Caesar Chicken is the perfect melt in your mouth chicken recipe! It’s creamy, simple, and filled with flavor. This easy baked chicken recipe only has 4 Ingredients and takes less than 30 minutes to make. It’s one of the absolute best weeknight dinners out there.
What’s in this Melt in Your Mouth Chicken?
With just a handful of ingredients and 30 minutes to bake in the oven, this chicken dinner will be ready in no time!
- Chicken Breasts: Use boneless, skinless chicken breasts for this recipe. If they are on the thicker side, thin them out evenly.
- Caesar Dressing: Use your favorite creamy Caesar salad dressing. Or try making this homemade Caesar dressing recipe.
- Parmesan: Freshly grated Parmesan cheese will melt best.
- Black Pepper: Ground black pepper adds just a bit of spice into this dish. Simple but effective!
Feel free to mix in other spices and herbs if you’d like to change up the seasoning a little bit. You could also add red pepper flakes, rosemary or thyme, or garlic powder.
How can I make this caesar chicken extra creamy?
While you only need 3 main ingredients to make this baked chicken breast recipe (chicken, caesar dressing, cheese), there’s another ingredient that will make it extra creamy. Mixing sour cream into the dressing will add an extra bit of tanginess to the flavor, and it will really make this chicken melt in your mouth! It’s an optional ingredient though, so skip it if you prefer. Plain Greek yogurt would be a nice substitute if you want something lighter.
Chicken should always be cooked to an internal temperature of 165F before consuming. Use an instant read thermometer to check the center/thickest part of the chicken.
Baking chicken breasts in the oven at 375F will take about 30 minutes, plus a few minutes under the broiler.
Yes, any boneless chicken pieces will work well in this bake. Chicken cutlets, tenderloins, or even boneless thighs will work great.
If the sauce (dressing) starts to curdle, mix 1 tablespoon of flour into the dressing.
How to Store and Reheat Caesar Chicken
Store leftover baked chicken in an airtight container, and keep it in the refrigerator up to 3 days.
To reheat, place it back in the oven at 350 until it reaches an internal temperature of 165F.
How to Freeze Creamy Baked Chicken
Store creamy Caesar Chicken breasts in a freezer-safe container, and freeze it for up to 2 months. Thaw before reheating.
What to Serve with Caesar Chicken Bake
This melt in your mouth chicken is the perfect dish to serve for any weeknight dinner, and it goes well with almost any side dish. Start with a Kale Caesar Salad, and add some roasted mushrooms or Air Fryer baked potatoes. And don’t forget the dinner rolls! You could also mix in some Instant Pot rice to beef up the meal.
If you make this recipe be sure to upload a photo in the comment section below or leave a rating. Enjoy! You can also jump to recipe.
Baked Caesar Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1½ cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese divided
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup Caesar salad dressing (click for homemade recipe)
- ½ cup sour cream (optional)
Recommended Equipment
- 8×11½-inch Baking Pan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F and spray the inside of an 8×11½-inch baking pan with nonstick spray.
- If the breasts are uneven thickness, pound them (placed in a ZiplocK bag and on a flat surface) to an even ¾-1-inch thickness using a meat pounder.4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Sprinkle the breasts (both sides) with 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese and all of the freshly ground black pepper, and place them in the prepared baking dish.1½ cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Whisk together Caesar dressing and sour cream in a small bowl. Pour the Caesar/sour cream mixture over each breasts then sprinkle the remaining ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese on top.1 cup Caesar salad dressing, ½ cup sour cream
- Place the prepared chicken in the oven and bake at 375°F for 30 minutes, or until a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of one of the middle breasts reads 150°F.
- Turn the oven to broil and broil the breasts an additional 2-4 minutes, or until the chicken turns golden brown. It can burn quickly, so watch it closely. When done, a meat thermometer should register 165°F when stuck into the thickest part of one of the middle breasts.
- Remove from the oven, cover loosely with foil and allow chicken to rest 5-10 minutes before serving.
- If desired, garnish with chopped parsley.
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Becky’s tips
- Do NOT salt the chicken.
- If you find that the sauce seems to curdle, try mixing 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour into the dressing/sour cream mixture before adding it to the chicken.
Nutrition Information
I cooked this for book club night. It was a winner with the book club members and their families who they made it for subsequently. I have made it since, tweaking it to lessen the salt by using unsweetened yoghurt in place of the sour cream. Delicious!
I’m so happy to hear you all loved this recipe, Tessa! Thanks so much for sharing what substitutions worked well for you!
Does this call for the parmesan cheese you find in the bags near other cheese like cheddar, colby jack etc. Or the parmesan cheese that’s usually in the deli section in small round containers?
Hi Kristi, I always recommend freshly grating your own, but either kind will work in a pinch!
Made this a couple times and making it again tonight. And no, I didn’t embellish or change the recipe on any way. It is delicious just as written, thank you for this easy recipe.
I’m so happy to hear you love this recipe, Joe!
This looks delicious. I’ll make it tomorrow. Would it be OK if I halved the chicken breasts? We don’t eat large American-sized portions over here. Thanks in advance!
Yes, you can halve this recipe!
Or just make it and freeze what you don’t want to eat at one sitting for a super easy future meal 😁.
This recipe was so delicious and so easy to make, thank you for sharing. I’ve told 3 people about it the last hour. It’s a must make for me and will be on my table weekly ar monthly. Thank you!!!!
I’m so happy to hear you’re loving this recipe, Margaret!
Since just two of us…cut your recipe in half. YUMMY! Will be making this often. Thank you for sharing!
So glad you enjoyed this recipe, Laura!
This recipe checked all the boxes! Easy quick and delicious! We served with seasoned rice and fresh raw veggies. The left overs were put over angel hair pasta for lunch tomorrow 😁 I followed the recipe to the tee and it was perfect!
I’m so happy to hear you loved this recipe!
Was amazing
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Jessica!
Could I substitute the sour cream for Greek yogurt?
Yes, plain Greek yogurt should work well!
Everyone just loved this chicken caser I made it with a green salad and fresh summer fruit on the side! Would surely make it again
I’m so happy to hear you loved it, Andrea!
Sorry! My comment should have had 5 stars!☆☆☆☆☆