Gimme Some Oven

Baked Chicken Breasts

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My favorite oven baked chicken breasts recipe! It never fails me, thanks to this simple 5-step method that is easy to make and customize with your favorite seasonings.

Perfect Oven Baked Chicken Breast

A few weeks ago on Insta, I asked if you all might be interested in a back-to-basics series about the best ways to bake proteins (i.e. chicken, pork, steak, seafood, tofu, etc.) in the oven. Your answer? A resounding yes, please. Many of you had requests and questions about methods for cooking various proteins, plus more than a few tales to tell about proteins gone not-so-right over the years. And oh boy, I hear ya. My little kitchen has seen more than its share of overcooked steaks, completely dried out pork chops, salmon skin glued to pans, and not-so-crispy tofu over the years too. Which are never fun, especially since proteins can be pricey and intended for special occasions. But hey, it’s all part of the adventure of learning how to cook. And eventually, I’ve trial-and-errored my way to some basic methods for baking proteins that have become super-reliable, super-delicious staples in my kitchen.

So over the next two weeks, I thought we could work our way through each of them, beginning today with the #1 most requested protein here on Gimme Some Oven…

…chicken.

Specifically, boneless skinless chicken breasts.

Over the years, I’ve received countless requests for new chicken breast recipes, and many more for tips on how to bake chicken breasts in the oven. Because anyone who worked with chicken breasts before know that they can be incredibly versatile, yet also incredibly finicky to work with, especially when baked in the oven. Cook them the wrong way and you’ll end up with a dry, rubbery, tough, and flavorless disaster. But cooked the right way?! We’re talkin’ juicy, tender, flavorful, perfectly baked chicken breasts that you will love.

The good news is that they’re also totally easy to customize with your favorite seasonings or sauces. And also, incredibly easy to make with my 5-step baked chicken breasts method. Thousands of our readers have tried it over the years and reported back that this method was a game-changer with cooking chicken. So if you have yet to give it a try, let’s bake some chicken together!

Baked Chicken Breasts Recipe | 1-Minute Video

Baked Chicken Breast Ingredients:

To make this baked chicken breasts recipe, you will need:

  • Boneless, skinless chicken breasts: You can either purchase fresh chicken breasts (my preference) or frozen chicken breasts (which you will need to completely thaw before using). Some chicken also comes pre-brined nowadays, in which case you can skip step one below.
  • Butter or olive oil: Your pick! I like the extra flavor that butter adds, but olive oil will also work well.
  • Kosher Salt: An essential ingredient in our brine, and we will also use salt to season the chicken before baking.
  • Seasonings: I included an all-purpose blend of smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt and black pepper in the recipe below, which is super-simple and goes with just about anything. But feel free to sub in any dry seasoning blend that you prefer.

Also, if you bake chicken (or any other kind of baked proteins) regularly in the oven, I strongly having a cooking thermometer on hand too. It is the most foolproof way to ensure that your chicken is not over- or under-cooked, and works like a charm. I recommend either this:

  • Instant-read cooking thermometer (pictured below): which I have owned and used for years when cooking chicken, which retails for about $9.99 on Amazon.
  • Dual-probe wireless meat thermometer: which I also own and love because it can be used inside of a hot oven (especially helpful for baking steak, salmon and pork), which retails for about $24.99 on Amazon.

How To Brine Chicken to make Baked Chicken Breasts

Baked Chicken Seasoning Recipe

How To Bake Chicken Breasts:

Alright, so here’s the secret! To make perfectly baked chicken bbrrreasts, you simply need to follow this 5-step acronym: B.B.R.R.R.

  1. Brine
  2. Brush
  3. Rub
  4. Roast
  5. Rest

Brine (Step 1): I’m telling you — this step is an absolute must for anytime you want to bake chicken breasts in the oven. Brining chicken is super-easy, it makes your chicken extra juicy, and best of all, it can be effectively done in just 15 minutes. Plus, if you brine chicken in lukewarm water, it also helps bring the chicken to room temperature, which makes for more even cooking. Win-win!

To brine chicken, simply fill a big bowl with lukewarm (not hot) water. Stir in a handful of salt until it mostly dissolves. Then add your chicken breasts and let them sit in the saltwater to brine for at least 15 minutes. If you are doing this in advance, you can cover and refrigerate the bowl of chicken and saltwater for up to 6 hours. But you don’t want to let the chicken brine for much longer than that.

When you’re ready to go, remove the chicken from the brine. Give it a good rinse it with cold water to wash off the salt, and then pat it dry with some paper towels. And voila — your chicken is officially brined.

Really, don’t skip over this step! It makes a world of difference.

Note: That said, some store-bought chicken breasts are now sold pre-brined. So double-check your packaging beforehand. And if your chicken has already been pre-brined in a sodium solution, just move onto step two. :)

Brush (Step 2): Brush your chicken breasts with melted butter. Or at least, I highly recommend using butter. It adds great flavor and helps give a nice golden crust on the outside. But if you’d rather use olive oil (or another favorite cooking oil), feel free.

Brush the breasts liberally on both sides to prevent the chicken from sticking to the pan, and also to help the seasonings stick. Then place the chicken breasts in a large baking dish or roasting pan.

Rub (Step 3): If you’re really wanting to keep things simple, you can simply sprinkle some salt and pepper onto the chicken breasts. But again, chicken will pick up the flavor of whatever seasonings you add. So even if you’re making a simple dish that calls for “plain” chicken breasts, I highly recommend the simple chicken seasoning recipe I have included below that includes salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika.

Roast (Step 4): So this is the step that causes some squabbles amongst chicken lovers — how long to bake chicken breasts? And what is the correct temperature to bake chicken? Do you bake it low and slow (as in, 30 minutes at 350°F)? Or do you roast chicken high and quick (as in, 15 minutes at 450)? I have tested out both — and just about every interval in between — dozens upon dozens upon dozens of times. And in the end, I fall firmly in the latter camp when it comes to baked chicken.

I like to roast my chicken breasts on high heat.

Depending on the thickness of your chicken breasts, roasting chicken at 450°F should require a cooking time of about 15-18 minutes (depending on the thickness/size of your chicken breasts). It’s speedy and it’s easy. But mostly I love it because cooking at high heat quickly develops a nice crispier “crust” on the outside of the breasts, which also helps to lock in those juices and keep the oven roasted chicken perfectly tender on the inside. It’s the best of both worlds.

I highly recommend investing in a small cooking thermometer to measure the cooked chicken temp in order to tell if it is ready to go (the FDA says that the safe cooked chicken temp is 165°F), versus cutting into it with a fork, which lets those good juices seep out. I use this instant-read thermometer that I bought on Amazon for $10, and it will accurately measure your internal chicken temperature in seconds.

Rest (Step 5): This one is a non-negotiable. You must, must let your beautifully baked chicken breasts rest before cutting into them — a tip which applies to cooking any meat, really. If you cut in right away, you will lose all of the amazing juices and some of the tenderness that we’re going for. But if you give your freshly baked chicken breasts a brief rest, it will finish cooking and lock in all of those delicious juices, resulting in the most tender and juicy and delicious baked chicken.

I recommend loosely tenting a sheet of aluminum foil over the pan to keep the heat in while the chicken rests. And then after 5-10 minutes, you can finally serve and enjoy your perfectly-cooked chicken breasts.

And enjoy every last bite. 

Oven Baked Chicken Breast Recipe

How To Season Baked Chicken Breasts:

Again, I’m a big fan of the classic paprika-garlic-pepper mix in the recipe below. But if you’d like to mix things up, feel free to sub in any of your favorite dry seasoning mixes, such as:

How To Make Baked Chicken Breasts Recipe

How To Use/Serve Baked Chicken Breasts:

The easiest way, of course, is just to serve these roasted chicken breasts fresh outta the oven. But feel free to also slice, shred, or dice these oven baked chicken breasts for use in another recipe, such as these faves:

How To Store Baked Chicken Breasts:

Once the chicken has been baked, it can be stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Or you can freeze it for up to 3 months. (<– I recommend shredding, dicing or slicing the chicken before freezing for easier use.)

Perfectly Juicy Oven Baked Chicken Breast Recipe

Side Dish Recipe Ideas:

Looking for some side dishes to serve with this baked chicken recipe? Here are a few of my faves:

Baked Chicken Breast with Roasted Asparagus

More Baked Protein Tutorials:

Be sure to check out our tutorials for how to bake other meats, seafood and tofu too!

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Baked Chicken Breast Recipe

Baked Chicken Breasts

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 1304 reviews
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x

Description

Learn how to make juicy, tender, delicious baked chicken breasts with this simple 5-step method.


Ingredients

Scale

Instructions

  1. Brine the chicken. (Check the label of your chicken breasts. If they have already been pre-brined in a sodium solution, please skip this step.) Fill a large bowl with 1 quart of warm water and 1/4 cup kosher salt. Stir to combine until most of the salt is absorbed. Add the chicken breasts and let them sit in the mixture to brine for 15 minutes, or you can also also cover the bowl and refrigerate for up to 6 hours. Remove the chicken breasts from the brine, rinse them with cold water, then pat them dry with paper towels.
  2. Heat the oven. Preheat oven to 450°F.
  3. Season the chicken. Place the chicken breasts in a single layer in a large baking dish*. Brush on both sides (turning once) evenly with the melted butter or olive oil. In a separate small bowl, whisk the salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika until combined. Sprinkle the seasoning mixture evenly over the chicken on both sides.
  4. Bake. Bake for 15-18* minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink. Cooking time will depend on the thickness of the chicken breasts, so I recommend using a cooking thermometer to know exactly when the chicken is fully cooked. The thickest part of the breast should measure 165°F. (If you want the chicken to be a little bit browned and crispier on top, you can turn the broiler on high for the final 3-5 minutes of the cooking time and broil the chicken until it is cooked through and golden on top. Keep a close eye on the chicken, however, so that it does not overcook and/or burn.)
  5. Rest the chicken. Once the chicken is cooked, remove the pan from the oven, transfer the chicken to a clean plate, and loosely tent the plate with aluminum foil. Let the chicken rest for at least 5-10 minutes.
  6. Serve. Serve warm and enjoy!


Notes

Baking Dish: Please double-check the maximum temperature of your baking dish for this recipe. Glass dishes (such as Pyrex) usually have a maximum recommended temperature of 425°F, so we do not recommend using a glass dish for this recipe. You can also cook this recipe on a thick metal baking sheet.

Storage instructions: Cooked chicken can be stored in a sealed container and refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

How To Bake Chicken Breasts

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3,375 comments on “Baked Chicken Breasts”

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  1. I thought I would try this recipe to see if brining was worth the effort. Oh, my goodness – what a difference! The chicken was incredibly moist, and for a minimal amount of added effort. I will absolutely use this method from now on! I admit I used my own Hungarian chicken seasoning mix, in place of the salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika in the recipe – the result was too salty for my taste. Next time I will try different seasonings, including those suggested above as well as salt-free options.






  2. I am the WORST chicken cooker. Usually overcooked to heck. But ever since I started doing it this way…holy crap!! It comes out perfect!!!






  3. I used my own lemon rub with butter and both the flavor and the texture were amazing. Mine did not get golden within 18 minutes, so I just broiled it for 2 minutes and it was again, just amazing. Thanks for sharing the recipe!






  4. I followed this recipe almost to a T. The only thing I did not do was pound the chicken. I was skeptical. I thought 450 degrees, no way will it be juicy. I also used your classic paprika seasoning. The chicken was amazing! Juicy and tasty. My 7 year old, who prefers Mac n Cheese, had thirds!! Excellent recipe.






  5. Hi Gimmie, (Ali)
    I’ve been making hit or mis chicken for way to long,
    ur recipe is perfect every time.
    Thank you,
    Robert L.






  6. I love this method & recipe for chicken breasts!! Ever since I first tried it, it’s the recipe I use! So moist & flavorful! Thank you!






  7. I’ve used this method for chicken breasts for several years. It is hands down the absolute best way to cook chicken breasts. I use the cooked breasts for chicken salad, to add to green salads, tacos,…
    I also use the brining method before I put the chicken breasts in the slow cooker to make enchiladas.






  8. I would include in the instructions as noted when it mentions baking dish, to state at that time not glass, I hadn’t seen the foot note until it was in the oven for 10 minutes .

  9. Made this a few times and it’s perfect at 18 min 450F. The chicken is so juicy and tender even with just a 15 min brine.






  10. I discovered this recipe about a year ago, and we don’t make baked chicken breasts any other way now. Thank you for posting this!






  11. I told my husband I was never making chicken again….until I found this recipe. This is now my go-to recipe for baking chicken breasts. Turns out great every.single.time. Thanks, Ali!






  12. Great method but you must be cooking some tiny chickens to get them done in 18 minutes at 450.






  13. ALI,
    I’m a 66 yr. old single man. I’m not much of a cook, but now thanks to your B.B.R.R.R. recipe for chicken breast… even I can’t screw it up! Thanks!

    -BigBob






  14. So far tried 1 recipe & absolutely easy to do & taste is great ! Thank you






  15. worked perfectly. 15 min at 450. Came out excellent. Juicy and tender. My new go to recipe for baked chicken breasts!!

  16. What a difference the brine makes! I used the techniques set forth in this recipe and it turned out amazing. I made a dry rub of garlic powder, dried chopped onions, white pepper, brown sugar, paprika, ground mustard, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper and garam masala. I brushed the chicken with olive oil and then added the rub. Marvelous!






  17. This is the very best baked chicken recipe EVER. Fool proof, simple and you can serve it for any occasion. Have passed it along to many friends who have had the same reaction.

  18. WOW! This is the best recipe. Thank you so much for sharing. I am a single dad with a 14 year old boy who is pretty picky. I have to tell you not only did my son love this chicken (he ate two breast the first time,) but he thought it was so good he wanted to learn how to make it himself. It was a great bonding experience cooking with my son. Now we bake chicken breast at least once a week.






  19. I like this

  20. I love the way that it came out so juicy and moist. My only problem was that it was so, so salty. I don’t know what I did wrong.






  21. Just tried this in my new convection oven (thanks https://www.sweetesthome.ca/ for helping me choose the right one) and it was delicious. I liked how tender the chicken turned out, thanks for the recipe.






  22. Juiciest chicken I’ve ever made. My wife left the table mad because she couldn’t believe I made this chicken! No pussy tonight, but so worth it!






  23. I love chicken! And to that end, I am VERY picky about how it has to be. This recipe is so spot on, and extraordinarily easy that it has become my go-to on busy weeknights. When my hubby doesn’t have the time to grill, this is the best alternative I have found. I followed the directions to a T, and even added some of my own spices to jazz it a little on other days. (We eat a lot of chicken, so being able to dress this recipe for different flavor combinations is just awesome!) I have zero complaints, and thank you so much for an excellent and amazing recipe!!






  24. REALLY, REALLY GOOD! Moist and very delicious. I used the juices from the pan to make a milk gravy. My husband loved it and he does not alway love chicken breast.






  25. 15-18 minutes at 450F was way too short and the chicken was too raw. Needed over 10 more minutes to fully cook it, but then it was very dry.






  26. This was the best baked chicken breast I have ever made!!! My chicken never came out that great but your tips made all the difference. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!






  27. Love it and juicy chicken and i added coffee and it is amazing






  28. Use half as much salt.

  29. I only knew how to make mince and foil-bake salmon before I stumbled on your website. I followed the instructions with some help and it was among the most moist and tender chicken breast I have ever tasted – given that I did avoid eating them after some horrible experiences.

    I did some things differently:
    1. I bought some Lilydale chicken from Coles (Australia)
    2. let the package stand in room temperature (RT) for 30 minutes
    3. covered 2 breasts in a glass bowl with 2 measuring cups of lukewarm water, and added 2 tablespoons of fine salt to it, stirring the salt in to make the brine, and letting it sit for 15-20 minutes (so 1:1 ratio of 1 cup warm water to 1 tablespoon salt; I used measuring cups for all of these)
    4. drained the brine, patted it dry, washed with cold water, and then added oil to the glass bowl to mix (instead of brushing)
    5. lay out foil, place oiled chicken into foil, marinate with salt, pepper, paprika and garlic powder
    6. fold the foil into a package and put it on a tray into the oven
    7. 350F/180C for 25 minutes then let it rest for 5 mins

    It was absolutely moist and tender when we opened up the foil and cut it open. When we cut into it, it parted like thick jelly, and when we bit into it we were able to enjoy the fibre and juices sealed into the meat.

    Thank you for the recipe.






  30. I made this recipe exactly as published. It turned out perfect! I didn’t have an instant-read thermometer but I do now. I will make this one again and again!






  31. i followed your recipe and my chicken breast turned out great! thank you!

  32. I cooked the chicken breasts today and I loved them! Very tender and the rub was delicious! I cooked them 18 minutes as they were on the thinner side. I will always cook then like this! I may change seasonings around but the method is spot on! Thank you!

  33. This is the best recipe. I do not. Done my chicken. I just season with butter and seasoning and it comes out perfect after 15-18 minutes. I do pound the chicken just enough to get each piece even thickness
    I have made this dozens of times and it has been perfect each time even without brining.
    Serve with sone lemon butter sauce and brocoli and it’s a hit with my family
    Thank you for sharing.

  34. I love baked chicken recipes because they use less oil than the fried ones or no oils at all.






  35. I made this dish last night and it was amazing. It was simple to follow and will be doing it again very soon.

  36. The chicken turned out juicy, which is what I gleamed from this article, but it was too salty! To the point where it was almost not eatable. I substituted Malaysian Pink Salt for Kosher salt and left the breasts in the brine for ~4 hours. I followed the directions and used 1 tsp. of salt (Iondized, not Kosher salt) in the rub. What could I have done to make it turn out with the right amount of saltiness? Shorter time in the brine or cut back salt in the rub?






  37. The best, my breasts were big and I usually do not like breasts. They were awesome. ?






  38. Absolutely D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S!!!
    I had 4 large chicken breasts that were frozen. I put them into a large kettle with salted water and I did leave it in longer than 15 minutes (I forgot they were in there). Next I looked, they were thawed so I patted them dry and put them in the refrigerator until I was ready to make them. I mixed the seasonings together, buttered the bottom of the breasts, seasoned them and turned them over, buttering and seasoning the tops. Put them into a 400 degree oven for 25 minutes…soooo good and tender! Easy Peasy!!!
    THANK YOU!!!

  39. Finally, a way to cook tender, moist chicken breasts!! I have used this recipe for chicken for salad, sandwiches and to serve sliced, with a sauce. Even my husband, who wouldn’t eat white meat chicken, because he said it was too dry, loves it. I skip the brining, and find that it usually takes a little longer than 20 minutes for the chicken to reach 165 degrees.






  40. Followed instructions to a tee. Way too salty. Took about 30
    Minutes at 450. Chicken did turn out tender, but tasted too salty.






  41. Thank you for sharing this recipe! My other half, trying to be helpful, picked up and packaged for freezing our order of boneless, skinless chicken breasts for me. Not being the cook in the family, he had no idea I usually freeze 2, 3 breasts max in one bag. He packaged 6 breasts per freezer bag. ?‍♀️.
    This has left me struggling to cook 2-3 chicken recipes at once every time I thaw chicken out.
    Tonight while I was making chicken noodle soup I tried this recipe out to utilize the rest of the chicken in the hopes that it would be tasty and tender enough to be worth reheating. It was delicious!!! Tender, tasty, and super easy. Thank You!






  42. This is one of the best baked chicken recipes I have tried, and the brine makes all the difference. Just out of curiosity – why do you recommend not using a glass/pyrex baking dish? I used one and it came out perfect!






  43. This was delicious! I had 6 large boneless breasts, thick. I brined them for about 30 minutes. Brushed them with butter and doubled the spices. Baked @450 for 30 minutes in a glass baking dish. Flipped chicken over and spooned the juice over it, baked it for 15 more minutes. Thermometer was 165..covered with foil for 15 minutes. Perfect! Great recipe, thank you!






  44. I usually avoid chicken breasts and opt for thighs, but I tried this recipe last night for dinner and it was phenomenal! I will no longer be afraid of blah, dry chicken breasts.






  45. I usually do chicken breast’s in a pan on the stove, this was different. One question. Why CorningWear or even a metal pan over a Pyrex dish?

    • Nancy, this is probably due to the fact that Pyrex is no longer tempered like they used to be and at such a high heat they have been known to shatter when removed from the oven. Just a guess but hope it helps.

    • Omg I’m not even exaggerating!!!!! THE FREAKING BOMBBBBBBBBBBB

    • Didn’t read recipe carefully and did not rinse the brine. Also, didn’t add salt thinking I was saving a step. What a mistake!! Turned out too salty. My fault. Will try again because I was hoping for a better outcome as everyone else describes. Learned that I shouldn’t take shortcuts and to follow recipe instructions.

  46. Excellent!! Moist and delicious!






  47. Does this method work on the outdoor gas grill too?






    • The best method I have found for chicken breasts on the grill is, heat your grill on medium heat. When good and preheated, turn down to low place your chicken breasts. Cook with the lid closed for 6 minutes and flip, cook for another 6. If on the thicker side for about 7 minutes each. They always come out tender and juicy for us that way.






    • Absolutely, do it regularly on the Weber

    • Can chicken breast with bone be used instead “boneless chicken? Will the outcome be the same?

  48. Thank you for sharing this recipe! Best, most moist and tender chicken I’ve ever made. My kids and husband loved it. Thank you!!!






  49. Brining the chicken was new to me. The results were fantastic. Moist and tender baked chicken! A simple, yet flavorful recipe. Definitely a keeper!

  50. My go to recipe for baked chicken breast. I hate dry chicken and used to stay away from chicken breast for that reason. But when baked according to this recipe, the chicken is so juicy and moist.






    • I didn’t pound the chicken before brining it, is it still alright if I pound the 4 breasts after brining? Thanks!!!