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    Home » Recipes » Chicken

    Pesto Chicken

    Published: Dec 29, 2022 by Kate

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    Plate of chicken, with text: Easy Pesto Chicken Bites.
    Plate of cooked chicken, with text: Easy Pesto Chicken.

    You'll love this flavorful Pesto Chicken! Make an easy homemade basil pesto, coat the chicken bites, then pan fry or air fry. Serve with salad, rice, pasta, or as an appetizer.

    Pesto chicken on a plate.
    Pesto Chicken

    Cooking pesto chicken is a great way to add flavor to your meals!

    Pesto is a flavorful and vibrant mixture of garlic, herbs, nuts, and cheese that can be whizzed up in minutes. It is perfect when used to marinate chicken to give it lots of bold flavor!

    Once you've cooked up your pesto chicken, you can use it in so many ways! Try it in sandwiches or wraps, stirred into cooked pasta, or just serve it up for dinner with a few side dishes.

    Pesto chicken is a simple and delicious way to enjoy a flavorful meal. You can pan-fry it or cook it in your air fryer.

    We love serving this chicken with Greek Pasta Salad or KFC Macaroni Salad!

    Jump to:
    • What is pesto?
    • Why You Should Make This Recipe
    • Ingredients
    • Instructions
    • Substitutions & Variations
    • Serving Suggestions
    • Food Safety Tips
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    What is pesto?

    Pesto is an Italian sauce made from fresh basil, garlic, pine nuts, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, and salt all whizzed together in a food processor.

    It is traditionally used as a condiment for pasta, but can also be used to flavor fish, chicken, vegetables, soups, and salads.

    Variations of pesto can include different types of nuts and cheeses such as walnuts, almonds, pecans, Romano, or Asiago.

    Check out these pesto recipes.

    Plate with a pile of pesto chicken bites.

    Why You Should Make This Recipe

    It's an easy way to add lots of flavor to the chicken.

    You can use pesto chicken in many ways, from sandwiches and pasta to appetizers or party food.

    Short on time? Use store-bought pesto!

    You can cook this recipe in the air fryer or pan fry it.

    Keep leftovers in the fridge, chop the chicken up, stir in some mayonnaise and enjoy in sandwiches.

    Ingredients

    You only need simple pantry ingredients for this recipe!

    Ingredients on a table.
    • Chicken: You will be dicing the chicken into bites (or tenders), so it's easiest to use boneless and skinless chicken breasts.
    • Basil: Fresh basil gives flavor to the homemade pesto.
    • Parmesan Cheese: Freshly grated parmesan cheese gives a richness to the homemade pesto.
    • Pine Nuts: These soft nuts are a classic ingredient for pesto. For substitutions, try walnuts or almonds.
    • Garlic: Use fresh cloves of garlic.
    • Olive oil: This helps the pesto to come together and turn into a spreadable consistency.

    See the recipe card for quantities and method.

    Instructions

    Follow these step-by-step instructions, then scroll down for the full ingredients list and method.

    Whizzed pesto ingredients in a food processor.

    Process the basil, parmesan, pine nuts, garlic, salt, and pepper in a food processor until very finely chopped.

    Finished pesto.

    Keep the food processor running, and slowly drizzle in the olive oil until it's all combined.

    Chicken marinating in pesto sauce.

    Cut your chicken breasts into small pieces. Place them into a bowl and stir in half of the pesto sauce. Cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and marinate for 30 minutes.

    Cooking pesto chicken in the air fryer.

    Air fryer

    • Air Fry at 400F for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken pieces over and bake for 5 more minutes or until the chicken is cooked.

    Pan fry

    • Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a skillet placed over a medium heat on the stovetop. Add the chicken and cook for 3-4 minutes or until browned. Then turn the chicken pieces over and cook on the other side for 6-7 minutes or until cooked.

    TIP: To ensure your chicken is cooked, check it has reached 165F with a food thermometer.

    Scroll down for the full ingredients list and method.

    Substitutions & Variations

    • Try making a red pesto by adding sundried tomatoes to the pesto sauce.
    • Swap the chicken for bites of steak, pork, or turkey.
    • Pine nuts can be expensive, use walnuts, cashews or almonds instead.
    • Toast the pine nuts in a dry (no oil) frying pan over a medium heat for a few minutes.
    • Add a little cayenne or hot sauce to the pesto for a bit of heat.

    Serving Suggestions

    You can use pesto chicken in so many ways! Try some of these ideas:

    Enjoy it as a main, along with side dishes.

    Stir into cooked pasta (or try using it in Chicken and Leek Pasta or Spinach and Artichoke Pasta).

    Spread the pesto chicken into a wrap or sandwich.

    Add it to an omelet.

    Cut the chicken into small pieces and put it on a pizza.

    Put the pesto chicken onto toothpicks and serve as an appetizer with dips, such as Dill Dip, Arby's Horsey Sauce, Donair Sauce, Chipotle Southwest Sauce, or Taco Bell Chipotle Sauce.

    Food Safety Tips

    • Before cooking, wash your hands and countertops.
    • Do not use the same utensils on cooked food that has touched raw meat.
    • Always wash your hands after touching raw meat.
    • Never leave cooking food unattended.
    • Keep those pot/pan handles turned in away from the front of the stove.
    • When cooking at high temperatures, use oils with a high smoking point, to avoid harmful compounds.
    • Ensure you have good ventilation when cooking on gas.
    • Put foods in the fridge or freezer within 2 hours of cooking. Reduce this to within 1 hour if it is 90 degrees or hotter outside.
    • Safely thaw food in the fridge, under cold running water, or in the microwave.
    • To ensure food is cooked through, it's best to use a food thermometer. Be aware that you can’t always tell by looking.

    Cook to safe temperatures:

    • Beef, Pork, Lamb: 145 °F
    • Fish: 145 °F
    • Ground Beef, Ground Pork, Ground Lamb: 160 °F
    • Turkey, Chicken, Duck: 165 °F

    Be sure to subscribe to my free Newsletter and follow me on Facebook and Pinterest for more tasty recipes!

    📖 Recipe

    Looking down at a plate of pesto chicken.

    Pesto Chicken

    You'll love this flavorful Pesto Chicken that's marinated in an easy homemade pesto.
    5 from 5 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Dinner
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: pesto chicken
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 15 minutes
    Total Time: 25 minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 341kcal
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Equipment

    • Mixing Bowl
    • Food processor
    • Air Fryer

    Ingredients

    • 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
    • 1 cup fresh basil leaves
    • 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan
    • 2 tablespoons pine nuts
    • 2 garlic cloves minced
    • ⅛ teaspoon salt
    • ⅓ cup olive oil

    Instructions

    • Blitz the basil, parmesan, pine nuts, garlic, and salt in a food processor until very finely chopped.
    • With the food processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until smooth.
    • Cut the chicken breasts into small pieces and put them into a bowl and stir in the pesto. Cover the bowl with a lid and let it marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.

    Air fryer

    • Air Fry at 400F for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken pieces over and air fry for 4 more minutes or until the chicken is cooked.

    Pan fry

    • Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a frying pan over a medium hea, then add the marinated chicken and cook for 3 minutes or until browned. Turn the chicken pieces over and cook on the other side for 6-7 minutes or until cooked through.
    Tried this recipe?Head down to the comments and give it a star rating!

    Nutrition

    Calories: 341kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 76mg | Sodium: 271mg | Potassium: 480mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 0.2g | Vitamin A: 385IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 53mg | Iron: 1mg

    The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors, so is not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietician for special diet advice.

    More Chicken Recipes

    • Chicken Leg Quarters
    • Honey Mustard Chicken Legs
    • Tajin Chicken
    • Oven Roasted Turkey Breast

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Tayler

      December 30, 2022 at 5:31 pm

      5 stars
      I made this chicken for dinner last night and my family loved it! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!

      Reply
    2. Beth

      December 31, 2022 at 6:05 pm

      5 stars
      I loved how easy this is and how bright the pesto is. It was a delicious chicken recipe and we served it with a big salad to try to get healthy after the Christmas excesses!

      Reply
    3. Krista

      January 07, 2023 at 5:17 pm

      5 stars
      Loved this pesto chicken. I had a huge basil plant to use and it was so easy! I swapped the pine nuts for walnuts since they're cheaper.

      Reply
    4. Nikki

      January 17, 2023 at 5:00 pm

      5 stars
      Loving this homemade pesto on this chicken. It's so easy to make and full of great flavor. It's perfect for a weeknight meal.

      Reply

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    Hi, I'm Kate! You Say Potatoes, I say, well, potatoes. I'm a cookbook author and journalist from the Pacific Northwest. Here you'll find easy, budget-friendly recipes made from scratch.

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