The flavor of pizza adds excitement to this family friendly chicken dinner – and just like regular pizza, you can choose your toppings!
If you’ve been following this blog for a little while, you are likely familiar with Grace and Evie. They are my much-loved nieces and have spent many hours in my kitchen, providing nonstop entertainment along with expert recipe testing skills! So, it is truly a pleasure to share the latest installment of Fountain Avenue Kids, where they demonstrate a recipe it was clearly time to share!
Anyone who serves dinner to multiple people on the regular knows that one meal does not always please all.
To that end, flexible recipes that appeal to kids and adults alike can be a saving grace at the end of a busy day. Thanks to the many choices it affords, Pizza Chicken is one such recipe.
When creating this recipe with my nieces, I was also reminded as to the payoffs of engaging kids in the process from the beginning, even with the most basic questions:
- Which pan should we use?
- Is the flavor garnered from browning the chicken worth the few extra minutes it takes?
- Should we sauté some onion before adding the sauce? Garlic?
- What if we just put everything in a casserole dish and baked it?
- What kind of pasta should we serve it over?
- What would rice or another grain taste like?
- Or would we rather mop up the flavorful sauce with some crusty bread?
- And the really fun part: the toppings!
Just like adults, when kids have a say in the process, they are much more likely to buy into the meal–and to truly enjoy it. As the primary cook, we then feel appreciated, and that’s no small detail.
Pizza Chicken began as an easy dinner that Grace and Evie could take home on a night their parents were working late, and we talked about those options. I gave them my insight so they could make more informed decisions, but the final call was theirs.
Over time we tried the dish a few different ways, because you never know unless you try. The result is a dish that everyone loves, and you can feel the girls’ enthusiasm about that in the video we made.
In the end, they did decide that we should provide several options in the recipe, because not everyone likes the same things–just like with pizza toppings. And as someone wisely pointed out while we were cooking one day, different usually isn’t better or worse.
Accordingly, there’s an option to bulk up the sauce with sautéed vegetables (perfect for those who like their veggies to be somewhat hidden) or to add uncooked veggies as toppings before the pan goes into the oven.
The latter option allows individual diners to choose what they like and avoid the rest. Olives, pepperoni, hot or bell peppers (even anchovies Uncle Jack!) can go on individual chicken breasts and keep everyone happy.
Serve with a side of pasta, a green salad, and/or garlic bread. The dish is naturally gluten-free and can be kept that way through the use of gluten-free pasta and bread, if needed.
Simple ingredients come together easily for a filling, flavorful meal that can be customized to taste.
The chicken breasts are browned and then briefly removed to a plate before adding back to the sauce. Then the toppings are added, and the end result is a deliciously flexible dish – with few dishes to wash!
Grace and Evie have made this dish and taken it home to their parents. Preparing dinner is definitely a task that kids can feel proud of!
The sauce is so easy but so good. We like to serve pizza chicken over pasta – any shape or variety is fair game. I let the girls choose, and this time they chose Banza, a chickpea based pasta. Instead of pasta, you could serve the dish over polenta or a grain of choice. Or mop up the sauce with crusty bread.
We hope pizza chicken becomes an easy favorite in your house too–and if you cook it, please let us know!
A fun nutrition fact from our dietitian Emily:
Pizza often gets labeled as an unhealthy food, but it can be a fantastic way to increase vegetable intake. Beyond the tomato sauce, toppings like peppers, mushrooms, onions, and artichokes are just a few add-ons to pick from. A slice with a side salad is also a classic pairing. My family used to love ordering “salad pizza” which was literally salad on top of pizza – don’t knock it until you try it!
For those who are curious…
The reason we don’t list nutritional breakdowns next to each recipe is because the numbers can change significantly depending on brands people buy and how exact the measuring is. In saying that, if you email me separately, I can provide you with my best estimations on the nutrients you would like to know more about in this recipe. I’m happy to help!
Pizza ChickenPrep Time: 15 minutesCook Time: 20 minutesTotal Time: 35 minutes Yield: 4 servings
All the familiar pizza flavors come together in this easy chicken dinner the whole family will enjoy.
Ingredients
- 4 (6-8 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1½ – 2 pounds total)*
- ½ teaspoon each kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder
- Cooking spray or olive oil for the pan
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano*
- 1 (24-ounce) jar of your favorite marinara sauce (we like Rao’s)
- 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella or Italian blend cheese
- Toppings: (choose one or more) 12 slices pepperoni; ½ cup cooked and crumbled sausage; ¼ cup thin slices mini bell or banana peppers; ¼ cup sliced green or black olives; ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes; anchovies (some of us love them!); ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
- For serving: 8 ounces hot cooked pasta and/or Italian bread or rolls for mopping up the sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375℉.
- Mix the salt, pepper, and garlic powder together in a small bowl, and then use it to season both sides of the chicken.
- Sauté the chicken: Spray a large (about 12 inches wide), ovenproof skillet with cooking spray or drizzle it with 2-3 teaspoons olive oil (you want enough to lightly coat the surface of the pan), and then heat it over medium. When hot, add the chicken breasts and cook, undisturbed, for 2 to 3 minutes or until the surface is lightly golden brown. Flip and do the same to the other side. You want a little color on both sides, but the chicken shouldn’t be fully cooked at this point. Remove the chicken to a plate.
- Add the sauce: Pour in the pasta sauce and then sprinkle with the oregano. Bring the sauce to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and then remove from the heat.
- Add chicken and toppings: Place the chicken and any accumulated juices in the sauce, and then sprinkle the cheese over top, keeping it mostly on the chicken. Arrange the pepperoni, peppers, and/or other toppings of choice over everything. If using basil, wait to add that.
- Place the skillet in the oven and cook for 15 minutes, or until the chicken is just cooked through. A thermometer inserted in the thickest portion of the chicken should register 165℉. Precise time will depend on exact size of chicken breasts – check 5 minutes early for smaller pieces of chicken and allow for an extra 5 or so for very thick pieces.
- Sprinkle with fresh basil, if using, and enjoy with pasta and bread if desired.
- Leftovers will keep for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Using cutlets? Thin cutlets of chicken are about half the thickness of regular breasts and will cook quite quickly, so I don’t tend to use them for this recipe. If that’s what you have, sauté on the shorter end of the timeframe and check the chicken in the oven after about 5 minutes. You could also place the pan on the top rack to encourage some browning of the pepperoni within the shorter cooking time.
- Herb substitution: You may use ½ to 1 teaspoon of dried Italian seasoning instead of the dried oregano. Or use 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano instead of the dried.
- Option for extra veggies: After cooking the chicken and removing it to the plate, you may sauté 1-2 cups diced or sliced vegetables like onions, bell pepper, mushrooms, and/or roughly chopped spinach or greens of choice until tender. Then add the sauce and proceed as directed.
- Prep ahead option: Prepare through cooking the chicken, in this case cooking until the chicken is just cooked through the center. Then pour the sauce into a 9×9-inch or similar size baking dish. No need to grease the pan. Stir in the oregano and then proceed as directed, adding the chicken and any juices, cheese, and toppings. Cover and refrigerate until ready to bake. Let the baking dish sit on the counter while the oven is preheating, and then cook until hot throughout, about 25 minutes, give or take a few minutes.
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- 4 (6-8 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1½ – 2 pounds total)*
- ½ teaspoon each kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder
- Cooking spray or olive oil for the pan
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano*
- 1 (24-ounce) jar of your favorite marinara sauce (we like Rao’s)
- 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella or Italian blend cheese
- Toppings: (choose one or more) 12 slices pepperoni; ½ cup cooked and crumbled sausage; ¼ cup thin slices mini bell or banana peppers; ¼ cup sliced green or black olives; ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes; anchovies (some of us love them!); ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
- For serving: 8 ounces hot cooked pasta and/or Italian bread or rolls for mopping up the sauce
- Preheat the oven to 375℉.
- Mix the salt, pepper, and garlic powder together in a small bowl, and then use it to season both sides of the chicken.
- Sauté the chicken: Spray a large (about 12 inches wide), ovenproof skillet with cooking spray or drizzle it with 2-3 teaspoons olive oil (you want enough to lightly coat the surface of the pan), and then heat it over medium. When hot, add the chicken breasts and cook, undisturbed, for 2 to 3 minutes or until the surface is lightly golden brown. Flip and do the same to the other side. You want a little color on both sides, but the chicken shouldn’t be fully cooked at this point. Remove the chicken to a plate.
- Add the sauce: Pour in the pasta sauce and then sprinkle with the oregano. Bring the sauce to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and then remove from the heat.
- Add chicken and toppings: Place the chicken and any accumulated juices in the sauce, and then sprinkle the cheese over top, keeping it mostly on the chicken. Arrange the pepperoni, peppers, and/or other toppings of choice over everything. If using basil, wait to add that.
- Place the skillet in the oven and cook for 15 minutes, or until the chicken is just cooked through. A thermometer inserted in the thickest portion of the chicken should register 165℉. Precise time will depend on exact size of chicken breasts – check 5 minutes early for smaller pieces of chicken and allow for an extra 5 or so for very thick pieces.
- Sprinkle with fresh basil, if using, and enjoy with pasta and bread if desired.
- Leftovers will keep for up to 5 days.
- Using cutlets? Thin cutlets of chicken are about half the thickness of regular breasts and will cook quite quickly, so I don’t tend to use them for this recipe. If that’s what you have, sauté on the shorter end of the timeframe and check the chicken in the oven after about 5 minutes. You could also place the pan on the top rack to encourage some browning of the pepperoni within the shorter cooking time.
- Herb substitution: You may use ½ to 1 teaspoon of dried Italian seasoning instead of the dried oregano. Or use 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano instead of the dried.
- Option for extra veggies: After cooking the chicken and removing it to the plate, you may sauté 1-2 cups diced or sliced vegetables like onions, bell pepper, mushrooms, and/or roughly chopped spinach or greens of choice until tender. Then add the sauce and proceed as directed.
- Prep ahead option: Prepare through cooking the chicken, in this case cooking until the chicken is just cooked through the center. Then pour the sauce into a 9×9-inch or similar size baking dish. No need to grease the pan. Stir in the oregano and then proceed as directed, adding the chicken and any juices, cheese, and toppings. Cover and refrigerate until ready to bake. Let the baking dish sit on the counter while the oven is preheating, and then cook until hot throughout, about 25 minutes, give or take a few minutes.
A few older photos from pizza chicken nights!
