Garlic and Herb Crusted Chicken Breast
Garlic and Herb Crusted Chicken is the tastiest and easiest chicken dinner around. Juicy, succulent chicken breasts topped with golden-brown buttery breadcrumbs and packed with flavour. This recipe is sure to please the pickiest eater.
Winner winner chicken dinner! I love a good quick and easy meal and my recipe for Baked Garlic and Herb Crusted Chicken Breast ticks all the boxes. Infused with homemade garlic herb butter and topped with a golden crumb, these chicken breasts are truly succulent.
Instructions
Garlic and Herb Chicken is so simple to make! The chicken is baked in the oven (not fried!) and it’s all in one dish. There are a couple of tricks that make this meal super special.
- First, you make a very simple compound butter with fresh herbs and garlic.
- Second, (and this is the secret for MAXIMUM flavour and juiciness) you cut deep slashes into the chicken breasts and rub them with the butter mixture.
- Next, you top the breasts with fresh breadcrumbs, and then it’s all into an extra hot oven to bake up to golden brown deliciousness.
Why this recipe works
Cutting deeply into the chicken breasts allows the flavour and butter to penetrate deeply into the meat. This means no more dry chicken breasts, just mouthwateringly tender chicken in every bite.
Cooking the chicken breasts quickly, at a high heat stops them from drying out. It’s still enough time to cook them through and to ensure the crumb topping is golden, but this chicken is truly ready in a flash.
What to Serve with Garlic Herb Chicken
I always include some juicy, summery cherry tomatoes in the pan as well as some sliced red onion. On the side, I like to make a big pot of mashed potatoes with sweetcorn and a little lemon zest (sounds odd, but I LOVE it).
Obviously, you can’t beat a fresh and crisp green salad as a side dish, but steamed beans or broccoli are a healthy and tasty option.
If you want to do everything in the oven, you could cube up some potatoes, toss them in a little oil and but them in the oven too.
Scale up or down as needed
I love recipes like this, where you can feed two people or twenty. Simply scale the amounts of ingredients up or down to suit your needs.
If you are serving this dish for a dinner party, it’s useful to trim the breasts to a uniform size. I serve 200g (7 oz.) chicken breast per person. The offcuts are great for using in stir fries (like my Honey and Ginger Chicken), so I always save them up in a freezer bag until I have enough for a meal.
Prepare it in advance!
Dinner party perfection! You can prep these chicken breasts up to a day in advance. Simply let them warm up for about 20 minutes before popping them in the oven, and dinner is ready with no fuss. That means you can spend less time in the kitchen and more time with your friends and family. Win-win, am I right?
Be sure to take the chicken out of the fridge at least 20 minutes before cooking for best results
Change it up
I’ve used extra chicken-friendly herbs here, parsley, rosemary and thyme. You can use whatever you have in your garden. Dill is lovely with chicken, (definitely serve that with a Classic Greek Salad) or you could try basil and oregano too.
Want to add some extra cheesy deliciousness? Grate some parmesan into the breadcrumbs and you’ve got yourself Parmesan Crusted Chicken (so good.)
Butter makes everything better
This butter and crumb topping isn’t just for chicken, in fact, it is actually inspired by a very popular crumbed fish recipe here in Germany, called ‘Bordelaise’.
Try it on your next sheet pan dinner, fish, pork, turkey or even vegetables are wonderful with this topping. The butter is also amazing on a freshly grilled steak too. The herbs and garlic infuse everything with so much flavour.
The herb and garlic butter is the secret to this delicious recipe. It flavours the chicken while keeping it amazingly moist and succulent.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can I prepare Garlic and Herb Crusted Chicken in advance?
You surely can. You can make the butter mixture up and keep it in the freezer for 3 months +. You can assemble this dish completely up to 24 hours in advance and simply cook it when you need it.
PRO TIP: Let the chicken warm up for at least 20 minutes before cooking, otherwise it won’t cook evenly.
I can only find extra-large chicken breasts (U.S and Australia!) – what should I do?
I always cut large chicken breasts down into manageable portions. Especially if you are having a dinner party or serving multiple courses, any more than around 200g / 7 oz. or meat per person is a bit much.
Save the off cuts in a freezer bag and use them for stir fry. My Honey Ginger Chicken recipe is ideal for this purpose.
How can I tell if the chicken is cooked?
At this temperature, if you have followed the recipe correctly, the chicken is almost certainly cooked. If you are at all unsure,
I use and thoroughly recommend an Instant Read Digital Thermometer like this one. The chicken should reach an internal temperature at the thickest part of 68°C / 165°F.
Looking for more easy chicken dinner recipes?
I love cooking with chicken! Try the famous Chicken Marbella recipe from the Silver Palate. Fancy a summery salad? How about my Chicken and Farro salad recipe?
Garlic Herb Crusted Chicken Breasts
My recipe for Baked Garlic and Herb Crusted Chicken is the tastiest and easiest chicken dinner around. With juicy, succulent chicken breasts, golden-brown buttery breadcrumbs and sweet cherry tomatoes, this recipe is sure to please the pickiest eater.
Ingredients
- 75 g unsalted butter, r, softened
- 2 Tbsp fresh rosemary, leaves chopped
- 2 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- small bunch of fresh parsley, diced
- 2 fat cloves of garlic
- 800 g boneless and skinless chicken breasts, (200g / 7 oz. each)
- 5 Tbsp fresh breadcrumbs
- 250 g cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- 2 small red onions, sliced into thin wedges
- 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
for the potato corn mash:
- 1 kg floury potatoes, peeled and quartered
- 4 Tbsp canned sweetcorn
- 125 ml full cream milk
- optional: finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
- PREPARE: Heat the oven to 220° / 425° F / Gas 7. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the potatoes until tender. Add the sweet corn to the pot in the last 5 minutes of cooking. Meanwhile, proceed with the recipe.
- MAKE THE GARLIC HERB BUTTER: In a small bowl, mix the softened butter with herbs and garlic, and season with salt and pepper.
- SEASON THE CHICKEN: Cut 5 or 6 long, deep slashes into the chicken breasts, then rub half of the garlic herb butter over the chicken breasts, being sure that it gets right down into the slashes.
- MAKE THE CRUMB TOPPING: Add the breadcrumbs to the remaining butter and use a fork or your fingers to rub the butter into the breadcrumbs.
- ASSEMBLE: Transfer the chicken breasts to a baking dish. Spoon a quarter of the crumb mixture over each breast, pushing down gently on it. Scatter the tomatoes and onions around the chicken breasts, drizzle with olive oil and season with a little salt and pepper.
- BAKE: Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, until the crumb is golden brown and the chicken is cooked through.
- SERVE: Drain the potatoes and mash. Add milk until the desired consistency is reached and season with salt, pepper and lemon zest (if using). Divide the potatoes, chicken, tomatoes and onions between four warmed plates and serve immediately.
Notes
If you are unsure about whether the chicken breasts are cooked or not, I recommend an Instant Read digital thermometer like the one below.
Recommended Equipment
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Nutrition
Serving: 1breast | Calories: 704kcal | Carbohydrates: 65g | Protein: 52g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 172mg | Sodium: 395mg | Potassium: 2135mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 1098IU | Vitamin C: 76mg | Calcium: 145mg | Iron: 5mg
Tried this recipe?I’d love to hear how it went! Please leave a review or a star rating and let me know how it was! Use the hashtag #daysofjay on Instagram so I can see your delicious creations.
Delicious. So easy to prepare for unexpected guests 😁
I am so happy that you like this one, it is one of my favourites! 😍
How do you avoid the crust burning if the chicken needs longer to cook?
Should I cover it with foil first for a short period then uncover for the final 20/25 mins?
Hi Katrine! That should work fine, be sure to only loosely tent the chicken with foil, otherwise the trapped steam could make the crumb soggy. Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! J.