Back Pocket Baked Chicken (You Need This Easy Recipe!)
A little olive oil rub, followed by a perfectly simple spice blend, and you’re halfway to the most flavorful and tender baked chicken. We’ve explored many variations of spices, and have landed on a balance of savory with a tiny hint of sweet (surprise!) that yields the most juicy and delicious baked chicken breast.
How To Bake Chicken
Brine your chicken breasts. This can be done for at least an hour, and up to overnight.
Preheat the oven to 450°F with a rack in the center position.
In a small bowl, make your spice rub.
Transfer the chicken to a plate and pat dry. Brush with olive oil and season all over with the spice rub.
Bake! Arrange chicken in a 9x13-inch baking dish and bake for about 18 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.
Broil! Cook until the tops are golden brown, about 3 minutes more.
Hot Topics For Baked Chicken
You want the juiciest, most tender, finger-licking good chicken breast, right? Here’s our tips to get just what you’re looking for.
Brine: Why brine chicken breast? It seems like an unnecessary step, right? We strongly advise you not to skip this step. Brining chicken breasts helps the meat retain moisture as it cooks.
Pat dry: Should you pat dry chicken breasts? Yes! This might feel like just another finicky step that might take a tiny bit of extra time, but trust us, it yields a lovely golden brown top! Pat, pat, pat!
Time: How long to bake chicken breast? Our recipe calls for a bake time of about 18 minutes, but every chicken breast is a little different. This is why an instant-read thermometer is a real lifesaver. The chicken breasts get a final toast under the boiler to enhance their golden crispy glow.
Temperature: Is it better to bake chicken at 350 or 375 or 400 or 450? Since we’re using skinless and boneless chicken breasts for this recipe, we recommend baking in a hot oven so the chicken breasts cook evenly and yield tender and juicy meat. You’ll want to avoid overcooking the chicken (no dry chicken breasts here!), and the most surefire way to make sure you get perfectly baked chicken breasts is to use an instant-read thermometer. Baked chicken temperature should reach 165°F.
What Should I Serve with Baked Chicken?
We can think of one million different tasty ways to enjoy baked chicken, but the easiest is to think of it as a building block for a really great meal. Roasted vegetables like Roasted Fennel, Roasted Carrots, Roasted Onions, or Roasted Beets would all make jazzy sides. Build a bowl with a foundation of Lemon Rice, or Coconut Rice, plain White Rice, and even beautiful Jeweled Rice would all make a great start. Or top your favorite salad–Simple Italian Salad or Caesar Salad to name a couple–with baked chicken for a healthy and delicious meal.
Tools You’ll Need
Instant-read thermometer–not absolutely necessary, but really helps take the guesswork out of baking chicken breasts
Paper towels
More Recipes To Help You Learn Cooking Basics
We believe that kitchen confidence comes from making recipes like our easy baked chicken recipe, and we encourage you to keep flexing your cooking muscle with these great kitchen fundamentals:
Share Your Home Cooking Success Stories
Did you make our best baked chicken recipe? Show us your stuff with a quick snap and maybe even a video of the beautiful people you feed it to. Tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper. Happy eating!
