No need to grab that jar of pre-made pasta sauce! This light and fresh sauce comes together in MINUTES from ingredients that you probably have right this minute! Do it the authentic Italian way - make it fresh!
I've always been told that the key to great Italian food is fresh ingredients, made simply. Now if you've ever labored over a big casserole of lasagna, you may be scratching your head on that one.... but that's another story! LOL! This Tomato Basil Chicken will have you grabbing your fork at the 30 minute mark, which is great news when you need to have a nice, hot meal on the table quickly.
#glutenfree #dairyfreeoption #paleo #whole30
- 2 chicken breasts
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
- 2 tsp minced fresh garlic
- 4 Tbsp cold butter or ghee
- 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
- Optional - freshly grated Parmigiano reggiano cheese, for garnish
- Optional, sometimes I add dried seasoning to the mix as well. Depends on whom I am cooking for. Options such as: dried basil, oregano, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes.
Step-by-step:
Season chicken breasts with kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper.
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| 2 large chicken breasts + kosher salt |
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| plus black pepper |
Cooks note: The granules of kosher salt are larger than "table salt," which makes it harder to over salt your food. The freshly cracked black pepper tastes much "fresher" than the stuff in the can. If you want the chicken to cook a little faster, consider pounding them out just a little so they are more of a uniform thickness.
Add a couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil to your skillet. This may seem like quite a bit, but it will form the base for the sauce.
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| 2 Tbsp EVOO |
While waiting for the oil to heat up, go ahead and get your water going for the pasta. If you don't do it early, you'll have to sit and wait on the pasta to be done at the end. *You can also put this sauce over zucchini noodles, cauliflower rice, etc as desired.
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| water for pasta |
When the oil is HOT, add the chicken breasts. If the oil does not start sizzling immediately, then its not hot enough! Adding meat to cold/cool oil will give you greasy meat!! I think next time I make this dish, I will add some dried basil or Italian seasoning to my salt and pepper on the chicken.
After about 4-5 minutes, the chicken breasts should be ready to turn. By the way, when did chicken breasts get SO HUGE?! You'll want to cook them on the second side another 4-5 minutes,or until the juices run clear when you pierce them with a small sharp knife. You don't want to OVER cook them, or they will be dry and tough. If you pounded yours out thinner, they will cook faster than this.
After the second side has been cooking for about 4 minutes, go ahead and add in the fresh tomatoes that you have chopped up. There will be lots of steam, spitting, and sputtering!
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| 2 cups chopped tomatoes |
Next, add the fresh basil that you have chopped into ribbons.
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| 1/2 cup basil ribbons |
Next, add in the cold butter if you are using it. This will make the sauce silky.
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| 4 Tbsp cold butter or ghee |
Then the minced garlic. Feel free to use more if that's your preference.
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| 2 tsp minced garlic |
You will probably want to add some more kosher salt and black pepper to season the sauce. Optional, sometimes I add dried seasoning to the mix as well. Depends on whom I am cooking for. Options such as: dried basil, oregano, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes.
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| season sauce with kosher salt |
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| and black pepper |
Now give it all a good stir so all those flavors will marry together. When your chicken is "done," turn the sauce down on the lowest setting to keep it all warm until the pasta is cooked, which should be any minute now. :) At this point, if still waiting for the pasta, you can remove the cooked chicken to a cutting board, and after resting just a couple of minutes, cut the chicken into slices on the bias.
Divide the pasta among individual bowls, and top each with half of a chicken breast, sliced into pieces, and equal portions of the tomato basil sauce. Top with more fresh basil and freshly grated Parmigiana reggiano cheese.
... and one of the BEST things is...this makes FABULOUS left overs to take to work the next day!
Love this recipe and want another great option? My best friend uses this shrimp in this recipe sometimes... Totally awesome!!! We decided this would be amazing as a dinner party option --
Tomato Basil Shrimp over Grits!
For this option, you only want to cook the shrimp only at the end for about 3 - 4 minutes after the sauce has reduced. She seasons the shrimp with salt, pepper, and some seafood seasoning. These shrimp are tails only, and peeled before adding to the sauce. She uses 1 1/2 pounds of shrimp. For this, consider adding in some additional white and red pepper.
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Here's just one example - Prosciutto and Gruyere Stuffed Chicken Breasts... Yum!!
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Here are a few ideas to start with:
Cranberry Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts
Orange Chicken
Grilled Zucchini Rolls
Ham Cups
New Orleans Praline Brownies
Mediterranean Spiced Salmon Power Grain Bowl
Asian Inspired Ginger Sesame Turkey Meatballs with Teriyaki Glaze
Oreo Heath Bar Cake
Written Directions:
Season chicken breasts with kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper. Add a couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil to your skillet. This may seem like quite a bit, but it will form the base for the sauce. While waiting for the oil to heat up, go ahead and get your water going for the pasta. When the oil is HOT, add the chicken breasts. After about 4-5 minutes, the chicken breasts should be ready to turn. By the way, when did chicken breasts get SO HUGE?! You'll want to cook them on the second side another 4-5 minutes,or until the juices run clear when you pierce them with a small sharp knife. If you pounded yours out thinner, they will cook faster than this.
After the second side has been cooking for about 4 minutes, go ahead and add in the fresh tomatoes that you have chopped up. Next, add the fresh basil that you have chopped into ribbons, the cold butter, the minced garlic, and you will probably want to add some more kosher salt and black pepper to season the sauce. Now give it all a good stir so all those flavors will marry together.
When your chicken is "done," turn the sauce down on the lowest setting to keep it all warm until the pasta is cooked, which should be any minute now. At this point, if still waiting for the pasta, you can remove the cooked chicken to a cutting board, and after resting just a couple of minutes, cut the chicken into slices on the bias. Divide the pasta among individual bowls, and top each with half of a chicken breast, sliced into pieces, and equal portions of the tomato basil sauce. Top with more fresh basil and freshly grated Parmigiana reggiano cheese.
