How to Make Delicious Italian Chicken Recipes

Italian chicken dishes are a crowd-pleasing way to add flavor and variety to your weeknight dinner rotation With just a few simple ingredients, you can transform basic chicken into something sensational. From baked chicken breasts to saucy crockpot creations, there are many easy ways to make chicken Italian style

Getting Started with Ingredients

Most Italian chicken recipes call for similar ingredients. Having these on hand will allow you to whip up an Italian-inspired chicken dinner anytime.

• Chicken breasts or thighs – Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs work well for quicker cooking Italian chicken dishes. Chicken on the bone and skin adds flavor for dishes with longer cook times

• Italian dressing – Bottled Italian dressing provides signature Italian herbs and spices like oregano, basil, garlic, and red pepper flakes for fast flavor.

• Cheese – Parmesan, mozzarella, provolone, or Italian blend shredded cheese can be used to add creamy texture.

• Pasta sauce – Jarred marinara or Alfredo sauce lends rich Italian taste.

• Vegetables – Onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, spinach, and zucchini make great additions.

• Pasta – Serve chicken over spaghetti, penne, or fettuccine for a complete meal.

Easy Oven Baked Italian Chicken

One of the simplest ways to make Italian chicken is with an easy oven baked recipe. By marinating chicken in Italian dressing, you can skip a lot of the prep work and let the flavors do the job.

An Easy Italian Chicken recipe from AllRecipes coats boneless chicken breast halves with bottled Italian dressing before baking. The chicken marinates for at least 1 hour or up to overnight. Then, the chicken bakes at 350°F for about an hour until cooked through. The website recommends serving it over pasta or rice.

You can use regular or reduced fat Italian dressing in this easy recipe. Other quick oven-baked Italian chicken ideas include topping with mozzarella, breadcrumbs, or spinach and baking until melted and browned. Serve with pasta or roasted vegetables.

Simple Sautéed Italian Chicken Breasts

Quick weeknight dinners call for fast cooking methods like sautéing. This technique can make flavorful Italian chicken in about 30 minutes.

For example, Taste of Home’s Simple Italian Chicken requires just 15 minutes of active cooking time. Boneless chicken breasts are seasoned with Italian dressing mix and then sautéed in olive oil for 5-6 minutes per side. Tomatoes, garlic, basil, and mozzarella are added during the last few minutes of cooking.

To make this recipe even easier, look for pre-chopped fresh garlic and pre-diced tomatoes at the grocery store. Serve the chicken with pasta tossed in a bit of the pan sauce for an easy weeknight dinner.

Slow Cooker Italian Chicken

While the oven and stovetop allow you to make Italian chicken breasts in under an hour, slower cooking methods can infuse the chicken with even more flavor. Using a slow cooker or Instant Pot takes little hands-on time, and the chicken slowly simmers in the sauce for tender and juicy results.

For example, the Saucy Italian Chicken recipe on HuntingPA.com cooks chicken and salad dressing flavoring in the slow cooker for a few hours before adding cream cheese, soup, and mushrooms for a rich, creamy sauce. Serving this over rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes results in the perfect comfort food.

Other fun slow cooker Italian chicken recipe ideas include Italian chicken noodle soup, chicken cacciatore, chicken parmesan, and chicken marsala. The options are endless for inventive Italian chicken in a crockpot recipes.

Baked Italian Chicken Parmesan

Chicken Parmesan is one of the most popular Italian chicken dishes. While traditionally fried, baking instead of frying creates a lighter, healthier version that still delivers on flavor.

Most chicken Parmesan recipes follow the same method. Chicken breasts are breaded with Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs or panko, then topped with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. After baking until the chicken is cooked through and cheese is melted and browned, it’s garnished with basil and Parmesan.

Serve baked chicken Parmesan with spaghetti and garlic bread for a classic Italian dinner. You can also use chicken thighs or cutlets instead of whole breasts. Quick tips for the best chicken parm include salting the breaded chicken before baking, using high-quality Parmesan, and tenting with foil if cheese browns too quickly.

Easy Italian Chicken Soup

Using already cooked Italian-seasoned chicken is a shortcut for making Italian chicken soup. Adding chicken, broth, tomatoes, spinach, pasta and seasonings makes a fast weeknight dinner or healing cold-weather soup.

An Italian Chicken Soup on The Cookie Rookie blog uses this timesaving method. Start with shredded rotisserie chicken and chicken broth. Sauté onions and garlic, then add spinach, pasta, fire-roasted tomatoes, seasonings and the cooked chicken. Simmer until the pasta is tender for an easy 30-minute soup.

Use mini farfalle or small pasta shapes in soups to ensure the pasta cooks through. Garnish bowls of the finished soup with Parmesan cheese and crusty bread for a satisfying meal.

Easy Ways to Add Italian Flavor

Beyond core ingredients like Italian dressing, pasta sauce and seasonings, there are other easy ways to make chicken taste Italian:

• Use Italian-style breadcrumbs – Fresh breadcrumbs tossed with Italian seasoning blend adds instant flavor when breading chicken.

• Sauté greens – Spinach, kale, broccoli rabe or other greens sautéed in olive oil with garlic and red pepper flakes.

• Make it creamy – Stir in ricotta cheese, mascarpone, heavy cream or pesto for richness.

• Add sun-dried tomatoes – Oil-packed or dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes add concentrated tomato flavor.

• Use Italian herbs – Fresh basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary and thyme boost flavor.

• Include olives – Salty black or green olives provide Italian flair.

• Toss with Italian vinaigrette – Marinate or drizzle chicken with this flavor-packed salad dressing.

With minimal time and effort, you can easily make Italian chicken for any meal. Start with boneless chicken breasts for quick cooking options or use bone-in chicken and slower braising methods for more flavor. Keep Italian dressing, tomato sauce, cheese and seasonings on hand so you can whip up chicken cacciatore, chicken Parmesan or other Italian favorites anytime.