Perfect Baked Chicken Breasts
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Perfect Baked Chicken Breasts are juicy, tasty, and so simple to make. With this easy chicken recipe, your dinners will always be delicious!
You may also like our juicy baked pork chops or our juice baked chicken thighs. Turn this into a meal with a creamy cucumber salad!
Perfect is a big word, but these baked chicken breasts live up their name. They are tender and juicy and ridiculously delicious.
They are a recipe that I've been making for a while now but never wrote it down. It's my go-to easy chicken recipe for when I need to get a healthy dinner on the table stat.
A few weeks ago, when my dad joined us for dinner, I served these baked chicken breasts. He loved them so much that he made me promise I would share the recipe here on the blog. So this recipe is for you, dad. And for all my favorite people who want to learn how to make juicy chicken breasts.
Why you'll love this baked chicken breast recipe
- Truly juicy chicken. That's right, you won't find any dried out chicken breasts here. (I've got a couple of tricks to make sure that doesn't happen.)
- Super flavorful. The simple rub is made from pantry staple spices and is so delicious.
- The āsauce' that you'll find at the bottom of the pan when you pull these chicken breasts out of the oven is insane. In the best way possible. Pour it over the chicken and anything else you're serving these with.
- From start to finish they will be ready to eat in about 20 minutes. And I've got some ideas for quick sides that you can pop in your oven and cook alongside the chicken so that everything is ready at the same time.
- Some baked chicken breast recipes call for sugar in the ingredients, which I think is silly. The paprika and butter in this recipe give this chicken the perfect amount of natural sweetness. No unhealthy sugar needed!
How long to bake chicken breasts
Knowing how long to bake your chicken breasts is one of the biggest tricks in making sure they are nice and juicy. Because chicken breasts are lean meat, they can overcook and dry out easily.
You want to cook your chicken breasts for 18 minutes at 425 degrees.
Cooking chicken breasts on high heat for a shorter amount of time will help keep them juicy and delicious.
We are always so scared of undercooking chicken (with good reason) that we tend to overcook it. I've tested the 18 minutes at 425 degrees trick many many times and it's always perfectly cooked.
If you want more reassurance, the best thing to do is pick up an instant-read meat thermometer. I love mine and use it all the time. As soon as the middle of the chicken breast reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit it is safe to eat.
How to bake chicken breast
Other than knowing how long to keep the chicken breasts in the oven, there are a couple of other tricks I have for making sure they live up to their title of being perfect.
- Pan size. Yes, size matters. For the juiciest chicken breasts, choose a baking dish that is just the right size for the number of chicken breasts you're cooking. You don't want too much room around them or the juices will evaporate and the chicken will become dry. (It's the same trick I use for making my Juicy Baked Pork Chops.)
- Use butter. Yes, butter. It creates a sauce that is so flavorful. I brown it first (which is really easy) then pour it over the chicken. While you can opt for oil if dairy isn't your thing, butter adds the most flavor.
- Add a little water. A couple of tablespoons will do. This helps prevent the chicken from drying out and makes sure that you have a little sauce to pour over once it's cooked.
Quick sides to serve with this oven baked chicken breast
To turn this into a truly quick and easy dinner recipe, you'll need a side that can be prepped once you put the chicken in the oven and only takes a few minutes to cook.
My favorites are quickly sauteed green beans (with a little garlic) or this Sauteed Asparagus with Garlic and Parmesan recipe. Here are a few others that I love:
- Sauteed Green Beans with Garlic (these are the green beans you see in some of the pictures)
- Miso Butter Roasted Radishes
- Spicy Honey Roasted Carrots
- Garlic Bacon Mushrooms
- The Best Greek Salad
- Perfect Basmati Rice
- Easy Cauliflower Rice
If you'd like potatoes with your dinner, try these Smoky Roast Potatoes. Pop them in the oven 25 minutes before the chicken so they have time to cook.
When the weather is hot, make sure to check out our Best Grilled Chicken Breast Recipe. It's the summer version of this one and it really is the best BBQ recipe!
And when you feel like switching things up, try our Juicy Baked Chicken Thighs or Juicy Baked Pork Chops!
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Easy Chicken Recipes
- Peanut Butter Chicken
- Asian Chicken Sheet Pan Dinner
- Grilled Chicken Cobb Salad with Warm Bacon Vinaigrette
- Saucy Peanut Chicken with Broccoli and Peppers
- Baked Sesame Ginger Chicken
- Healthy Baked Chicken Nuggets (paleo + gluten-free)
- Juicy Baked Chicken Thighs
Perfect Baked Chicken Breasts Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons paprika
- 1 tablespoon EACH: onion powder and garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon EACH: chili powder, oregano, salt, and pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter (sub oil if you don't eat dairy ā see notes)
- 4 boneless chicken breasts
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a small bowl, mix together the paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, oregano, salt, and pepper.2 tablespoons paprika, 1 tablespoon EACH: onion powder and garlic powder, 1 teaspoon EACH: chili powder, oregano, salt, and pepper
- Heat an ovenproof pan over high heat. Once it's hot, add the butter and let it melt then immediately remove it from the heat. The butter will brown almost instantly over high heat.2 tablespoons butter
- Place the chicken breasts in a bowl and pour the browned butter over the top. Sprinkle the spices evenly over both sides of the chicken. Place the chicken and any butter (it will solidify) into the pan you used to brown the butter. Add 2 tablespoons of water to the pan.4 boneless chicken breasts
- Bake the chicken uncovered for 18 minutes, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees. (Use an instant-read meat thermometer to check this.) Let the chicken breasts rest for 5 minutes. Spoon the juices from the bottom of the pan over the chicken and serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
Kristen… My husband has Familial hypercholesterolemia. Its very hard to cook for him and keep it fun. I substituted olive oil margarine for the butter and it worked wonderfully. We loved it. Thank you so much. ā¤
Okay, this recipe resulted in the juiciest chicken I’ve ever made.
In a word, wow!
It turned out a little more salty than expected though I feel I measured exactly.
I will def make this again following the recipe and if it is again a little salty, I’ll cut back a bit.
BTW, this is from someone 2ho likes things satly
Easy and delicious. I always brine the breasts for 30 minutes before prepping and putting them in the oven.
The most perfect and delicious chicken Iāve ever made! I love how easy this was to make and less mess and cleanup than cooking it on the stovetop. Hubby was raving about how tasty and juicy the chicken came out. Thank you for this wonderful recipe that Iāll be using for the rest of my life!
Can I use margarine instead of butter?
While we haven’t tried it, I’m sure it will work just fine.
This recipe is the BEST of every single recipe I have EVER tried for getting tender chicken breasts. THANK YOU SOOOOOOO MUCH! I have done everything-from soaking them in buttermilk to air-frying- NOTHING worked. I want to print the recipe and laminate it. Oh my goodness! The TIPS were also helpful. I never knew that you use a smaller pan if you Ā only have a few pieces of chicken. I still cannot believe it! One chicken breast was 1.5 inches thick- AND IT WAS TENDER THROUGHOUT! I always sprinkled the seasons on separately. It worked to already have the mixture prepared. The best tip was the explanation to use a higher temperature to cook the breasts. No wonder mine were always tough and dried out. I thought a slower cook would give more flavor. Thanks again for completely changing my life!!!
I made this today, and the chicken breast came out sooooo juicy and tender! š¤¤
My whole family loved it!!
Thank you for this amazing recipe, I recommend everyone to try it <3
OMG!!! This recipe is so good!!! Baked chicken thigh and served it on top of a rose cream cheese spaghetti and all my guests loved it!!! It is a go to recipe from now on.
The chicken came out juicy as stated with a lot of flavor!
Pretty darn good and super easy !
Is it ok to flip the chicken halfway?
No need to flip the chicken!
I use the high temp and small baking pan, but my chicken is marinated with small amt of olive oil and spices to my choosing. Works great!! I never knew about the high temp cooking method before! So grateful this was here!!
Too little salt and too much paprika. At least the chicken is cooked through and juicy
Sounds delicious and plan to make tonight! We are doing the whole30 diet, so if I use ghee instead of butter, should I add more salt? Ā
It will probably be ok without adding more salt. You can always add a little flaky sea salt at the table if you think it needs it. š
Strange. My chicken was not even close to cooked at 18min. Maybe something wrong with my oven?
Your oven temp might be lower – it’s common for temperature to vary. Also, chicken breasts do vary widely in size and it yours were large they will take longer to bake.
I tried this recipe about 2 weeks ago to prepare chicken breast for a casserole. Ā I make tasty chicken in the oven ALL the time, but Iāve never used browned butter (usually EVO)- the butter makes it even better! Ā The breasts turned out SO perfectly moist, Iāve used this recipe about 5 times since then (swapping ārotisserie chickenā for this recipe). Ā Iāve subbed the chili & paprika with curry & turmeric with excellent results, too. Ā We all LOVE it, especially my husband & picky 3 year old. Ā So thankful I stumbled across this! Thank you!!!! Iām excited to try more of your recipes ā„ļø