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A skillet with chicken in tomato sauce

Easy Chicken Pomodoro Skillet

In just one skillet, chicken breasts are gently simmered in an easy homemade tomato sauce for a quick weeknight dinner.
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Ingredients

  • 4 chicken breasts boneless, skinless
  • 1¼ tsp salt divided
  • ¾ tsp freshly ground black pepper divided
  • 1-3 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 can (796 mL) San Marzano tomatoes
  • ½ tsp granulated sugar
  • ¼ tsp dried basil
  • ¼ tsp dried oregano
  • 2 Roma tomatoes diced
  • 8-10 basil leaves thinly sliced, for garnish

Instructions
 

  • Place one chicken breast on cutting board. Holding knife blade parallel to board and starting at thickest long side, slice horizontally to make two thin cutlets. Repeat with remaining chicken.
  • Sandwich chicken between plastic wrap; using meat mallet or heavy-bottomed saucepan, pound to ½ in (1 cm) thickness. Sprinkle with 1 tsp of the salt and ½ tsp of the pepper.
  • In large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat; working in batches, cook chicken, flipping once, until browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side. (Chicken does not need to be cooked through.) Remove to a plate. Reduce heat to medium.
  • Add garlic to pan and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in water, scraping up any browned bits.
  • Add canned tomatoes with juices, breaking up tomatoes with your hands as you add them. Stir in sugar, basil and oregano. Return chicken to pan, flipping to coat with sauce.
  • Cover and cook over medium heat until chicken is cooked through, 11 to 14 minutes. Remove chicken from sauce and let rest for 5 minutes.
  • While chicken is resting, stir in Roma tomatoes and cook until heated through, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining ¼ tsp each salt and pepper or to taste. Serve the sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with fresh basil. (See note #2.)

Notes

  1. Nilsson recommends using San Marzano tomatoes—they’re less acidic than other varieties as well as being both sweet and vibrant. If you don’t have San Marzano tomatoes, use canned whole tomatoes, and add a small pinch of sugar if you find the sauce tart.
  2. Serve the sauce over pasta or polenta or with roasted zucchini.
Keyword Chicken, Skillet dinner