Baked Chicken Breasts
Baked Chicken Breasts
My favorite recipe for oven-baked chicken breasts! This 5-step method is simple to follow and can be customized with your favorite spices.
Ingredients for Baked Chicken Breast
You will need the following ingredients to make this recipe:
- Buy boneless and skinless chicken breasts. You can buy either fresh breasts of chicken (which I prefer) or frozen breasts. (Frozen breasts will need to be thawed completely before use). In some cases, chicken is already brined. If this is the case, you can skip to step 1.
- Choose between Butter or olive oil! Olive oil is also good, and I prefer the flavor butter gives.
- Kosher Salt is an essential ingredient for our brine, so we will also use it to season the chicken prior to baking.
- The recipe below includes a super-simple blend of smoked paprika and garlic powder with salt and black pepper , then it goes well with almost anything. Feel free to substitute any dry seasoning mix that you like.
If you regularly bake chicken or any other baked protein in the oven, it is also important to have a thermometer. This is the easiest way to make sure your chicken doesn’t get overcooked or undercooked, so it works perfectly. I recommend this:
- Instant-read thermometer: I’ve owned this for many years and use it every time I cook chicken, because it costs about $14 at Amazon.
- Dual-probe Wireless Meat Thermometer: I own this thermometer and use it all the time. It can be used in a hot oven, which is great for cooking steak, salmon, and pork. Plus, it beeps or sends an alert to your phone.
How to Bake Chicken Breasts
Here’s the trick! Follow this acronym to make perfect baked chicken breasts: B.B.R.R.R.
- Brine
- Brush
- You can also rub
- Roast
- Rest
Brine (Step 1) This step is a must for anyone who wants to bake chicken breasts. Brining is easy, makes the chicken juicy and can be done in 15 minutes.
Fill a large bowl with warm water half-full. Add a few handfuls of salt and stir until they are mostly dissolved. Add ice or cold water to cool the water. then add your chicken breasts to the brine and let them soak in it for 15 minutes. You can refrigerate and cover the bowl with chicken and saltwater for up to six hours if you do this in advance. You don’t want the chicken to brine any longer.
Remove the chicken from the brine when you are ready to leave. Rinse it well with cold water to remove the salt. Then, pat it dry using some paper towels. Your chicken is now officially brined.
Don’t miss this step. This step makes all the difference.
Some chicken breasts sold in stores are now pre-marinated. Double-check the packaging before you start. If your chicken is already pre-brined with a sodium solution, then you can skip to step 2. 🙂
Brush (Step 2): Brush the chicken breasts with melted Butter. Or, at least, I recommend Butter. Butter adds a great flavor to the dish and creates a golden crust. You can use any cooking oil you like, including olive oil.
Brush both sides of the breasts to avoid the chicken sticking to the pan and to ensure that the seasonings adhere. Place the chicken breasts into a large roasting pan or baking dish.
Rub (Step 3). If you want to keep it simple, sprinkle some salt and black pepper on the chicken breasts. The chicken will take on the flavors of any seasonings that you add, even if your dish calls for plain chicken breasts. The recipe below includes garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper.
This is the step where chicken lovers get into a squabble — for how long should chicken breasts be baked? What is the right temperature for baking chicken? What is the correct temperature to bake chicken? Do you roast the chicken quickly (say, 15 minutes at 400) or high and slow? I’ve tried both, and every time interval between them dozens, dozens, dozens of different times. In the end, when it comes down to baked chicken, I’m firmly on the other side.
Roasting chicken breasts at high heat is my favorite.
Roasting chicken at 450degF will take 15-18 minutes, depending on the thickness and size of the chicken breasts. It’s fast and easy. It’s not just the speed but also the ease. Cooking at high temperatures quickly creates a crispier “crust,” which helps seal in the juices. The best of both worlds.
I recommend buying a small thermometer for cooking to check the temperature of the chicken. (The FDA states that the safe cooked-chicken temp is 165degF). This is better than cutting it open with a knife, which will let the juices escape. This instant-read chicken thermometer will accurately measure the internal temperature of your chicken in seconds.
Rest (Step 5). This is a must. Let your chicken rest for at least 15 minutes before you cut into it. This tip is applicable to any meat. You will lose the juices that make the chicken so tender and delicious if you cut into it right away. If you let your chicken breasts rest for a few minutes, they will finish cooking and seal in all the delicious juices. This results in the juiciest, most delicious and most tender baked chicken.
To keep the heat inside the pan while the chicken is resting, tent the pan with a sheet of aluminum foil. After 5-10 minutes, you can serve your perfectly cooked chicken breasts.
Enjoy every last morsel.
How to Season Baked Breasts
Again, I’m a big fan of the classic paprika-garlic-pepper mix in the recipe below. If you want to spice things up, try substituting any of your favorite dry spices, like:
- Italian Seasoning
- Cajun Seasoning
- Za’atar seasoning
- Taco Seasoning
- Everything Bagel Seasoning
How to Use/Serve baked chicken breasts
You can serve the roasted chicken breasts straight from the oven. You can also use these oven-baked chicken breasts to make another recipe.
- Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Chicken Souvlaki
- Chicken Parmesan Baked Ziti
- Enfrijoladas
- Healthy Curry Chicken Salad
- Asian Chicken Chopped Salad
- Herb-Loaded Chicken Noodle Soup
- Five Ingredient White Chicken Chili
- Creamy Chicken Marsala soup
- Easy Chicken Posole Verde
How to store baked chicken breasts
After the chicken is baked, you can store it in a sealed container for up to three days in the fridge. You can also freeze the chicken for up to three months. For easier use, I suggest shredding or dicing the chicken.
