BAKED PIZZA CHICKEN – The most rewarding aspect of maintaining a blog for over a decade has been witnessing the evolution of my own culinary style and technique. My Pepperoni-Stuffed Chicken was among my earliest viral hits. The recipe was delicious, but it required far too much time and effort for modern-day Beth to make. If you’re craving pizza chicken but don’t want to make the dough, try this baked pepperoni chicken instead.

It’s great for weeknights because of how quickly it cooks (approximately 30 minutes) and how well it keeps in the fridge for prepping meals. I think you’ll agree with me that the absence of breading, filling, and frying in this updated version is a major plus. I served my Chicken Pizza Bake with some Homemade Garlic Bread and a green salad on the side.

So that supper doesn’t become a major production, I prefer to keep my side dishes uncomplicated. The remaining 5 minutes or so of the chicken’s cooking time can be used to bake the garlic bread.Pizza chicken would also taste delicious atop a bed of pasta smothered in tomato sauce. Making a chicken sandwich out of this Baked Pizza Chicken is another enjoyable option. Just use a roll, some additional pizza sauce, and maybe some sliced red onion and eat it like a meatball sub!The best mozzarella to use is fresh mozzarella (the kind packed in water), which melts nicely but can be costly.

You can save a tonne of money on it as I did if you happen to live near an Aldi. If you can’t find fresh mozzarella at a reasonable price, full-fat mozzarella (not packed in water) is the next best thing. You can also substitute part-skim mozzarella if you really need to. Dryer and not as smoothly melting as whole milk, part-skim will suffice in a pinch.Sure! If you wish to use toppings other than pepperoni, I recommend cutting them very finely so they stick to the cheese and don’t slide off. Black olives, chopped bell pepper, and red onion would make fantastic additions.

Ingredients:

Have a 400 degree Fahrenheit oven ready. Mix 2 tablespoons of olive oil with 1 tablespoon of Italian spice blend, 1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/8 teaspoon of salt, and a pinch of salt.

Cover a cutting board with plastic wrap, and set two chicken breasts (each weighing about 2/3 lb) on top. Pound the chicken to an equal thickness of about 3/4 inches using a mallet or rolling pin. This ensures that the chicken bakes quickly and uniformly.
I always halve my chicken breasts because 1/3 of a pound is a LOT of chicken for one dish. When I want two pieces that are roughly the same shape as the original, I like to cut on the diagonal.
Spread the chicken out on a baking dish or sheet with a shallow edge, leaving about an inch of space between each piece. Spread the oil and Italian herbs all over the chicken. Prepare an oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and bake the chicken for 15 minutes. While the chicken is in the oven, cut up 4 ounces of fresh mozzarella.

After 15 minutes, remove the chicken and top each piece with roughly 1 tablespoon of pizza sauce. Coat the chicken with the sauce and bake.Then, top each chicken breast with two slices of pepperoni and about 1 ounce of fresh mozzarella.

To get the chicken to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, put it back in the oven for another 5 to 7 minutes. After 5 minutes, mine reached 163 degrees Fahrenheit; I left it in the oven for another minute or two. The overall time required to cook the chicken will vary depending on its size and how long it was removed from the oven while the toppings were being added.

After that, your Chicken Pizza Bake is done. Wow, that was simple and fast! Indulge in the tender chicken, creamy mozzarella, aromatic Italian herbs, and fiery pepperoni!

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