Tender, juicy, and flavorful, oven baked chicken breasts are perfect for an easy weeknight dinner or meal prep. Seasoned to perfection and simple to make, this classic recipe won’t disappoint! Ready in just 20 minutes.
For families with busy weeknight schedules, having a set of go-to easy chicken recipes is a must. And when it comes to versatility, oven baked chicken breasts are a big winner! I’m a big fan of preparing a batch (or two) over the weekend so I have homemade chicken for salads, soups, wraps, or pasta. But the great thing is that this recipe is ready in just 20 minutes, making it an easy addition to freshly prepared dinners any night of the week.
Why You’ll Love Oven Baked Chicken Breast
- Juicy and tender. No one likes dry and tough chicken. By pounding the chicken breasts to even thickness and baking them at a high temperature, you’ll ensure that they cook evenly and stay moist and succulent. You’ll love how the chicken melts in your mouth.
- Full of flavor. The simple spice mixture of garlic, onion, paprika, and Italian seasoning adds a ton of flavor and fragrance to the chicken. But feel free to customize the spices to your liking. Try adding some lemon zest, rosemary, or cumin for a different twist.
- So easy. This recipe is super easy to make. All you need is a few basic ingredients, a baking dish, and an oven – no need to marinate, sear, or flip. Just season and bake!
What You’ll Need
- For the chicken. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts.
- For the seasoning. Garlic powder, Italian seasoning, onion powder, paprika, parsley, salt, and pepper.
How to Cook Chicken Breast in the Oven
- Prep. Preheat your oven to 425˚F degrees. While the oven is heating, lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish.
- Prepare the chicken. Pound the chicken breasts flat with a mallet to an even thickness. Season both sides of the chicken breasts with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt, and pepper.
- Bake. Place the seasoned chicken breasts in your prepared baking dish and cook for 17-20 minutes. The chicken is done when the thickest part hits 165˚F on an instant read thermometer.
- Rest and serve. Take the chicken out of the oven and let it rest for 5-7 minutes. This will help keep in all the delicious juices. Garnish with a little fresh parsley and enjoy!
Recipe Tips For Perfectly Baked Chicken Breasts
- Pound the chicken. Pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness of about 1-inch. This will ensure even cooking and it also helps tenderize the chicken. If you don’t want to do this step, you can always purchase chicken cutlets, which are thinner than regular breasts.
- Internal temperature. Use an instant read thermometer; an internal temperature over 165˚F will result in dry chicken.
- Resting. Do not cut into the baked chicken right away; let chicken rest for at least 5 minutes so that the juices reabsorb into the chicken.
What to Serve With Oven Baked Chicken Breasts
Chicken is a protein that goes well with just about anything. You can prep a batch of these for sandwiches (I love a juicy chicken sandwich!) or use it as an ingredient in other chicken-forward dishes. Some of my favorites are chicken bacon avocado salad or chicken bacon ranch pasta. You can also pair baked chicken breasts with any kind of pasta, potatoes, veggies, soup, or salad. Sometimes I really just want a simple weeknight meal of baked chicken breasts, romano beans in garlic butter sauce, and easy oven roasted potatoes. But get creative! Chicken is a great base to develop any kind of meal you’d like!
Storing Leftovers and Reheating
- To store. Baked chicken breasts can be stored in an airtight container and kept in your fridge for up to 4 days.
- To freeze. To freeze leftovers, allow the chicken to cool completely. Then, store them in an airtight container and freeze for up to 6 months. A trick for easy portioning is to wrap each individual chicken breast in wax paper. Now you’ll have single serve, precooked frozen chicken breasts!
- To reheat. When reheating, you’re going to want to go low and slow for the best results. Let the chicken come to room temperature, then place it on a baking sheet tented with aluminum foil, and bake for about 25 minutes in a 225˚F oven. You can certainly reheat in the microwave, but this method has a tendency of drying out the chicken.
More Easy Chicken Recipes to Try
Juicy Oven Baked Chicken Breasts
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts boneless, skinless, 6oz
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp paprika sweet or smoked
- ¾ tsp salt
- cooking spray
- fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425˚F degrees.
- Lightly grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside. Pound chicken breasts to even thickness.
- In a small bowl whisk together garlic powder, Italian seasoning, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper.
- Place chicken in previously prepared baking dish and generously spray chicken on all sides with cooking spray.
- Season both sides of chicken evenly with prepared spice mixture.
- Bake for 17 to 20 minutes, or until thickest part of chicken breasts registers at 165˚F on an instant read thermometer.
- Remove from oven and let rest 5 to 7 minutes before slicing.
- Garnish with parsley and serve.
21 Comments
Carrie Robinson
Feb 11, 2020 at 5:16 pmThese look absolutely perfect! And that seasoning- yum! 🙂
Katerina Petrovska
Feb 11, 2020 at 8:30 pmThanks so much, Carrie! 🙂
Erin
Feb 11, 2020 at 5:21 pmSo simple but so good! Love how juicy they are!
Katerina Petrovska
Feb 11, 2020 at 8:33 pmThank you, Erin! 🙂 🙂
Trang
Feb 11, 2020 at 5:32 pmSo juicy! It really is hard keeping chicken breast juicy and not over baking it. I like that I can make a lot and freeze this.
Katerina Petrovska
Feb 11, 2020 at 8:34 pmThanks! Hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Sara Welch
Feb 11, 2020 at 9:15 pmWhat a delicious recipe! Definitely adding this to my dinner line up for the week; looks too good to pass up!
Katerina
Feb 12, 2020 at 9:55 amThank you, Sara! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Dorothy Reinhold
Feb 12, 2020 at 1:55 amNothing worse than dry chicken! This method looks perfect. I am loving your spice blend too.
Katerina
Feb 12, 2020 at 9:54 amThank you, Dorothy! 🙂
Toni
Feb 12, 2020 at 3:19 pmI love how juicy it looks! Can’t wait to give it a try!
Katerina Petrovska
Feb 13, 2020 at 2:03 pmI hope you enjoy them! Thank you! 🙂
Jacque Hastert
Feb 12, 2020 at 4:33 pmI love how juicy and simple these are when they are done. A great way to meal prep for lunch salads and such.
Katerina Petrovska
Feb 13, 2020 at 2:02 pmThank you, Jacque! 🙂
Tiffany La Forge-Grau
Feb 13, 2020 at 2:36 amThe oven is where chicken breasts belong. They really taste so good baking!
Katerina Petrovska
Feb 13, 2020 at 2:01 pmI agree with you! Thank you! 🙂
Martina
Oct 26, 2020 at 12:41 amHi I saw this recipe a few day’s ago and I thought I would try it. I normally don’t care for ck’n breast usually “too dry” but I followed your recipe to the letter they were jucily delicious. I am converted thanks for showing me how to prepare, make and enjoy.
Katerina Petrovska
Oct 26, 2020 at 7:39 pmThat’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Anmol Agrawal
Aug 14, 2021 at 10:52 amHow much pepper?
Debbie
Aug 22, 2022 at 3:55 pmEasy Pleasy! This is a great recipe for when I need something to whip up for supper in a jiffy!
Katerina Petrovska
Aug 29, 2022 at 12:15 pmI hope you’ll love it! Thank YOU! 🙂