or olive oil.
- Slice chicken breasts in half horizontally to create 4 cutlets. Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel.
- Place the chicken into the prepared pan. Top each chicken breast with ½ tablespoon of the pesto, rubbing or brushing the pesto evenly on the chicken cutlets. Flip the chicken, and repeat the process so that both sides are coated in pesto.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 158-160℉ (70-71℃). Remove the chicken from the oven and top with the ½ cup mozzarella cheeseshredded mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese.
- Return to the oven and bake for an additional 3 to 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165℉. Remove the chicken from the oven and let rest, for the juices to redistribute.
- While the chicken is resting, toss the tomatoes with ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper to taste in a medium mixing bowl. Add basil ribbons and gently toss to incorporate.
- Serve the chicken warm with the fresh tomato topping and additional basil if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was easy and tasty and we'll do it again. This pesto was purchased but we'll try Kristen's homemade pesto next. One minor point of confusion was the amount of cheese - I can do "½ cup mozzarella cheese," but wasn't sure how much "2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese" was, so I just put "some" on. Worked out just fine.
Hi John! Thrilled you enjoyed. I am sorry the 2 tablespoons of grated parmesan cheese was confusing to you. You can either grate it and measure it OR just eyeball it like you did and that works out well. 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
Made this last night-used your pesto recipe as well. Absolutely delicious!
I love hearing that Amy! I hope you are doing well!
One of my FAV easy dinners!! So tasty!
Ridiculously easy, but packed with flavor! Can't wait to make it again when we have garden fresh tomatoes!
Isn't that the best kind of meal?! Thanks for sharing!
Pesto makes anything that much better. I love how easy and flavorful this is!
How many tomatoes?
I use 1-pint cherry/grape tomatoes. You can use 2 cups of diced, seeded roma or vine-ripened tomatoes.
Question, my husband hates chicken breast, can I use skinless thighs
Absolutely!
This pesto chicken turned out great! My family all went back for seconds. I used your pesto recipe, which is also fabulous.
Thanks Beth! I love hearing you enjoyed both recipes 🙂