Juicy Baked Chicken Breast

How to bake chicken breast? Bake it for a short time at a high temperature. You will get delightful results, every time.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Rest time 5 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings servings

Calories 252kcal

Author Vered DeLeeuw

Ingredients

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts 8 oz each
Olive oil cooking spray
½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon paprika

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking dish with foil.
Generously spray both sides of each chicken breast with olive oil, and sprinkle them with the seasonings.
Bake, uncovered, until the internal temperature reaches 160-165 degrees F and juices run clear when pierced with a fork, about 20 minutes. The center of the chicken breasts should be white and opaque.
Transfer the chicken to a platter. Loosely cover it with foil and allow it to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Video

Notes

1. If your chicken breasts are much larger than 8 oz, you will need to bake them for longer, probably around 30 minutes. So check after 20 minutes.

And if you need to bake them for longer, either flip them or loosely cover them with foil, to prevent the tops (and especially the spices) from burning in the hot oven.

2. While you COULD cut a small slit in the thickest part of the chicken to make sure it's cooked through, the disadvantage of doing that is that juices will escape out and leave you with drier meat.

That's why the best method is to use an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part. Aim for an internal temperature of 165°F.

Nutrition