Chicken breasts with a cheddar-crumb topping, nestled in a creamy pesto sauce on a bed of roasted cherry tomatoes. This Easy Baked Pesto Chicken is a mouth-watering easy dinner that doesn't require any pre-cooking. Just add it all the dish and bake.

baked pesto chicken in a white tray on a blue background. Spoon sticking out of the dish.

One-pan cooking doesn't have to be all about same-coloured food that spends all day in the slow cooker. Whilst I am a huge fan of coming home to a meltingly tender pork ragu or spicy chicken curry, sometimes we're out too early to start something cooking, and home too late and don't have a lot of time, but still want a delicious meal.

It's those days when you need a meal like this. All cooked in one tray, you can have a beautiful meal on the table in half an hour - and two-thirds of that time can be spent sat on the sofa enjoying a cup of tea.

The textures and flavours will make you so happy you skipped the beans on toast!

What do we need?

Ingredients for baked pesto chicken on a wooden table

How to make this Pesto Chicken

***Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.***

Chop up cherry tomatoes and mix with a little cornflour, salt and pepper, then stir in garlic, stock and pesto.
Top the tomatoes with chicken breasts and spoon a little pesto on each, then sprinkle on some grated cheddar.
Add my seasoned panko mixture (see the recipe card)
Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
If you like, sprinkle on a few pine nuts halfway through the cooking time (Note: I'm adding them halfway through because I've tested this recipe and they'll burn if they're in the oven for the whole time).
Once cooked, stir a little cream into the sauce.

8 image collage showing how to make baked pesto chicken

Sprinkle with a few fresh basil leaves before serving.

Close up of baked pesto chicken in a dish with a spoonful being taken in the background.

What to serve it with

baked pesto chicken on a white plate with tagliatelle pasta. Dish of pesto chicken just in shot. Dishes are on a blue background.

Ingredient swaps

Try swapping out the pesto for harissa and adding olives for a spicy version.
Try swapping the pesto for barbeque sauce and throw in some chorizo for a smoky version.

More Italian Inspired Recipes

Lasagne
Spaghetti Bolognese
Tomato Risotto
Chicken Parmesan
Chicken Alfredo Pasta Bake
Tuscan Chicken Soup
Pizza Fries < OK not really that Italian but I think it qualifies as Italian inspired!

Close up of baked pesto chicken on a plate, sliced into strip and served with tagliatelle.

Watch how to make it

This recipe was first posted in October 2014. Updated in November 2020 with new photos, video and improvements to the recipe.

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Hi I’m Nicky

I love to cook and I want to share with you my favourite, delicious family friendly recipes. I want to inspire you to create fantastic food for your family every day.