This grilled chicken margherita with pesto is a healthy, flavorful meal featuring juicy grilled chicken breasts topped with mozzarella cheese, chopped tomatoes, and a homemade basil pesto. It's one of my favorite quick and easy chicken recipes, perfect for a busy weeknight!
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Why this recipe works
I'm always looking for quick and easy chicken recipes. Especially ways to add more flavor to grilled chicken breasts. One of my go to recipes for grilled chicken is Greek chicken souvlaki, but there is a marinade involved there that I don't always have time for.
Sometimes I just want a quick chicken dinner that I can put together in under 30 minutes. This dish is perfect for those nights without sacrificing on flavor!
It is based on Olive Garden's grilled chicken margherita and gets a punch of flavor using some of my homemade basil pesto. I it make in batches and freeze it just for meals like this, but store bought will work too.
What is grilled chicken margherita?
This dish is a spin on margherita pizza which features fresh mozzarella, tomato sauce, and basil. It's also similar to caprese salad which traditionally features tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, and basil topped with a drizzle of olive oil.
In this recipe we're topping grilled chicken breasts with mozzarella and tomatoes and using a flavorful pesto to bring in the basil element. It's a great way to add tons of flavor to grilled chicken breasts.
Ingredients
- Chicken breasts
- Mozzarella cheese - You can use fresh mozzarella or a block of low moisture mozzarella. I would not recommend using pre-shredded mozzarella.
- Chopped fresh tomatoes - I used cherry tomatoes but romas or plum tomatoes would also work well.
- Italian Seasoning
- Salt and Pepper
- Basil Pesto
- Parmesan Cheese - optional for topping
How to prepare chicken breasts for grilling
When grilling chicken breasts I always recommend flattening them to an even thickness to help them cook more evenly. This will help prevent the tail end from drying out before the chicken is cooked through.
To flatten the chicken, place a piece of plastic wrap or waxed paper about 18 inches long on a cutting board. Place a chicken breast on the plastic wrap towards one end. Then fold the other end over the chicken.
Using a kitchen mallet or heavy skillet, pound the chicken out to an even thickness, somewhere around ¾ of an inch thick.
Cooking the chicken
- After flattening the chicken, lightly coat it with olive oil then season with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
- Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. Then cook the chicken for around 3-4 minutes per side until cooked through
- Use an instant read digital thermometer to ensure the chicken is cooked to an internal temperature of 165° F.
- In the last minute or two of cooking top the chicken with the mozzarella cheese and close the lid to allow the cheese to melt.
- Top with the chopped tomatoes, a heaping tablespoon of pesto, and some finely grated parmesan cheese before serving.
What to serve with margherita grilled chicken
This margherita chicken recipe packs a ton of flavor! It goes great with a simple grilled veggie on the side like asparagus, broccolini, or zucchini. You can make it right alongside the chicken so there are no additional pots or pans to clean.
It's also great on top of pasta. To make margherita chicken pasta, add the pesto to a bowl of pasta noodles and stir to coat the noodles. Then top with the cheesy grilled chicken, chopped tomatoes, and grated parmesan cheese..
This also makes an awesome grilled chicken caprese sandwich. To make, spread the pesto on a toasted ciabatta bun and add the grilled chicken and tomatoes.
Can I bake margherita chicken?
This dish is also great in the oven. It's a perfect way to boost the flavor of baked chicken breasts. To bake, season the chicken then bake at 375°F for around 20 minutes.
In the last few minutes of cooking remove the chicken from the oven and top with the cheese then return to the oven to finish cooking.
Once the cheese has melted and the chicken is cooked through, remove from the oven and top with the tomatoes and pesto.
As with grilling, you'll want to use a digital thermometer to make sure they reach an internal temperature of 165°F.
Can I make this without pesto?
Yes, absolutely! This dish is similar to chicken bruschetta where the chicken is topped with marinated tomatoes. If you want to skip the pesto, you can easily alter this recipe to make grilled chicken bruschetta by marinating your chopped tomatoes.
For this just toss the tomatoes in 2 tablespoons of olive oil, along with 1-2 cloves of minced garlic, 1 teaspoon of dried Italian seasoning, a ½ teaspoon of salt, and a little freshly ground black pepper. Let them marinate while you prepare the chicken.
After cooking your chicken top with the marinated tomatoes and serve. For even more flavor you can drizzle with a balsamic glaze.
More weeknight chicken dinner recipes
- Mediterranean Chicken Orzo with Sun-dried Tomatoes and Spinach
- Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole (Without Soup!)
- Creamy Chicken Florentine
- Baked Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Thyme
- Enchiladas with Green Sauce
- Creamy Tuscan Chicken Pasta
- Easy Creamy Chicken Marsala
📖 Recipe
Grilled Chicken Caprese with Pesto
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts
- 1 cup low moisture mozzarella, shredded, or 4 slices fresh mozzarella
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, chopped, romas or plum tomatoes would also work well.
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 2 teaspoons Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup basil pesto
- finely grated Parmesan cheese, optional for topping
Instructions
- Flatten the chicken by pacing it between a piece of plastic wrap or waxed paper on a cutting board. Then, using a kitchen mallet or heavy skillet, pound the chicken out to an even thickness, around ¾ of an inch thick.
- Lightly coat the chicken with olive oil then season with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
- Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. Then cook the chicken for around 3-4 minutes per side until cooked through to an internal temperature of 165° F.
- In the last minute or two of cooking top the chicken with the mozzarella cheese and close the lid to allow the cheese to melt.
- Top with the chopped tomatoes, around 1 Tablespoon of pesto, and some finely grated parmesan cheese before serving.
Notes
In the last few minutes of cooking remove the chicken from the oven and top with the cheese then return to the oven to finish cooking.
Once the cheese has melted and the chicken is cooked through remove from the oven and top with the tomatoes and pesto.
Nutrition
* All nutrition information we provide are estimates based on third party calculators. We encourage you to calculate these on your own for accurate results.
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