This Bruschetta Chicken has chicken breasts that are pounded thin and coated with crispy breadcrumbs, then topped with melted mozzarella and a quick tomato-basil sauce. This is the perfect dish to enjoy the bounties of the summer!
I love the simplicity of anything with tomatoes and basil – like this Margherita Pizza. This chicken recipe showcases that simplicity is delicious!
I recently decided to remake and rephotograph this recipe from 2013. (I actually do this a lot – there are some gems in the archives!)
The recipe was originally called Chicken Margherita. But as I made it, I kept calling it Bruschetta Chicken in my head. So I decided to do some research to find out if it was more Margherita or Bruschetta.
And I came away with the conclusion that they both have very similar ingredients. But I decided to stick with bruschetta, since I’m not using tomato sauce, but chopped tomatoes.
I could be totally off, but I do know that this is delicious and is perfect for a weeknight! Especially in the summer when you have garden fresh tomatoes and basil.
Ingredients
- Tomatoes: Garden fresh is best, but if using store bought, I’ll grab Roma tomatoes.
- Basil: You definitely want fresh basil here. I usually just buy the plants they sell in the produce area and keep it on my counter, using what I need.
- Red Onion: The red onion is mild enough to eat raw, so it’s the best choice here.
- Oil: You will actually need oil twice. A little bit of olive oil for the topping, plus some oil to fry the chicken in. I chose to use avocado oil for frying the chicken, but you can use any neutral oil, like vegetable or canola.
- Vinegar: You want balsamic vinegar for the topping to keep with the bruschetta flavor.
- Chicken: You need three chicken breasts to make 6 servings. You’ll cut each in half. But you want to make sure they are all approximately the same size so each portion is close to the same.
- Panko: I love the crunch you get from panko breadcrumbs, but feel free to swap in traditional breadcrumbs if you prefer them.
- Eggs: I use large eggs.
- Flour: The flour just helps the egg to stick to the chicken.
- Mozzarella: Fresh mozzarella is best here. The kind I can find is pre-sliced, so I just add those slices to the top of the chicken. If you can’t find fresh, you can use grated mozzarella, but I’d make sure it is freshly grated.
- Balsamic Glaze: This is optional and can be added to your chicken before serving. I LOVE balsamic glaze, so it’s an easy yes for me, but can easily be left off.
How to Make Bruschetta Chicken
STEP 1: Make the topping first. Simply combine all of the topping ingredients and mix to combine.
STEP 2: Take each of the chicken breasts and butterfly them open, cutting them into 2 thinner slices of chicken each. Then, working with one at a time, place the chicken between pieces of plastic wrap (it also works well to use a ziplock bag) and pound with a meat mallet to make the chicken even. It will be a fairly thin piece of chicken, which helps it to cook faster, more evenly, and keeps it juicy.
STEP 3: It’s time to bread the chicken! Take the chicken and dip it into the flour, coating both sides, but shaking off any excess. It will be a thin layer of flour.
STEP 4: Dip the chicken in the eggs. Make sure all of the chicken is coated so that the breadcrumbs will stick.
STEP 5: Last step is the breadcrumbs. If they don’t stick well, you can use your hands to press them into the chicken.
STEP 6: Transfer the chicken to hot oil to shallow fry. Cook for 2-3 minutes per side. The chicken will be mostly cooked through, but don’t worry if it’s not completely up to temp. It will still go into the oven for the cheese to melt and will continue to cook at that point.
STEP 7: Once all of the chicken is cooked, place on a cooling rack over a baking sheet, and top with cheese. Transfer to the oven to bake until the cheese is melted. To serve, top with the tomato basil mixture and drizzle with balsamic glaze.
Tips and Tricks
You can make the tomato basil topping earlier to make prep time a little faster. Just keep it covered in the refrigerator until needed.
I like to sprinkle the chicken with a bit of kosher salt right when it comes out of the pan.
If you aren’t going to serve all of the chicken right away, wait to top with the cheese until you are reheating the chicken. I like to reheat the chicken in the air fryer, but I don’t add the cheese until part way through the time so that it doesn’t all melt off of the chicken.
More Weeknight Chicken Dinners
Chicken Pesto Pasta
Chicken Quesadillas with Refried Beans
Chicken a la King
Instant Pot Honey Garlic Chicken
Skillet Chicken with Garlic and Herbs
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Bruschetta Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 plum tomatoes diced
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- 3 tablespoons chopped red onion
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (8-10 oz each)
- 2 cups panko breadcrumbs
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- Oil for frying (I used avocado oil)
- 8 oz fresh mozzarella cheese cut into slices
- Balsamic glaze optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Place a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the tomatoes, basil, red onion, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. Season to taste with salt and pepper.3 plum tomatoes, 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, 3 tablespoons chopped red onion, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, Salt and pepper
- Butterfly each of the chicken breasts, making 6 thinner pieces of chicken. Working with one portion at a time, place it between two pieces of plastic wrap and pound it thing with a mallet until it is an even thickness. Repeat with the remaining chicken.3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Place the panko breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl. (I like to use a pie plate.)2 cups panko breadcrumbs
- Whisk the eggs in a second shallow bowl.2 eggs
- Place the flour in a third shallow bowl.1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- Heat about 1/4 inch depth of oil in a large skillet. (I like to use cast iron because it heats evenly.) Heat to about 350ºF.Oil
- Working with one piece of chicken at a time, dip the chicken into the flour, lightly coating the chicken, shaking off any excess. Next, dip it in the egg, fully coating in egg. Last, dip it into the panko, making sure the chicken is fully coated.
- Place the chicken in the hot oil. You’ll want to do this in batches – I like to just fry 2 pieces at a time.
- Cook until the breading is browned, about 2-3 minutes per side. The chicken should mostly be cooked through, but it’s ok if it’s not quite there. But it should be close. Transfer the chicken to the baking sheet with the cooling rack. Repeat with the rest of the chicken until all of the chicken is fried.
- Divide the mozzarella cheese evenly over the pieces of chicken. Place the pan in the oven and cook until the cheese is melted, about 5-7 minutes.8 oz fresh mozzarella cheese
- To serve, place a piece of chicken on a plate and top with the tomato mixture. Drizzle with balsamic glaze, if desired.Balsamic glaze
Teri Jo says
Absolutely delicious!
Nutmeg Nanny says
Oh yum!! This dish looks incredible, my husband would love this for sure 🙂
Melanie @ Just Some Salt and Pepper says
These sound perfect for summer !
Jennifer @ Mother Thyme says
Love this! I definitely need to add this to our dinner menu and I bet my hubby will be asking me to make this again too.