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Move over, chicken parm. Our Italian dressing chicken packs in Italian flavors and takes 5 minutes to assemble! Add pasta and veggies for a super quick midweek meal! I love a dish that is super simple to make but tastes like you slaved for hours in the kitchen! This tender chicken recipe is at the top of that list. The moist chicken bursts with flavor from the Italian dressing and herbs, and the crispy parmesan crust sets it all off perfectly.
It’s the perfect main dish for busy mid-week suppers, but feels fancy enough for Sunday supper too!
Everyone will swear you were basting and baking for hours to create this delicious feast, but it’ll be our little secret that you assembled it in under five minutes!
If you love easy, flavor-packed Italian chicken recipes, I hope you’ll try my Chicken Francaise, Chicken Milanese, and Chicken Scarpariello next—they’re all real-deal classics that never disappoint. And if you’re looking for even more easy, family-friendly meal ideas, be sure to browse my full Chicken Dinner Recipes—it’s packed with recipes you’ll make again and again.
No Need To Make A Special Italian Dressing Chicken Marinade!
Let’s keep life simple! Your local grocery store shelf has a plethora of Italian-dressed chicken marinades. Just pick a good commercial Italian salad dressing, and your marinade is done! I used Bernstein’s Cheese and Garlic Italian Dressing with phenomenal results! Other popular creations include Kraft Italian Dressing Chicken and Good Seasons Italian Dressing Chicken recipes. Experiment with the many different variations of Italian Dressings, just begging to become your next marinade!
How Long Do I Marinate Chicken In Italian Dressing
I like to marinate the chicken overnight for maximum flavor. The good news is you can marinate it for as little as 20 minutes if you’re pressed for time and still have some mighty flavorful chicken! On the recipe card, I suggest 30-45 minutes for my recipe. It seems to be the amount of time I generally have on hand for the process.
Marinate the chicken submerged in the dressing in a resealable 1-gallon plastic bag. Store it in the fridge on a rimmed baking sheet. Turn it over a couple of times throughout the process for even flavoring.
Italian Dressing Chicken Ingredients
Italian Chicken comes together with only four ingredients!
- Skinless Chicken Breasts: Typically, I make it with boneless, skinless breasts. Of course, chicken thighs work fine- especially if that’s what you’ve got in the freezer! You’ll simply need to adjust cooking times. I’ve also found that kiddos love Italian Dressing Chicken drumsticks because they can pick them up and eat them with their fingers!
- Italian Dressing: Your favorite store-bought bottle.
- Parmesan Cheese: I like to grate my own from a larger wedge or buy the kind from the supermarket deli. Don’t use the stuff in the green canister.
- Italian Seasoning: I use McCormick Italian Seasoning, Perfect Pinch.
Tips + Notes
- Safe Food Handling—When making this recipe, remember that the times listed in the instructions are guidelines. The internal temperature for whatever cut of chicken you use must reach 165° for safe consumption!
- Broiling Basics- Broiling is a great way to add crispiness to a dish, but you have to keep an eye on it! It is so easy to burn things with your broiler! If you have a traditional oven with the broiler on top, place the baking dish on the highest shelf. Start low- if you have multiple broiler settings- and watch for a few minutes. If it isn’t melting the cheese, then bump it up. Last bit of advice- watch it like a hawk! You can go from kitchen hero to kitchen zero in less than a minute!
- Baking Dish—I use a 15X10-inch Pyrex baking dish; a 9X13-inch just wasn’t quite big enough to accommodate 6 large pieces of chicken. If you have another type of larger baking dish, feel free to use it.
- How Long Do You Bake Chicken? This, of course, depends on the type and thickness of the chicken, the oven temperature, and whether or not it’s covered. We cook these boneless chicken breasts, uncovered, at 350 for about 22 minutes plus broil time for melting the Parm.
- It’s important to realize that every oven varies in the exact temperature it reaches, regardless of what temperature you call for. Ovens vary in how consistently they maintain a called-for temperature. All that to say, the cooking time suggested in any recipe is an approximation.
- Check your chicken with an instant-read thermometer to be safe. According to the USDA, when inserted into the thickest part of the chicken (not touching any bone if you’re using bone-in chicken), it should register 165°F (79°C). Here’s an article from the USDA if you’d like to confirm.
Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Refrigerator? Your chicken will last for up to 4 days in the fridge. I like to store it in a resealable plastic bag.
- Can You Freeze This? Yes. This baked chicken with Italian dressing and parmesan cheese makes an awesome freezer meal. You can freeze the cooked, cooled chicken or the raw chicken in the marinade.
- Make-Ahead: Baked Italian chicken is a great midweek meal, and it works best if you prepare it ahead of time. Toss your chicken and marinade in a ziplock bag and tuck it in the fridge on your way out in the morning or even the night before.
- The longer the chicken stays in the marinade, the more flavor it absorbs. Marinating also helps tenderize the meat and builds up moisture.
- Always marinate in the fridge!
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety, check out this link.
What Do You Serve With Italian Dressing Chicken Recipe?
My husband’s favorite way to eat this is served over my lemon garlic pasta, and I’ll tell you, it’s incredible!
Our Mediterranean salad with olives, tomatoes, cheese, and one of my favorite dressings of all time goes beautifully with Italian Chicken recipes – and pretty much everything else in my opinion! Our delicious KFC coleslaw literally goes with everything. You can also simply serve a green salad. I like to dress it with my balsamic vinaigrette.
Of course, traditional sides of buttered pasta, garlic bread, or copycat Olive Garden breadsticks are also fantastic options!
Veggie options are endless! We love it with my sautéed asparagus with lots of garlic, Tennessee onions, Southern style green beans, simple roasted peppers, sweet and stick brown sugar glazed carrots, crispy parmesan potatoes, or our creamy, tangy broccoli salad with its own homemade orange poppy seed dressing. It’s also great with any of our pasta salad recipes.
How to Make Italian Dressing Chicken
- Place the chicken in the resealable plastic bag.
- Pour the Italian dressing on the chicken.
- Seal in a plastic bag and set it in a bowl. Marinate in the fridge.
- Bake, flip, and pour Italian seasoning. Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top, and bake again.
- Serve.
How to Make Italian Dressing Chicken On The Grill?
- Follow the recipe instructions below for marinating.
- Remove chicken from the marinade and grill over medium-high heat until cooked through.
- Add shaved parmesan instead of the grated (it will stick better to the chicken and won’t all fall off!), or switch up the cheese to sliced mozzarella or provolone. The sliced cheese will stay on the chicken better. Cover the grill and melt the cheese.
More Delicious Italian-Inspired Dishes You’ll Love
- Chicken Florentine
- Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken
- Italian Stuffed Peppers
- Italian Baked Meatballs
- Italian Sunday Gravy
- Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore
- Chicken Lombardy
- Chopped Italian Sandwich
Tried this Recipe?
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Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today — happy cooking, friends! 💗 Kathleen
Italian Dressing Chicken
Ingredients
- 6 boneless chicken breast-skin on
- 1 (14-16 ounce) bottle Italian dressing
Toppings:
- 1-2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Place chicken breast (6) in a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag. Pour just enough dressing in the bag over the chicken to cover all the chicken pieces. (I used about 2/3's of the bottle). Seal the bag, removing as much air as possible. Place the bag on a rimmed cookie sheet and refrigerate for 30-45 minutes.
- In a 15x10 inch Pyrex baking dish, arrange chicken, skin side down, in a single layer. Pour marinade over chicken. Bake chicken in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and turn chicken skin side up. Bake for 12-18 minutes, or until cooked through. (depending on the thickness of the chicken). Turn oven to broil.
- Remove chicken from oven and sprinkle each breast generously with Italian seasoning top (1-2 teaspoons) with 2-3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese. Broil chicken until cheese is melted and golden brown. Serve.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- Safe Food Handling- Remember when making this recipe that the times listed in the instructions are guidelines. The internal temperature for whatever cut of chicken you use must get to 165° for safe consumption!
- Broiling Basics- Broiling is a great way to add crispiness to a dish, but you have to keep an eye on it! It is so easy to burn things with your broiler! If you have a traditional oven with the broiler in the top, place the baking dish on the highest shelf. Start low- if you have multiple broiler settings- and watch for a few minutes. If it isn’t melting the cheese, then bump it up. Last bit of advice- watch it like a hawk! You can go from kitchen hero to kitchen zero in less than a minute!
- Baking Dish- I use a 15X10 inch Pyrex baking dish a 9X13 inch just wasn’t quite big enough to accommodate 6 large pieces of chicken. If you have another type of larger baking dish feel free to use it.
- How Long Do You Bake Chicken: This of course depends on the type and thickness of the chicken, the oven temperature, and whether or not it’s covered. We cook these boneless chicken breasts, uncovered, at 350 for about 22 minutes plus broil time for melting the Parm.
- It’s important to realize that every oven varies in the exact temperature it reaches, regardless of what temperature you call for. Ovens vary in how consistently they maintain a called-for temperature. All that to say, the cooking time suggested in any recipe is an approximation.
- Check your chicken with an instant-read thermometer to be safe. Inserted into the thickest part of the chicken (not touching any bone if you’re using bone-in chicken) it should register 165°F (79°C) according to the USDA. Here’s an article from the USDA if you’d like to confirm.
Nutrition
On your phone? Check the web story here.
I would like to try this recipe but I want to grill it instead of baking. Will it work?
Thanks!
Hi, Ron! Yes. Here’s the instruction:
1. Follow the recipe instructions below for marinating.
2. Remove chicken from marinade and grill over medium-high heat until cooked through.
3. Add shaved parmesan instead of the grated (it will stick better to the chicken and won’t all fall off!), or switch up the cheese to sliced mozzarella or provolone. The sliced cheese will stay on the chicken better. Cover the grill and melt the cheese.
This is soooo good! I can’t emphasize it enough!!
Thank you so much, Sarah! 🙂
This is so delicious. I too, as another person commented, used chicken breast without the skin. It’s turned out perfect. Its not only easy to make but even my 8 yr old grandson loved it!
Wow, that’s amazing! Thank you so much for sharing your positive review 🙂
An you make this with thin sliced chicken cutlets?
Hi, Carol. You can just adjust the cooking time. 🙂
Oh my God. This is so good. My husband and daughter love it, as well as my MIL.
We call it Emergency Chicken, as we always have the ingredients and it comes together nicely if needed in a hurry.
I Love that name for this dish! It’s perfect. So happy you all enjoyed <3
Do you use fresh grated Parmesan cheese or does it matter?
Hi Christine! You can use any grated Parmesan cheese, pre-shredded or freshly grated. Happy cooking!
I made this 2 nights ago and not only was it a hit with my husband(who is a picky eater), my kids loved it!! My kids hardly ever eat what I cook and slave over but this was a simple main dish that didn’t need tons of ingredients! Definitely making this more! AMAZING!!!
Thank you, Brittney! I’m so happy you and your family enjoyed it! <3
Sounds so delicious and so easy!!! Chicken breast with the skin on are almost impossible to find where I live, how will this recipe turn out if I use skinless boneless chicken breasts?? We prefer chicken breasts over the other chicken parts you suggested. It’s just the two of us, so I’m always looking for recipes that can make just two servings with minor changes.
Thanks Leanne! ? You’ll get similar results to what’s in the recipe but it won’t be as juicy as the chicken breast with the skin on. Hope this helps!