This Chicken Breast with Tomatoes combines tender pan fried chicken breast with sauteed juicy tomatoes, garlic, and herbs for an easy, flavorful weeknight 30 minute meal.
Other Ukrainian inspired recipes we make on repeat are baked chicken and mushrooms and mom’s roasted chicken thighs and potatoes.
The Best Chicken Tomato Recipe
As a busy mom, I’m always looking for super simple, low effort midweek meal options like this one pan chicken tomato recipe or pesto chicken. This recipe combines tender, juicy chicken breast with tomato sauce made with flavorful tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. And all in one pan for less washing up!
This chicken in tomato sauce recipe uses just 8 ingredients – salt, pepper and oil included! With an emphasis on ripe, juicy tomatoes. Use farmers market ones if you can, you won’t regret it! I’ve already shared several of my favorite tomato recipes, including this tomato feta pasta salad, rice stuffed tomatoes and tomato soup. Now you can enjoy sauteed tomatoes that break down and become a self-saucing, juicy tomato sauce.
Even self-proclaimed tomato haters will love this one! Or at least in my experience. Especially when you combine them with smoky, lightly seasoned, tender pan seared chicken breast. And serve over creamy Instant Pot mashed potatoes or cauliflower mashed potatoes.
Plus, as this recipe uses boneless chicken breast fillets instead of whole chicken breast, it’s cooked in less time, and there’s less worry about whether the chicken is cooked through (phew!).
Once baked, serve the tomato chicken with your choice of grain or sides, and the whole family will be satisfied. In Ukraine, this would be served with buckwheat, and I suggest you try it one time. I love buckwheat! You should check out this buckwheat stir fry.
The Garlic Tomato Chicken Ingredients
For the pan-fried chicken breast:
- Chicken: I used 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into tenders. You could also use chicken tenderloin but may need to slightly reduce the cooking time.
- Oil: I used avocado oil. You could also use olive oil or another neutral cooking oil.
- Seasonings: I used a combination of dried oregano, salt and pepper. You could swap out the oregano for other herbs or seasonings such as rosemary, Italian herbs, Herbes De Provence, lemon thyme, etc.
For the tomato sauce:
- Tomatoes: You can use any variety of ripe, juicy tomato or even a combination; cherry, beefsteak, vine, etc. In winter, I recommend using vine tomatoes for the best results.
- Garlic: Avoid the pesky questionable store-bought garlic puree and use fresh garlic cloves.
- Herbs and seasonings: Like the pan fried chicken, I used dried oregano, salt and pepper. Plus, finely chopped basil or parsley to garnish.
Optional Add-Ins and Variations
This one-pan chicken breast with tomatoes is similar to a cacciatore – a combination of herbs, tomato, sometimes peppers, and braised chicken – often with extra vegetables, but with a fresher, lighter finish. However, you can still add several add-ins to this dish with delicious and nutritious results.
- Cheese: There’s nothing quite like cheese and tomato, so feel free to grate a healthy helping of gruyere, cheddar, parmesan, or other sharp cheese. Add this in the last few minutes of cooking, just enough for it to melt. It also acts almost like a protective barrier, locking in those juices over the chicken. Delicious!
- Other vegetables: Sliced onions, mushrooms, olives, bell peppers, spinach, kale, etc., will all work as add-ins to this dish. Lightly sauté with the garlic and allow them to simmer in with the tomatoes.
- White wine/vinegar: You can add a splash to the pan when adding the tomatoes. The harsh flavor will burn off, leaving behind added depth to your tomato chicken dish.
- Chili: If you like spice, you can add some thinly sliced chili or red pepper flakes to the dish while cooking or garnish over the chicken and tomatoes.
- Tin of diced tomatoes: If you want even more tomato sauce, feel free to add more fresh tomatoes OR a base of (high quality) canned diced/chopped tomatoes and fresh tomatoes. It will add depth of flavor and tons more tomato sauce to enjoy with the garlic tomato chicken or over grains.
How to Make Chicken Breast with Tomatoes
For the full ingredient quantities and recipe, there is a full recipe card below.
- Season the chicken breasts: First, cut the chicken breasts into tenders and season with oregano, salt, and pepper. You can do this directly on the chopping board.
- Prepare the tomatoes and garlic: Peel and mince the garlic and cut the tomatoes depending on their size. For larger tomatoes, I cut wedges (around 8 per tomato); for smaller tomatoes (like cherry), you can chop them in half.
To peel and chop the garlic in no time, smash it with the flat side of a knife first, THEN peel and mince – it’ll be easy-peasy to peel that way!
- Sear the chicken breasts: In a large skillet over medium heat, add a little oil and sear ½ of the seasoned chicken (unless your pan can fit it all at once, then go for it!) on one side until its edges begin to turn white, then flip over and cook until golden brown (4-5 minutes per side, usually). Remove the cooked chicken and repeat this step with the remaining chicken- then set it aside.
- Cook the vegetables: Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic and oregano and lightly sauté for one minute, stirring regularly. Then add the tomatoes to the pan, season with salt and pepper, increase the heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes. If the tomatoes aren’t juicy, add a splash of water or vegetable/chicken stock.
- Assemble and serve: Once the tomatoes are cooked, turn off the heat. Add the chicken back to the skillet and sprinkle with fresh basil or parsley, then serve with your grain/sides of choice (see below for options).
If you’re hoping to make a one pan baked chicken with tomatoes, then check below for the alternative cooking method.
How to Serve the Chicken Breast with Tomatoes?
This one pan chicken and tomatoes is so versatile it will go with so many of the ‘usual’/’favorite’ side dishes many of us have. Here are a few suggestions:
- Over the grain of your choice: Such as quinoa, brown rice, cauliflower rice, buckwheat, couscous, or even grits/polenta.
- With pasta: Including spaghetti or spaghetti squash.
- Alongside roasted vegetables: Like roasted cauliflower, brussels sprouts, or sweet potatoes.
- Other vegetable sides: Like grilled zucchini.
- With crusty bread: To mop up the flavorful chicken tomato sauce.
- Enjoy it cold with salad: Like this quinoa tabbouleh salad or coleslaw.
How to Store and Reheat
Storing: Allow the chicken and tomatoes to cool entirely before transferring to an airtight container and storing in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Freezer: Store in an airtight container and freeze for up to three months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
Reheating: Add the chilled chicken breast with tomatoes to a large pan on the stovetop and heat over medium heat until warmed through (10-15 minutes). You can also reheat the tomato chicken in the oven at 350F along with all the tomato sauce, covered. Bake for around 10 minutes, until it is heated through.
Can You Cook This in The Oven?
Yes, you can. I would follow these baked chicken breast recipe instructions – adding the tomato sauce ingredients to the bottom of the dish for delicious baked chicken with tomatoes.
Even better, if you have a large casserole dish you can use on the stovetop and in the oven, then you can sauté the garlic and oregano for a minute first, add the bed of tomatoes with the seasoned chicken over it and then bake it in the oven.
Suppose you want to cut the chicken breast into smaller tenders. In that case, I suggest searing the chicken first, adding the tomatoes and herbs to the oven for 20 minutes, and then adding the chicken tenders to the dish for the remaining 10-15 minutes, so the baked chicken doesn’t become overcooked.
The cooking time will vary based on the size of your chicken breasts (and your oven)– lookout for when the chicken breast is no longer pink, the juices run clear, and has an internal temperature of 160°F/70°C.
Enjoy your baked chicken with tomatoes served in all the same ways you would the skillet version!
More Tips and FAQs
- Experiment with the herbs and seasonings: The best thing about this tomato chicken dish is that chicken and tomatoes pair well with so many herbs and seasonings. For that reason, it’s a great one for experimenting. I’ve included several recipe variations in the ingredients section above.
- Use the freshest tomatoes you can: This dish is simple and relies on the tomatoes’ flavor a lot – so make sure you use good ones (no cheap-as-chips tomatoes for this chicken breast with tomatoes, please!). In fact, check out your local farmers’ market for some of the best tomatoes!
- If you use skin-on chicken breast: You’ll need to slightly increase cooking time.
- If you use olive oil: Olive oil and tomatoes not only taste delicious, but the two combined make for maximum body absorption of lycopene, which is a powerful antioxidant that is great for boosting heart health, decreasing the risk of certain cancers, and even providing skin protection from the sun!
More Easy Chicken Recipes
- Tuscan chicken pasta
- Instant Pot chicken and potatoes
- Instant Pot frozen chicken breast
- Chicken and cauliflower
- Greek chicken
- Chili lime chicken
Or check out my full list of chicken recipes, here!
Chicken Breast with Tomatoes and Garlic Recipe
Ingredients
Chicken Breasts:
- 2-3 lbs chicken breasts 4 large, boneless & skinless
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Ground black pepper to taste
- Avocado oil
Sauce:
- 3 lbs ripe tomatoes 4 large, cut into half moon shapes
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Ground black pepper to taste
- Basil or parsley finely chopped
Instructions
- Cut chicken breasts into tenders. Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper to taste. Gently toss around to coat evenly.
- Slice tomatoes and chop garlic.
- Preheat large ceramic non-stick skillet on medium heat and swirl a bit of oil to coat. Add half of chicken and cook for 5 minutes or until golden brown on each side. Transfer to a dish and cook remaining chicken this way.
- Reduce heat to low, add garlic and 1/2 tsp oregano. Cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently (add a bit of oil if there was none left from cooking chicken).
- Layer tomatoes on top, sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt and pepper to taste. Turn up the heat to medium and cook tomatoes for about 5 minutes, gently tossing them around (if tomatoes aren’t juicy enough, add a splash of water).
- When tomatoes have released their juices and turned into fresh tomato sauce, turn off the heat and return chicken back to skillet.
- Gently tuck it in between tomatoes and sprinkle with fresh basil or parsley.
- Serve warm with whole wheat spaghetti, quinoa, brown rice or buckwheat.
Storing: Allow the chicken and tomatoes to cool entirely before transferring to an airtight container and storing in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Freezer: Store in an airtight container and freeze for up to three months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
Reheating: Add the chilled chicken breast with tomatoes to a large pan on the stovetop and heat over medium heat until warmed through (10-15 minutes). You can also reheat the tomato chicken in the oven at 350F along with all the tomato sauce, covered. Bake for around 10 minutes, until it is heated through.
Video
Notes
- Experiment with the herbs and seasonings: The best thing about this tomato chicken dish is that chicken and tomatoes pair well with so many herbs and seasonings. For that reason, it's a great one for experimenting. I've included several recipe variations in the ingredients section above.
- Use the freshest tomatoes you can: This dish is simple and relies on the tomatoes' flavor a lot – so make sure you use good ones (no cheap-as-chips tomatoes for this chicken breast with tomatoes, please!). In fact, check out your local farmers' market for some of the best tomatoes!
- If you use skin-on chicken breast: You'll need to slightly increase cooking time.
- If you use olive oil: Olive oil and tomatoes not only taste delicious, but the two combined make for maximum body absorption of lycopene, which is a powerful antioxidant that is great for boosting heart health, decreasing the risk of certain cancers, and even providing skin protection from the sun!
- Can you cook chicken in the oven? Yes, you can. I would follow these baked chicken breast recipe instructions – adding the tomato sauce ingredients to the bottom of the dish for delicious baked chicken with tomatoes.
Nutrition
Recipes and images are a copyright of ifoodreal.com. It is against the law to republish recipes anywhere including social media, print and all world wide web. Nutritional info is provided for informational purposes only and to the best knowledge.
Another Olena home run recipe…it was delicious! The vine tomatoes made a great sauce. We will be having this on repeat!
So glad you enjoyed it and found a new dinner for the menu rotation!
Ooo, this sounds great; can’t wait to try it! Ingredients on shopping list & fingers crossed the store has vine ripened tomatoes.
Can’t wait to hear how it goes!
Simple and good!
This recipe was delicious !
I do not own a ceramic pan. Can I use stainless steel?
Yes but you will need to add more oil.
Excellent and quick. Very tasty.
Yay! So happy to hear!
This is a new favorite for the husband and myself. I only had tomatoes from the supermarket and it was still fantastic. I can’t wait for summer when the farmers markets open back up to try it with fresh tomatoes! I think the basil is what takes to another level.
I can’t wait for fresh summer tomatoes too, Sharon! Glad you liked the recipe.
Olena, Once the chicken has been browned on both sides, where do you put it while you continue on with the rest of the recipe; a metal pan or bowl, covered or uncovered? I haven’t made your recipe yet, but gave you 5 stars, as it looks delicious.
Just a large plate, uncovered. Hope you enjoy!:)
Holy deliciousness!!!!!! This is now a family favorite dish. All 4 children gave it a must have again. I only had gourmet medley small tomatoes on hand. I added fresh stir in Basil right at the end for a burst of color and fresh flavor. I went with grilled eggplant as my base cut length wise. I think you could have put any thing under this chicken tomato Basile garlic sauce and would make a perfect base. This was so simple and so delicious. Thank you for the recipe. Now I can’t wait till I get fresh tomatoes from the garden.
Awe, Sidney! Your feedback made my day…and made me crave fresh garden tomatoes and basil!
This recipe tasted good instead of using water to add to tomatoes i used chicken broth. I used veggies as sides the next time i will use pasta.
Great to hear!
Olena, I’m making this today again as it’s been
w a y too long since I last made it last (April 2019)! I’ve been busy trying out a lot of your other recipes & I guess I’ve let this recipe go on the back burner (so to speak) but… not today! I have chicken breast ready & just calling for this recipe again!! 😁 I can’t wait to eat this once again & I promise it won’t be long making it again!
I’m loving all the recipes you provide as your website is one I ALWAYS come back to.
Thank you again for your hard work in providing healthy meals!
Hi Tricia! You made my day when I read that you have been enjoying my site and recipes. Glad you are making this chicken breast one tonight (it is one of my favorites) 🙂
I’m finishing up this dish as I type. I can tell it’s going to be scrumptious. The smell of the dish is wafting through the kitchen and making my mouth water. It was super easy to make so that is a plus as well.
I hope you enjoy the taste as much as the smell in the kitchen 🙂
Simply amazing dish. Myself and significant other loved this dish. The flavours popped and left us wanting more. I only had 2lbs of grape tomatoes and 3 chicken breasts and still used all the spices and it was amazing. Ty ty for such a great recipe
You are so welcome Mike!
This was so good!! And easy to make!! The recipe was easy to follow. I am so impressed!?
That’s awesome Michele!
My family loved this! I want to make it again, I have a lot of tomatoes! Can I freeze the sauce?
Yes, you can.
hello, can this be make as a meal prep for the week? how long can it be kept in the fridge?
You can keep this in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days (cooked).
sounds great, gonna try it! Thank you for sharing.
Please don’t hesitate to leave a comment and star review once you have tried the recipe.
Hi! I am a high school teacher in SC. We are creating a recipe corner for students and parents in our school newspaper that will be printed and digital. We would love to use this recipe, but want to ensure that we follow copyright policy. Would you please advise if this is okay to do and how you would prefer to be acknowledged as the creator? Thanks so much!
Yes, that is OK. Please credit “Olena Osipov of ifoodreal.com”. Thanks!
I made this recipe tonight, followed the entire recipe and served with whole wheat spaghetti topped with fresh parmesan cheese! Tasted amazing, this is so heathy and full of flavor!! I can’t wait to make it again! Thank you Olena for the amazing recipe, I love your blog!
Awe, thank you so much for your amazing feedback Courtney. I am always so thrilled to hear when my recipes are enjoyed!
How long do you cook the dish after adding the chicken back into the tomatoes/
You don’t. It’s already cooked. Follow steps 8-10.
Great recipe! We love it! Question about the nutrition facts… how much is a serving?
A serving would be ~ 1/2 a chicken breast and sauce. Hope that helps Melissa.
My husband loves it!
She loved it!!!
My significant other enjoyed this meal and so did I. This was served with a bed of brown rice and I didn’t even use a drop of oil!
Thank you for the recipe 🙂
You are very welcome David!
I am making this tonight. Adding red peppers and I only had diced chicken breast.
I will let you know how it turns out.
Thanks for recipe!!
Bon Appetit Thanagi!
I was looking to use up some tomatoes and this recipe fit the bill. Delicious! My hubby wasn’t sure about the tomatoes, then loved the results, and so did our kids. Thank you!
You are so welcome!
This is a great combination of super easy and flavorful.
I will recommend it to my family and make it again.
Thanks for the great feedback Beth!
I could not be more thrilled that I found this website. We have been eating all our junky snacks by the hour and were desperately in need of some healthy, easy food! Most of the shopping we had to do was just the veggies. It felt so great to cook an absolutely DELICIOUS meal last night in under 30 minutes. We are beyond excited to make the Salmon tonight and chicken lettuce wraps tomorrow! So thankful for you, please keep these amazing recipes coming!!! (Am sharing this website on my workout facebook group, too!)
Sam! That’s so great to hear! Hope you enjoy many more of my recipes 🙂
I am happy to have found you Olena! I love real people who eat real food!! I was looking for a sugar free oatmeal cookie recipe to give my husband as a snack and was delighted with you and your recipes because of your no nonsense approach. I cook a lot like you, but I don’t have an instapot, yet, so I am still using my good old pressure cooker, crockpot and rice cooker. But today my brain was on overload and I was running late, so I looked over your chicken recipes and said, yes, this is what my family needs right now. It was very easy and good! Plus I had a 2 1/2 lb bag of chicken tenders at home so I didn’t have to cut them 🙂 and 6 very ripe tomatoes so I used all. My only changes were: I don’t cook with salt, and didn’t have fresh basil so used a tsp dried and also added 2 handfulls of baby spinach for the bright green leaves effect and also added a handful of sliced baby bella mushrooms that were in my fridge begging to be eaten and I used canola oil. Served with some leftover rice. Now I am glad to have leftover chicken and sauce for tomorrow’s lunch. We’re all happy that I’m about to make those oatmeal cookies next. Will let you know how they turn out 🙂 – stay healthy!
Thank you so much for you kind comments Lilia!
Good morning! I hope you can respond soon. I’m looking for good meals to lower High Cholesterol. Not something I have expected to have to do. I’m going to try this recipe. Wanted to know dinners would be good for me? Can you please help!
As I am not a doctor I honestly wouldn’t be able to give you that advice. Sorry wish could help more. We do provide nutiritional info on each recipe though which you can refer to after speaking to a medical provider. Good luck!
Excellent taste for kids and adults. Good instruction. A little wordy to an otherwise 5 star recipe (hard to follow with kids chattering at the same time).
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Rebecca! It is an older recipe and now with more experience I have updated and simplified instructions. On another note, English is my 2nd language, and this recipe is not traditional American one so I wanted to make sure readers get the best result. Plus after raising 2 kids I can tell you that it is not easy to follow any recipe with kids chattering at same time. Or do anything, in fact LOL.
It was a hit for my 12-year-old son!
That is the best when kids (& the rest of the family) love what we moms make. That’s so great!
I just prepared this for dinner. Amazing!
Yay!!! Thank you for your amazing review!
We all loved the flavor and I loved how quick and easy it was. I did add a small container of fresh spinach with the tomatoes for an extra boost of veggies.
So happy to hear!
It’s delicious! I love it! Thank you for sharing the recipe!
You are very welcome!
So simple, so yummy!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Jill!
I am Latina and rely on spanish seasonings especially adobo and sofrito. This was my first time I follow a recipe to almost a T. I I used 3 garlic cloves instead of 5 because of heartburn issues on my part and it was amazing. My 16 year old son just recently started hating jarred tomato sauce but asked for extra sauce. The chicken was amazingly tender and seasoned. So easy and delicious thank you!!
Awesome!!! Happy to hear, Linare. Us, Ukrainians, rely heavily on garlic haha. Glad your son liked this chicken breast recipe!
This was so easy to make and it tasted so good! I put it over white rice since I didn’t have brown rice, or quinoa at home already!
I made a romaine salad topped with tuna salad, eggs, tomatoes, and cucumbers to accompany this side so I wouldn’t eat much rice!
Wish I could post a photo of the finished product!
Yum!!! That is so amazing to hear! Glad you enjoyed my recipe!
Wow! This was really good and easy to make! I needed a recipe to get rid of the tomatoes and extra chicken breast that I had in the fridge and found this recipe. This is one of the few times I actually craved the tomatoes and kept wanting more. So glad to find something easy yet healthy.
Fantastic! Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Haven’t made this yet plan to this week love that it’s healthy and has my favorite ingredients
Thank you
Please let me know how you like it, Trish!
Very tasty! I brined the chicken first – which always helps with breasts – but it came together easily, quickly, and very satisfyingly. We’ll do this again!
That is so amazing to hear! Glad you enjoyed my recipe!
Wow this looks so simple and delicious! My family is currently packing to move across the country and all I had in my refrigerator was Tomatoes on the vine, and chicken in my freezer. (Obviously a few other things) I had no idea what to make for dinner until I came across this recipe! I will be making this tonight as it looks wonderful! I think my husband and daughter will love it!! Thank you for the recipe!
You are welcome! Enjoy!
Very tasty light, summer recipe. I served it with a side of spaghetti squash. My husband loved it!
Fantastic! Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Hi, it does not mention what you are searing the chicken in…you need some sort of oil or something??? This question if for the Chicken Breast with tomatoes.
It does say. Avocado oil. Any oil you usually fry in.
Can I cook in the stove ask don’t cook on the top of the stove
Yes you can. I would follow baked chicken breast recipe instructions.
Delicious! We served over quinoa (made the quinoa in chicken stock and added a touch of salt and soy sauce) and the dish was wonderful. Will definitely be making this again in the future.
Thank you!
The chicken looks so yummy! Will try this recipe tonight.
Please let me know how you like it.
Excellent. Very flavorful
Made this recipe Sunday(4/14/19)… another hit in our house – definitely a 5 star!!. My husband came in from work & smelled the aroma coming from the kitchen & wanted to know what was cooking as he said he bet it’s as good as it smells – IT WAS!! He has ask me where I got the recipe(s) every time I’ve made one of your dishes. Thanks Olena… I’ll be making more of your recipes!
You are so welcome, Tricia! 🙂 Tell your husband anything with garlic comes from Olena.:)
Garlic is a staple in our house… love it! I added white wine vinegar after the tomatoes went in… and maybe a little more garlic. It was, as I mentioned, 5 Star Delicious!!!
After eyeing this recipe for a week now… decided to make it today for lunch… surprise my husband when he gets home from work. I’ve not tasted it yet but… I can tell you at this moment it smells devine & I hope I can wait until my hubby gets home to eat it. I’ll let you know afterward… rate it. It’s more than likely going to be another 5 ? I suspect. The aroma in the kitchen is definitely making me hungry!!
Looking for something different to cook and saw this – quick and easy to make – didn’t have large tomatoes so used a box of tiny tomatoes which seem to work well. Really tasty
Yes. Any tomatoes. Grape are more pricey but in winter it doesn’t matter haha. Glad you liked it.:)
I have made this before but tonight I added a small onion, one jalapeno and mushrooms while I was cooking the garlic. After the tomatoes went in I added some white wine and balsamic vinegar.
Fantastic!!!
Nice! Great additions when you are feeling adventurous. I like to cook like that when time allows.:)
I made it for the first time and it was delicious. I will definitely make it often as my husband loved it too. I used rice as a side dish.
This was the best chicken I’ve ever tasted. ?
Easy and delicious. I added a splash of white wine.
Hi Olena, this looks really good. You used to include nutrition info and sometimes WW points…Do you not do that anymore? Thanks and always enjoy making your recipes.
Hi Megan. No, sorry I don’t include nutritional info anymore. Glad you are enjoying!:)
Love the simplisity of this recipe. Perfect for a weeknight!