This super easy sheet pan chicken breast recipe has a great Italian flair and is crusted with Parmesan cheese breading. Roasted with carrots and potatoes, you will have a complete healthy meal for the entire family in less than an hour.
Introduction
My mind goes to sheet pan meals in my never-ending quest not to work hard. They are the easiest one-pan recipes to roast a complete meal all at once.
This time I wanted a chicken sheet pan meal. I only checked a few other recipes since it is so straightforward and just did it my way.
Do you know that the roasting time for skinless boneless chicken breasts is like chunks of potatoes and carrots? Pour it all on a baking tray with some Parmesan, bread crumbs, and spices.
My Rating
A nice solid 4. Great for a weeknight change of pace.
🐓Ingredients
The Chicken
I'm suggesting skinless boneless chicken breasts. Since they mostly weigh more than one serving, just cut them in half before cooking.
You can use thighs but cook to 180°, which is better for thighs. Also, if you wish, skin-on chicken may be used.
You may brine the chicken to help prevent drying out.
Vegetables
Root vegetables, like potatoes and carrots, are suggested since the cooking time will generally be the same as the chicken. Plus, they are forgiving if a little overcooked.
Potatoes should be about 1-inch in size. I suggest something like red potatoes or Yukon since the skin is thin. Russets will work, but I would peel them due to the thick skin.
Carrots need to be about baby carrot size since large whole carrots will take longer to cook. You can use the "baby carrots" if you want, but they have less taste.
Sweet potatoes and Brussel sprouts have a similar time, but they will take longer if large.
Onions cooking time varies by size, but they can dominate the flavor, so be careful with onions.
Some vegetables like broccoli florets, bell peppers, or cauliflower will take about half the time. Some vegetables, like green beans, will need cooking times that vary widely, and I don't suggest them due to that variability—cook them separately.
The one thing to remember about all roasted vegetables is to use plenty of oil.
Parmesan Cheese and Bread Crumbs
Use a good quality Parmesan cheese, preferably freshly grated.
The preferred bread crumbs are Italian or cheese flavored Panko bread crumbs. You can use other flavors and could use standard bread crumbs.
Seasoning
This is an Italian version, so an Italian seasoning mix to replace the basil and other spices would be a good substitute to decrease the number of ingredients.
But you can make it what you want by changing the spices and breadcrumbs.
👨🍳How to Make Sheet Pan Chicken Breasts
- Preheat the oven.
- Prepare a large sheet pan with a good spray of PAM.
- Trim and cut up chicken breasts.
- Clean and trim carrots and potatoes to size.
- In a large bowl, coat chicken and vegetables with oil and seaonings.
- Spread the chicken and vegetables over the sheet pan.
- Mix topping of bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese and seaonings.
- Sprinkle the topping over the ingredients on the tray.
- Give the chicken and vegatables a spray of PAM.
- Bake until the vegetables are cooked and tender and chicken is 165°—about 35 minutes.
- Brown more with the broiler if needed.
❓FAQs
This recipe, as written, needs a 13X18 inch sheet pan and makes four good-sized servings.
The recipe can be easily cut in half and would use a 9X13 inch sheet pan or baking pan.
Do not cover the chicken or vegetables with aluminum foil. We want to bake the meat and vegetables and not steam them. The browning, called a Maillard reaction, adds lots of taste to the final results.
Foil or parchment paper is helpful for clean-up but not required. Just cover the baking tray if you wish and a good spray of baking spray.
Leftovers in an airtight container are good in the refrigerator for 3-4 days and 3-4 months in the freezer.
📖Sheet Pan Recipes
One Pan Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Potatoes and Carrots
Easy Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
Preheat oven to 375° convection or 400° regular oven.
Pat dry two skinless boneless chicken breasts. Trim and cut in half if average size. Cut in thirds if huge.
Prep veggies. Wash, peel, and cut carrots into slices or ¾ to 1-inch chunks. Wash and cut small red potatoes in half. If using other potatoes, cut into ¾ to 1-inch pieces.
Toss chicken, potatoes, and carrots into a large bowl and mix with one tablespoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon each of thyme, basil, garlic powder, and black pepper. Add one teaspoon of coarse salt and mix well.
Prep 13X18 baking sheet pan with a coat of PAM. Spread the chicken and veggies over the baking sheet.
Mix the topping of ⅓ cup Italian breadcrumbs and ⅓ cup grated Parmesan (fresh preferred). Sprinkle over the chicken and veggies.
Give the chicken and vegetables a light spray of PAM to keep them moist.
Bake until veggies are golden brown and chicken is 165°—about 35 minutes. Your time will vary with the size of the pieces and your oven.
📖Recipe
Sheet Pan Chicken Breasts with Vegetables
Ingredients
- 2 skinless boneless chicken breasts
- 6 red potatoes - small
- 4 carrots - medium
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon thyme
- ½ teaspoon basil
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- ⅓ cup Italian bread crumbs - Panko
- ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese - fresh preferred grated
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° convection or 400° regular oven.
- Pat dry two skinless boneless chicken breasts. Trim and cut in half if average size. Cut in thirds if huge.
- Prep veggies. Wash, peel, and cut carrots into slices or ¾ to 1-inch chunks. Wash and cut small red potatoes in half. If using other potatoes, cut into ¾ to 1-inch pieces.
- Toss chicken, potatoes, and carrots into a large bowl and mix with one tablespoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon each of thyme, basil, garlic powder, and black pepper. Add one teaspoon of coarse salt and mix well.
- Prep 13X18 baking sheet pan with a coat of PAM. Spread the chicken and veggies over the sheet.
- Mix topping of ⅓ cup Italian breadcrumbs and ⅓ cup grated Parmesan (fresh preferred). Sprinkle over the chicken and veggies.
- Give the chicken and vegetables a light spray of PAM to keep them moist.
- Bake until veggies are golden brown and chicken is 165°—about 35 minutes. Your time will vary with the size of the pieces and your oven.
My Private Notes
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- An easy recipe to cut in half. A 13X18 size sheet pans work great for the full recipe. Use the smaller size 9X13 for a half recipe.
- You can use chicken thighs if you wish.
- The potatoes can be any potatoes cut into about 1-inch chunks, I do not suggest Russet potatoes due to the thick skin. Something like red potatoes works well.
- The carrots can be baby carrots, but cut up whole carrots will have more flavor.
- You can use an Italian seasoning mix in place of the suggested spices.
- Cook until chicken breasts are 165° and 180° if using thighs. Potatoes and carrots should also be brown and tender.
- Leftovers are good for 3-4 days refrigerated and 3-4 months frozen.
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Originally Published April 5, 2015. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Sandi LaMania
I'm sorry, I was so hopeful! Made tonight exactly according to recipe. SOOOOO DRY! Made me sad but at least I know it was low fat.....
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Sandi,
Welcome to the blog and so sorry you had a problem.
Let's talk possibilities about what happened
1) Skinless boneless chicken breasts tend to dry easily.
2) Cooked past 165 will definitely dry. This will happen if the pieces are small or thin. So you need to watch the internal temperature closely.
3) previously frozen chicken will tend to dry since freezing will force some fluid out of the cells.
Brining will help prevent drying. If you brine, do not use seasoning with salt.
The ratio for a brine is 2 cups of water and one tablespoon of table salt. Some people will add some brown sugar equal to the salt. Remember that all salt is not equal and 1 teaspoon table salt = 1 ¼ teaspoon Morton kosher salt = 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
Hope that helps.
Dan
cee2lee2
Made this for the first time tonight on my never ending quest for recipes that are easy, quick and tasty. This recipe fills the bill. Used both thighs and breast. Like another commentor, I forgot to put on the topping, but remembered before the pan had been in the oven very long. Pulled it from the oven, topped the veggies and chicken, and put it back in to bake. Husband liked his supper, as did I. I also like that the veggies and seasonings can be changed up, but this will become my go to sheet pan recipe. Thank you for sharing it. Cindy
Jennifer Slater
Hi Dan,
I searched for a baked chicken/potato/carrot recipe as the one I had was for a crock pot, which personally I do not like, and came across your recipe which sounded devine. I, for some reason, am a horrible cook and when I find a recipe that works I will keep it forever and follow it to the letter. But as I was making your recipe it seemed that there was not nearly enough oil/spice mixture to cover the chicken and veggies (although looking back I may have increased the amount of chicken to 3 large breasts, 8 carrots and about 7 potatoes. Not sure if that was the problem.) Anyway, please advise.
p.s. I just signed up for your email newsletters (although I'm about a year older now since there were SO MANY capcha photos to identify before you would let me in) but I really look forward to your unique and delicious-looking recipes, your step-by-step instructions, and the wonderful photos (especially those of Lilly and Molly).
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Jennifer,
First, welcome to the blog.
The oil is a bit light in this recipe but use the amount you want. I try not to have baked things highly oiled. But more won't hurt.
About looking for recipes, all the recipes have step by step photos, so as you look around, just slowly go through them and imagine if you could do each of these steps. When we break things down, you will find you can do many more recipes than you think.
I have captcha issues also but the email service is run by Google. I sometimes need several ties to get through them.
Molly and Lilly say thanks for the shout out.
Be sure to ask if you have any questions. Thanks for the rating.
Dan
amy
i'll be making this again :)
Dan R Cassidy
if you have time should chicken be brined?
DrDan
Hi Dan,
I don't for this recipe. But a brine is always a good thing for chicken breasts so if you have time then yes. Also, if they have been previous frozen, it is probably a good time. I try to do fresh.
Dan
Cookin Mama
I have a Fargo Convection Oven that i bought awhile back ,but not sure the proper way to use it. My question is; can i just place all the veggies and the chicken in the bottom of the glass bowl, or do i have to place them in a small round pan in the bottom of the glass bowl? Can you please let me know asap? I'm ready to get cookin! Thank You,Cookin Mama
DrDan
I'm not familiar with that device but this needs to be just one layer. On glass or metal shouldn't matter. When I Google Fargo Convection Oven I get Fago. The pictures show some somewhat normal looking ovens but also a round thing. If it is the round thing, this recipe needs heat coming from the bottom and top both and I don't think that device would work well. It looks like it shots hot air from above and it that is true, I'm sure it would not be good.
Hilary
Just made this dish and it is so good! It baked really well and quickly! I was worried that it might have been over seasoned as the seasonings were bold in flavor but my boyfriend said it was fine! I have added this to my recipe box and will be remaking many more times in the future!
*Using what I had on hand, I made a few adjustments; I used 3 s/b-less breast, 1 russet potato, 1 sweet potato, and 5 carrots. Also, I had completely forgotten to add the breadcrumb and Parmesan cheese!
Thanks again for sharing!!!
Casey Bemis
I am about to do this recipe for about the 10th time. Love it. I like it best with Panko bread crumbs, but regular ones are good too. I have also used the newer purple potatoes for variety and color.. This is an easy recipe that can be dressed up with several vegetables during the last 10 minutes. I've used chopped red peppers and frozen peas. Could use Asparagus or others.
DrDan
Hi Casey,
I vary the veggies almost everytime. I consider this a "lazy" recipe for when I want almost no work.
Thanks for the note
Dan
Eileen Burns
I think this is the first time I made juicy and tender chicken breasts.
DrDan
Hi Eileen,
I do love a simple cook like this.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Casey Bemis
This is the second time I made this dish and it was quite a success. Last time I used a mix of purple potatoes and red potatoes plus carrots. This time I used halved fingerlings. I didn't use oil spray but just drizzled on olive oil. I liked best using Panko bread crumbs. Nice and crispy. While the carrots and potatoes were good, I added some chopped red pepper near the end for some color. I think you can really use about any vegetable with this recipe. It was definitely a hit at my house.
DrDan
Hi Cerwyn,
I'm not sure what happened to you. With the "sprinkle", I mean to just dust it over the dish. No patting in and about 1/3 will end up on the pan.
At least the other recipes are working for you...
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Cerwyn
Dr. Dan. A rare miss for us. Maybe I did something wrong? It was incredibly over herbed and I had like triple the amount of bread crumb cheese mixture I needed. Directions said sprinkle it on. Was I supposed to pat it on the chicken to form a crust?
That being said I've tried 8 of ur recipes and this was the only one I had trouble with. Everything else has been unbelievably good. I've learned to make rolls and a roux from u. Thank u and keep up the good work!
Judy Uhl
I have this in the oven right now~ smells great! Thanks Dr. Dan Easy Peasy Recipe!
DrDan
Hi Judy and Happy New Years
Hope it works well for you.
Dan
Davina Gilligan
I made this for my husband and I for dinner last night...So Delicious! It's our favorite chicken recipe, I always make the same amount so that my he can have some for his lunch for the next day. Thank you for the recipe!
Meg
This might seem like a silly question but my oven has a bake and roast convection option. I'm assuming since it's a roast chicken I should choose the roast option. I'm a newbie at cooking and appreciate your recipes! Thanks in advance.
DrDan
Hi Meg,
I'm going to refer you to the manual for your oven. I believe convection roast suggestions vary some by the manufacturer.
I always use convection bake. Older convection ovens that don't have the "roast" are the equivalent of convection bake using a heating element in the fan unit.
In general, the convection roast will turn on other burners also and may decrease the cooking time more and add more browning.
Dan
Deborah L
Meg, my Samsung convection oven says this: use 'Bake' if you use multiple oven racks. (like cookies or rolls orbread). Use 'Roast' if you have one larger piece of meat to cook. The position of the roast becomes important since the 'roast' setting blasts one spot of the oven.. I just use the 'Bake' setting for everything. Listen to the Doctor and cook your manual info. Or look it up online from the manufacturer's support page.
Deb L.
Bobby
My husband and a I had this tonight for the first time-delicious! The amount was a little too much so I will cut it down a little but we loved it. Did not use Pam. Lined cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spread olive oil with my finger. I overlooked it a little but that was my fault. It's a definite Keeper.
Susan Murray
This was the second item I cooked in my new Oyama Turbo Convection Roaster Oven and we were pleasantly surprised it was very good. I don't cook at home much but this was an easy dish to prepare and cook just enough for two I used already trimmed chicken breast halves (1 whole breast). Next time I would not add as many bread crumbs just a personal preference, the chicken was very moist and the vegetables complimented the protein nicely.
Robert Searl
Mike,
More often than not recipes for ovens do not mention rack position. Is there a difference for rack positions for normal roasting versus convection roasting?
Thanks,
Robert
DrDan
Hi Robert,
With convection ovens, rack position is less important but still with have some effect. With conventional ovens, rack position is more important. If not specified always assume racks in the middle since other positions are really for special effects and not general baking/roasting.
Dan