Baked Pepperoni Pizza Chicken
Baked pepperoni pizza chicken turns your favorite flavors into an easy, family friendly meal sure to become a new favorite! This delicious dish features perfectly cooked chicken smothered in sauce, cheese, and pepperoni.
I cannot tell you how many times per week I hear, “Mom, can we have pizza for dinner?”
It’s a lot.
And as much as I love pizza night, doing it all the time is a budget buster.
But this pepperoni pizza chicken saves me a few dollars, is easy to make, and pleases my pizza loving family.
So you can bet it’s on my table at least once a week with no complaints from anyone.
Ingredients
To make this you’ll need:
- Chicken breasts– Trimmed of fat
- Pizza sauce– Your favorite jarred kind or homemade pizza sauce
- Seasoning– Oregano, salt, and pepper
- Olive oil– Extra virgin
- Mozzarella– Shredded
- Pepperoni– The pre-sliced kind works perfectly in this
How to Make
This cheesy chicken is so easy to throw together!
To do it, simmer the pizza sauce in sauce pan over low heat for 5-8 minutes or just until it’s slightly reduced and some of the water has cooked out.
While the sauce reduces, season the chicken breasts with the salt, pepper, and oregano.
Then, heat the oil in a large cast iron skillet set over medium heat.
Once the oil’s hot, add the chicken and sear for 1 minute on each side.
Then, remove the skillet from heat and pour the sauce evenly out over the chicken.
Top the seared chicken evenly with the cheese, and then the sliced pepperoni.
Bake at 400° for 25-30 minutes.
Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven, and let it rest for 5 minutes.
Serve and enjoy!
What to Serve with Pepperoni Pizza Chicken
I normally serve this with a side of spaghetti and garlic bread, but you could also serve it with a big salad or some roasted veggies of your choice to keep it low carb friendly.
Storing Leftovers
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Reheat until warmed through in a hot oven.
Tips and Tricks
- Don’t skip simmering the sauce! It helps some of the water cook off the sauce, making it thicker and preventing it from getting watery when poured over the chicken and baked in the oven.
- While you don’t absolutely have to sear the chicken, I highly recommend taking the extra step. Searing locks in the juices, keeping the chicken tender and moist while baking.
- Let the chicken rest after it’s baked, this helps the cheesy topping set up so it won’t all slide off when you go to serve it.
- Worried your chicken might not be cooked through? Insert a meat thermometer into the middle of the thickest part of the thickest breast, it should read 165F when the chicken is safely cooked to temp.
Other Easy Chicken Recipes
Baked pepperoni pizza chicken is a dish any pepperoni pizza lover will adore!
Make it and enjoy!
Looking for other easy chicken recipes?
Try these:
- Baked Russian Chicken
- Easy Chicken In Wine Sauce Casserole
- Lemon Feta Sheet Pan Chicken
- Marry Me Rosemary Dijon Chicken
If you’ve tried this BAKED PEPPERONI PIZZA CHICKEN, or any other recipe on the site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!
Baked Pepperoni Pizza Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 large chicken breasts trimmed of fat
- 1 14 oz jar pizza sauce
- 1 tbs dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella
- sliced pepperoni
Instructions
- Add the pizza sauce to a sauce pan, and let it simmer over low heat for 5-8 minutes- just until slightly reduced and some of the water has cooked out.
- Season the chicken breasts with the salt, pepper, and oregano.
- Add the oil to a large cast iron skillet set over medium heat. Once the oil's hot, add the chicken and sear for 1 minute on each side-flipping in between, just until nicely browned.
- Remove the skillet from heat, and pour the sauce evenly out over the chicken.
- Top evenly with the cheese, and then the sliced pepperoni.
- Bake at 400° for 25-30 minutes.
- Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven, and let it rest for 5 minutes.
- Serve & enjoy!
Notes
- Don't skip simmering the sauce! It helps some of the water cook off the sauce, making it thicker and preventing it from getting watery when poured over the chicken and baked in the oven.
- While you don't absolutely have to sear the chicken, I highly recommend taking the extra step. Searing locks in the juices, keeping the chicken tender and moist while baking.
- Let the chicken rest after it's baked, this helps the cheesy topping set up so it won't all slide off when you go to serve it.
- Worried your chicken might not be cooked through? Insert a meat thermometer into the middle of the thickest part of the thickest breast, it should read 165F when the chicken is safely cooked to temp.
Nutrition
