This Chicken Pomodoro is an easy 30-minute weeknight dinner recipe that the entire family will absolutely love!
The chicken is seared until perfection and nested in a flavorful, rustic-style cherry tomato and basil sauce. It’s delicious.
It’s all made in one pan to keep things simple and for easy clean-up, which is great for those hectic weeknights. This skillet chicken pomodoro is surely a great family chicken dinner!
This skillet Chicken Pomodoro is on our regular dinner rotation because it’s super easy to make and comes together in just 30 minutes.
The chicken is moist and tender, and it’s nested under a quick fresh tomato and basil sauce. The flavors come together really nicely in this chicken pomodoro to make an outstanding yet easy weeknight dinner.
Here’s why I love this chicken pomodoro so much:
- It comes together in just 30 minutes!
- It’s all done in one pan for easy clean-up
- It keeps really well in the fridge, so it makes great leftovers
- You can make the sauce ahead of time if life gets too hectic
We’ve been making lots of chicken dinners lately! Our favorite so far has been this easy 30-minute Creamy Lemon Chicken, which we love serving with crispy herb roasted potatoes. You can also try this quick Chicken Teriyaki Stir Fry or Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breasts!
For the perfect chicken, follow my tips and tricks to make juicy and moist chicken breasts!
Jump to:
The Rustic Fresh Tomato Sauce
Pomodoro means “tomato” in Italian, so this chicken pomodoro is basically chicken in tomato sauce…a REALLY GOOD and easy tomato sauce!
It’s a quick and easy, no-fuss tomato sauce!
The sauce is made with fresh cherry tomatoes, aromatics, wine, and fresh herbs…and cooked down until beautifully broken down. It’s a rustic-style tomato sauce with fresh basil that goes really well with a simple seared chicken.
Ingredient Notes
- Chicken breasts: Pound them to about ⅓ inch thick so they cook evenly.
- Salt, pepper, and garlic powder to season the chicken and sauce
- Olive oil for the skillet
- Minced garlic and finely diced onions: The base aromatics for the sauce.
- White wine: It’s added to the aromatics and cooked until reduced to add amazing flavor.
- Fresh cherry tomatoes: They will cook down with the aromatics
- Chicken broth: To give body to the sauce
- Granulated sugar: Adding just ¼ teaspoon will remove the acidity from the tomatoes
- Italian seasoning for flavor
- Fresh basil for flavor and garnish
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese for garnish
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1 | Cook chicken
Sear chicken over medium heat, about 6 minutes per side or until seared and fully cooked through. Remove from skillet and set aside. Check out these tips on how to pan-sear chicken perfectly!
Step 2 | Make the quick tomato sauce
- To the same skillet (don’t wipe it clean), add a few more drizzles of olive oil plus the minced garlic and onions over medium heat. Cook until fragrant, stirring, for about 1-2 minutes. Add wine and scrape off brown bits, and let it cook until almost reduced.
- Add tomatoes and broth and cook down for about 6-8 minutes.
- Break down the tomatoes with a fork, adding more broth as needed.
- Add granulated sugar (to remove acidity) and stir in fresh basil. Season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
Tips: 1) Don’t wipe the skillet clean before adding the garlic and onions. The brown bits left from the chicken are packed with a lot of flavor. 2) If you want a smoother sauce, cook down the tomatoes 5-10 minutes longer, adding extra broth to taste.
Step 3 | Return chicken to chicken and garnish
Return the cooked chicken into the skillet, nesting it under the sauce and spooning sauce on top.
To serve, top the chicken pomodoro with more basil and grated parmesan cheese.
Make-Ahead Tips
If you’re really in a time crunch, this skillet chicken pomodoro recipe can be prepared ahead of time:
- Make the sauce up to 2 days in advance. Reheat sauce in a skillet over medium heat, adding extra broth as needed to loosen it up. Add extra fresh basil.
- I’d recommend cooking the chicken the same day so it’s juicy and tender.
You can also make the entire dish and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave oven.
Pairing and Serving Ideas
I love serving this 30-minute chicken pomodoro with some cheesy and garlicky bread or some breadsticks. If you want to make it carbs-free, try adding a salad such as this arugula lemon salad or shaved brussels sprouts salad.
You can also cook your favorite pasta really quickly and toss with the sauce.
More Weeknight Chicken Recipes
Be sure to give these easy and delicious chicken recipes a try!
Recipe FAQs
I’d recommend making the sauce 1-2 days in advance. Reheat the sauce in a skillet with some chicken broth to loosen it up. Or you can make the entire dish up to 3 days in advance and reheat.
Cook down the tomatoes for an extra 5-10 minutes with additional broth to taste, stirring.
Substitute with chicken broth.
Tips for Success
- Don’t overcook the chicken. Pound chicken to about ⅓ inch thick and cook about 5-6 minutes per side or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Pounding the chicken will help tenderize it.
- Use fresh tomatoes. If you can’t find cherry tomatoes, dice up some roma tomatoes.
- If you want the tomato sauce to be less chunky, cook it down 5-10 minutes longer and add more broth to taste.
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30-Minute Chicken Pomodoro
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 medium chicken breasts - pounded to ⅓ inch thick evenly
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Olive oil for pan
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ⅓ cup finely diced onions
- ⅓ cup white wine
- 20 ounces cherry tomatoes - about 4 cups
- ¾ to 1 cup chicken broth - plus more as needed
- ¼ teaspoon granulated sugar
- Italian seasoning - to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil - plus more for garnish
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese - to taste
Instructions
- Season chicken with salt, pepper and garlic powder (about ¼ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, and ¼ teaspoon garlic powder per chicken breast).
- In a large skillet, heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Cook chicken, about 6 minutes per side, until golden brown and fully cooked through. Remove from skillet and set aside.
- Don’t wipe the skillet clean. Add about 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add diced onions and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened, stirring occasionally. Add minced garlic and stir until fragrant, another 1 minute. Add white wine and scrape the brown bits from the skillet (this will release tons of flavor) and cook until the wine has reduced.
- Stir in the cherry tomatoes and chicken broth. Cook for about 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes get soft. Break down the tomatoes using a fork and add more broth if needed. Add granulated sugar to help reduce the acidity. Then, season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste. Tip: If you want the sauce to be less chunky, cook it down 5-10 minutes longer adding more broth to taste.
- Stir in chopped basil. Return chicken to skillet, nesting it under the sauce and spooning some over the top, and simmer for another 1-2 minutes.
- Serve immediately with more basil on top and freshly grated parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Juicy and tender chicken breasts: Use a meat tenderizer to pound the chicken to ⅓ inch thick evenly. Cook for about 5-6 minutes per side or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Don’t overcook it or it will be tough and dry.
- Tomato sauce consistency: This tomato sauce is chunky, rustic-style. If you want a smoother sauce, cook it down for another 5-10 minutes adding more broth as needed.
- White wine: If you prefer not to use wine, use broth instead.
- Why add granulated sugar: Tomatoes are naturally acidic, and sugar cuts down the acidity. However, if you don’t mind the acidity, feel free to omit the sugar.
- Make-ahead: The tomato sauce can be made 1-2 days in advance and refrigerated. Reheat in a skillet and add more broth to loosen it up.
- Storage: This dish can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave oven.
- Cherry tomatoes: Diced roma tomatoes work too.
- White wine: substitute with chicken broth.
Meagan says
This recipe is delicious! I didn’t have any basil so I used a basil infused olive oil before adding the onions and then stirred in a handful of spinach at the end for some greens. It’s easy and quick to make and tastes so fresh, I plan to make this a regular weeknight dinner.
Tania says
Thank you so much!
Shirley Hampton says
Made as written except only used 2 chicken breasts halved width-wise, added only one container of cherry tomatoes (my kids aren’t a fan 🤨), and dried basil rather than fresh. Served over angel hair pasta. Yummy flavor and leftovers to enjoy again tomorrow. So, so good!! Will add this recipe to my regular repertoire – thank you!
Amanda says
This is such a great weeknight dinner! Super easy and quick, and my whole family loves it – toddlers included!
Tania says
Thanks for trying it! So happy to hear!