Perfect Baked Chicken Breasts

Baked chicken breasts don’t have to be dry and boring. They can, in fact, be moist, tender, and full of flavor — something you actually look forward to having for dinner. The secret? The parchment paper method.

By covering the chicken with a piece of parchment paper, the chicken bastes in its own juices so they never dry out. It’s basically a cross between braising and roasting and is sure to become one of your new favorite ways to cook chicken.

There is so little fat in a boneless, skinless chicken breast that it’s hard to cook it without the meat ending up dry or just plain tasteless. In this method, just before putting them in to bake, we cover the chicken breasts with a piece of parchment paper.

This method (which I picked up in culinary school) is technically called “dry-poaching,” but that sounds fussy for what is essentially an incredibly simple technique. Super versatile, super dependable. If you’ve struggled with boneless, skinless chicken breasts, this is definitely the method to try.

In the recipe below, I season the chicken with just salt and pepper, but you can use any spices or dry rubs you wish or adapt it to your favorite recipes. Here are some seasonings that you can try:

• Italian seasoning
• Cajun seasoning
• Ranch seasoning
• Taco seasoning
• Jerk seasoning
• Sazón seasoning
• Everything bagel seasoning

Serve baked chicken breasts with your favorite vegetable side and rice pilaf or mashed potatoes for an easy dinner. Here are other ways to add baked chicken breasts to your meals:

• Salads: Slice the chicken breasts for lunch or dinner salads, such as Caesar salad, Greek salad, kale salad, or spinach salad.
• Casseroles: Add diced chicken breast to hearty casseroles, like chicken pot pie casserole, chicken cordon bleu casserole, or chicken and stuffing casserole.
• Pasta: Baked chicken breast pairs perfectly with pasta for dinner. Try it with creamy tomato pasta, broccoli cheddar orzo, or make classic chicken Alfredo. Meal planning is easy when you have extra chicken breasts for chicken pasta during the week.