Pizza Chicken – one pan, 5 ingredients!

At a glance

What stands out: This straightforward five ingredient, one-pan pizza chicken is a weeknight lifesaver. It’s a crowd-pleasing dinner!

How long it takes: 5 minutes to prep, just over an hour in the oven
Equipment you’ll need: large baking dish, oven
Servings: 6

We know pizza and lighter eating aren’t exactly synonymous. This recipe is more balanced than a big ol’ pizza. The trick is to dress up a plain chicken breast and making it taste like pizza.

Pizza chicken is ridiculously straightforward and it’s become a speedy go-to recipe in our home. We know you’re going to feel the same way about it. Not only is this pizza baked chicken a five ingredient recipe but it’s also made in one baking dish so cleanup is straightforward.

Straightforward Baked Pizza Chicken

Five minutes to prep. It’s a simple hot dish that takes literally five minutes to prep. It requires about an hour in the oven but that’s all hands-off time. See why we like it? It’s easier to make than tuna noodle casserole, another crowd pleaser.

Flavorful sauce. The chicken bakes in a mixture of pizza sauce and diced tomatoes. The sauce keeps the chicken juicy and flavorful. A couple of minutes before you take it out of the oven, add mozzarella cheese and pepperoni which make this hot dish feel like a serious treat.

John Said:

“we made the pizza baked chicken tonight, it was great! We would make this for company. Thanks!”

See More Reader Reviews

What goes in

• Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts: If you prefer dark meat, substitute boneless skinless chicken thighs. The chicken is lightly seasoned with salt and pepper.
• Canned Diced Tomatoes & Pizza Sauce: Look for low/no sodium tomatoes to reduce the amount of added salt. You’ll need a 14 ounce jar of sauce. If you’d rather make your own, try this from-scratch pizza sauce recipe. Marinara or spaghetti sauce is fine, too.
• Shredded Mozzarella Cheese & Sliced Pepperoni: These are pretty classic pizza toppings but you can customize this hot dish just like you would your pizzas.
• Cooked Pasta, if desired

How it comes together

Combine the pizza sauce and tomatoes in the pan. Nestle the chicken breasts into the sauce and season lightly with salt and pepper.

Bake for about an hour or until the chicken reaches at least 165°F when you insert an instant read thermometer near the center.

Sprinkle on the cheese and arrange the pepperoni on top. Broil for a few minutes or until the cheese is melted and the pepperoni does that lovely curling thing.

We like to eat this dish with cooked pasta but if you have a more lighter eating mindset (go you!), it’s memorable with zucchini noodles.

Serve with a side salad dressed with Italian dressing and warm Italian bread with dipping oil. We recommend tasty roasted broccoli to serve as a side dish.

Ways to change it

• Add more vegetables. ALWAYS! Chop some spinach and stir it into the sauce. Or you could top the chicken breasts with a vegetable instead of pepperoni. Try sautéing mushrooms, bell peppers, or onions and adding those. There are always good ways to add vegetables. We also love this served with zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash.
• Make it faster. We haven’t tested it, but if you used chicken tenders or butterflied your chicken and put it in a slightly larger pan, you could cut down on the cooking time.

If you like the idea of straightforward dinners with only a few ingredients, check out our collection of 5 ingredient dinner recipes.

Keeping leftovers

Refrigerate/Freeze: Leftover pizza chicken can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days. It also can be frozen for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.

Reheat: Reheat on the stove in a skillet, in the microwave, or in the oven.

Leftover Love

Make a pizza chicken sub sandwich. Butter and toast sub sandwich buns until lightly browned. Add chicken (sliced, chopped, or shredded) and leftover sauce. Sprinkle on additional cheese and pepperoni or any other toppings you like. Broil until cheese is melted and chicken is heated through.

• Yield: 6
• Prep: 5 minutes
• Cook: 1 hour 5 minutes
• Total: 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes (undrained)
• 1 jar (14 ounces) pizza sauce
• 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts (more or less is fine)
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons shredded mozzarella cheese (more if desired)
• 12 slices pepperoni
• fresh basil or parsley (optional garnish)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray a baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Choose a baking dish that will accommodate the chicken in a single layer.
2. Stir together tomatoes and pizza sauce in prepared pan.
3. Place chicken on top of sauce and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Nestle chicken down into sauce.
4. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until chicken registers to 165°F when checked with an instant read thermometer.
5. Sprinkle with cheese and place pepperoni on top. Bake for 3 to 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted. Broil if desired to brown cheese and pepperoni.
6. Serve immediately, sprinkled with fresh parsley or basil. Serve with cooked pasta of your choice.

Notes

Chicken: If you prefer dark meat, substitute boneless skinless chicken thighs.

Pizza sauce: Use from-scratch pizza sauce to reduce sodium, if desired.