June 22, 2020

by Olena

Caprese Chicken and Zucchini

Name: Caprese Chicken and Zucchini
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 1.5 lbs boneless & skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1" cubes); 2 lbs zucchini (cut in to 1" cubes); 9 oz fresh mozzarella cheese (thinly sliced); 7 garlic cloves (minced); 1.5 lb tomatoes (sliced); 6 oz can tomato paste (low sodium); 2 tbsp oil (divided); 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar; 1 tsp dried oregano; 1/2 tsp salt (divided); Ground black pepper (to taste); Handful fresh basil (thinly sliced)

cheesechickentomatozucchini

Olena Osipov

Published on June 22, 2020

5 from 20 votes

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Caprese Chicken and Zucchini cooked in fresh tomato sauce, with melted buffalo mozzarella cheese on top and garnished with basil. Serve on its own for an easy low-carb dinner or with spaghetti for a family meal. In our house, everyone loves this Italian Ukrainian summer dinner. 🙂

Like one-pan chicken dishes? You might also like this chicken breast and tomatoes, one-pan chicken and veggies (or chicken and potatoes), or even thicken thighs and potatoes!

Combining chicken and zucchini is one of my favorite summer dinners! If you are new here, you absolutely have to try the most popular Pinterest recipe of mine – Tex Mex chicken and zucchini.

Every year I come up with a different flavor profile. And this year, we have an Italian-Ukrainian-inspired low carb dinner; a chicken Caprese with zucchini. And if you love the combination of tomatoes and zucchini and much as I do, you might also like this zucchini tomato bake or zucchini pasta dish.

First, we make easy fresh tomato sauce with garlic, basil, and balsamic vinegar. Then we simmer cubed chicken and zucchini in it. And then lay around slices of fresh mozzarella cheese, wait until it melts, and top with more fresh basil and freshly cracked pepper. To die for!

Kids and husband gobbled it up with spaghetti. And I enjoyed probably 1.5 servings on its own.

Zucchini has become a quick favorite in this house for its neutral flavor and ability to bulk up all kinds of meals with color and nutrition. In fact, I have over a dozen recipes with zucchini on this blog including chicken zucchini casserole, lemon dill shrimp with zucchini and peas, chicken, corn and zucchini, and tons more (check the bottom of the post for more suggestions).

Ingredients You Will Need

Chicken breasts or thighs: Boneless and skinless meat’s cook time is a perfect match for delicate zucchini.
Zucchini or squash: Advice for summer – feel free to use dark green, light green, or yellow zucchini or squash. Doesn’t matter.
Fresh or canned tomatoes: Fresh tomatoes are the best as we cook them down into sauce. But you can also use 28 oz of canned diced tomatoes – please drain them.
Fresh mozzarella cheese: Buffalo or fresh mozzarella cheese is a soft log-shaped white cheese in brine. It is traditional cheese used to make anything Caprese.
Basil: Fresh basil adds incredible flavor to this dish, and dried wouldn’t be the same. Use fresh parsley, if you wish.

How to Make Caprese Chicken and Zucchini

Pick a large 12″ – 14″ skillet to cook this dish comfortably. I am using this skillet in 14″ size I got from Costco but can’t seem to find it online.
Cook chicken for about 10 minutes and push to the side – that’s why a large skillet is handy. 🙂
On the empty side, cook tomatoes with garlic and spices – they will cook down into fresh and quick homemade sauce. Make sure this part is over the burner.

Add zucchini, stir with chicken and sauce, cover and cook for 12 minutes. Do not peek in.
Add cheese and cover to melt for 5 minutes. Again, do not peek in – let heat do its job.

Tips for Best Chicken and Zucchini Skillet

Zucchini is ready when firm to the touch with a fork.
Do not overcook zucchini, as veggies will become soggy and dish watery.
If you don’t have fresh mozzarella, use shredded regular mozzarella cheese.
No fresh basil? Use fresh parsley but not dried basil.
Tomato paste adds a depth of flavor. You can skip it – still tasty but a bit less. 🙂

How to Store, Serve and Reheat

Serve chicken and zucchini on its own for a light fare. As a mom, I eat less carbs for dinner than my husband and boys. For them, I cook spaghetti and it becomes a true Italian dinner. With Ukrainian twist. 🙂

Refrigerate leftovers in a glass airtight container for up to 3-4 days.

Do not freeze. Once thawed, zucchini will “leak” all liquid and become a mushy mess. If this recipe is too many servings for you, cut recipe in half and leftovers will keep well for lunch/dinner next few days.

Reheat in a covered ceramic non-stick skillet on low-medium heat, for about 5-7 minutes. I wouldn’t add any liquid or oil to it at first and then “play it by ear”.

More Zucchini Recipes

You might also enjoy this healthy Tuscan chicken pasta (one pot!), tomato mozzarella salad, and this list of 65 healthy chicken recipes!

Caprese Chicken and Zucchini

Caprese Chicken and Zucchini cooked in fresh tomato sauce, with melted buffalo mozzarella cheese on top and garnished with basil. Serve on its own for easy low carb dinner or with spaghetti for a family meal.

5 from 20 votes

Print Save Rate

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Italian Ukrainian

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Servings: servings

Calories: 377kcal

Author: Olena Osipov

Ingredients

1.5 lbs boneless & skinless chicken breasts cut into 1" cubes
2 lbs zucchini cut in to 1" cubes
9 oz fresh mozzarella cheese thinly sliced
7 garlic cloves minced
1.5 lb tomatoes sliced
6 oz can tomato paste low sodium
2 tbsp oil divided
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt divided
Ground black pepper to taste
Handful fresh basil thinly sliced

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat large deep skillet on medium heat and swirl 1 tbsp oil to coat. Add chicken, 1/4 tsp salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring once.
Move chicken to the side of the skillet and keep empty part over the burner. Add 1 tbsp oil, garlic and saute for 30 seconds, stirring frequently.
Add tomatoes, tomato paste, balsamic vinegar, oregano, 1/4 tsp salt and a handful of basil. Cook this "tomato pile" for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add zucchini, stir everything together, cover and cook on low-medium for 12 minutes.
Lay mozzarella slices on top, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
Sprinkle more basil and ground black pepper on top. Serve hot, on its own or with spaghetti, brown rice or quinoa.
Store: Refrigerate covered for up to 3 – 4 days. Do not freeze.
To reheat: Simmer on low heat in a skillet for 5 minutes covered. If you use non-stick skillet you should not need any water or oil to reheat the dish as zucchini will release water.

Video

Notes

Zucchini is ready when firm to the touch with a fork.
Do not overcook zucchini as veggies will become soggy and entire dish watery.
If you don't have fresh mozzarella, use shredded regular mozzarella cheese.
No fresh basil? Use fresh parsley but not dried basil.
Tomato paste adds a depth of flavor. You can skip it - still tasty but a bit less. 🙂

Nutrition

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cheesechickentomatozucchini

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