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    🏠Home » Recipes » Chicken Recipes

    Baked Split Chicken Breasts (Bone-in)

    Jan 10, 2023 by Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan · 117 Comments

    Recipe Table of Contents    
    4.05 from 437 votes

    Baked split (bone-in) chicken breasts are healthy and delicious, with a juicy and tender inside with a crispy outside. This an easy recipe for a quick economical dinner the whole family will love.

    pile of crispy chicken breast
    Jump To:
    • 😊Why you should make this recipe.
    • 🐓Ingredients
    • 👨‍🍳How to Bake Split Chicken Breasts (Bone-in)
    • ⏰🌡️Time and Temperature
    • 🐓About Split Chicken Breasts (Bone-in)
    • ✔️Pro-Tips
    • ❓FAQs
    • ❄️Leftovers and storage
    • 📖Bone-in (Split) Chicken Breast Recipes
    • 🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
    • 📝Recipe
    Blue ribbon divider used for visual effect

    Everybody can use more chicken recipes that work. This roasted bone-in chicken breast recipe is one to keep.

    😊Why you should make this recipe.

    • Split chicken breasts (bone-in) have superior flavor and are extra moist and juicy.
    • Learn to easily trim whole chicken breasts into a better serving size with more surface area for seasoning and much simpler to cook to a safe temperature.
    • Optionally, use baking powder to make the skin extra crispy.
    • They make a tasty and economical dinner the whole family will love.
    • Let's get it right the first time and every time with easy step-by-step photo instructions. It is much easier than you think.

    🐓Ingredients

    • Split chicken breasts (Bone-in)
    • Garlic powder
    • Onion powder
    • Kosher salt
    • Black pepper
    • Cayenne pepper—optional
    • Baking powder Aluminum-free—Optional
    • Celery salt—optional

    👨‍🍳How to Bake Split Chicken Breasts (Bone-in)

    • Preheat oven.
    • Pat dry chicken breasts, trim the chicken of any trimmable fat, remove the rib area, and discard. Then cut it into 2 to 3 pieces.
    • Prepare a baking pan with aluminum foil and a baking rack, and coat with PAM cooking spray.
    • Combine spices and baking powder. Then sprinkle and rub on all surfaces. You may not need all the spices, just to your taste.
    • Place on the rack (if you have one) with larger pieces in the corners—and thinner edges to the center of the tray. Let rest for 30 minutes if you have time, and use the baking powder.
    • Bake until internal temp of 165°. It takes about 35 minutes, depending on your oven and the thickness of the chicken.

    ⏰🌡️Time and Temperature

    The best oven temperature is 400° convection or 425° for about 35 minutes. The time will vary by the size and thickness of the chicken pieces. This is much lower than the cooking time for whole bone-in chicken breast which will be more like 50 minutes at 375°.

    You can lower the oven temperature by 25°, and the cooking time will increase by about 5 minutes.

    The safe endpoint of cooking is a final internal temperature of 165° in the thickest part and not any less. You must use an instant-read thermometer to prevent undercooking (unsafe) or over-cooking (drying).

    Like most meat, never cook by time; always cook to final internal temperature.

    🐓About Split Chicken Breasts (Bone-in)

    Split chicken breasts are also known as bone-in chicken breasts. Technically, bone-in should include both sides of the chicken in one piece, but the breast bone is split during processing, creating two pieces. So they are called split or bone-in.

    For years they were called skin-on bone-in chicken breasts, but since they are not generally sold without the skin, the "skin-on" part is frequently dropped. Most cooks feel they have more taste and moisture than the more popular boneless skinless chicken breasts.

    They have become progressively bigger over the last few decades. They are now too big for a reasonable serving size for most people. They are also hard for most home cooks to get to a safe internal temperature without overcooking the outside. So most home cooks will skip them as an option or settle for poor results. We can fix that.

    ✔️Pro-Tips

    • The “secret” to the success of this recipe is how to prepare the split chicken breasts before cooking. You get a better serving size, more even cooking, and more surface area for the great spices.
    • You can use pan juices to help make gravy. See How to Make Gravy from Scratch for details.
    • The spicing I have provided is a nice garlic-based seasoning. Still, like most recipes, you can easily adjust the spicing to your taste using fresh herbs, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and basil may be added.

    ❓FAQs

    Do I need a rack to cook split chicken breasts

    No, but it is better with a rack and less sticking. If you don't have one, use a good coat of oil on the tray to prevent sticking. It is more important when you want crispy skin on all sides, like chicken drumsticks, or there may be lots of drainage that affects the texture, like chicken thighs.

    Why use baking powder?

    The baking powder increases the crispness by pulling moisture out of the skin. This a trick from Cooks Illustrated, although I have modified the technique.

    I find even short times with the baking powder will enhance the skin's crispiness. In this recipe, I suggest a 30-minute rest before cooking but even just applying the rub with baking powder and cooking immediately seems to enhance the crispiness.

    You may skip the baking powder and still have good results—just not as crispy.

    I do suggest using aluminum-free baking powder. I never buy baking powder with aluminum, which many can taste.

    Why do we no longer rinse off chicken?

    We no longer recommend rinsing chicken due to contamination of the surrounding area from splattering.

    Rinsing chicken is no effect on the crispiness versus just patting it dry with paper towels. See Chicken... To Rinse or Not To Rinse? for a detailed discussion.

    What is the safe internal temperature for chicken?

    The safe internal temperature for chicken is 165°, according to the USDA.

    ❄️Leftovers and storage

    Leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for 3-4 days, but the skin texture will deteriorate. You can also freeze leftovers for 3 months.

    Use the leftovers by just reheating, preferably in the oven covered. The microwave will affect the meat's texture. Also, leftovers are an excellent cut-up for salads, chicken salad, or Waldorf Chicken Salad.

    📖Bone-in (Split) Chicken Breast Recipes

    Garlic Butter Stuffed Chicken Breast

    Easiest Baked BBQ Split Chicken Breast

    Grilled BBQ Split Chicken Breasts

    Crispy Garlic Grilled Split Chicken Breast

    This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.

    101's Best Recipes, Chicken Recipes, Easy Dinner Recipes
    Blue ribbon divider used for visual effect

    🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions

    spices for crispy chicken breasts
    1. Preheat oven to 400° convection or 425° conventional oven.
    1. Pat dry the chicken, trim the chicken of any trimmable fat and remove the rib area.
    cutting chicken breasts into chunks
    1. Prepare a baking sheet with aluminum foil and a baking rack—coat with PAM cooking spray.
    spraying a rack on baking sheet with PAM
    1. Prepare a baking sheet with aluminum foil and a baking rack—coat with PAM cooking spray.
    mixing seasonng in small bowl
    Optional cayenne pepper, celery salt, and baking powder not pictured.
    1. Combine spices and baking powder (if using) in a small bowl. Sprinkle and rub on all surfaces, but you may not need all of the spice mixture, just season to your taste.
    chicken pieces on rack ready for oven
    1. Place on a rack skin side up with larger pieces in the corners—and thinner edges to the center. If you used baking powder and have time, let it set for 30 minutes to help dry the skin.
    browned pieces of chicken out of the oven
    1. Bake until internal temp of 165°. It takes about 35 minutes, depending on your oven and the thickness of the chicken.
    piece of chicken on white plate
    1. Let the chicken rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
    graphic Subscribe to 101 Cooking for Two

    📝Recipe

    Pile of split (bone-in) chicken breasts on white plate

    Baked Split Chicken Breasts (Bone-in)

    From Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
    Baked split (bone-in) chicken breasts are healthy and delicious, with a juicy and tender inside with a crispy outside. This an easy recipe for a quick economical dinner the whole family will love.
    Tap to leave a Rating
    4.05 from 437 votes
    Print Email CollectionCollected
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 35 minutes
    Total Time: 45 minutes
    Servings #/Adjust if desired 6 servings

    Ingredients

    US Customary - Convert to Metric
    • 3 split chicken breast - scale to what you need, AKA bone-in chicken breast
    • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
    • ½ teaspoon onion powder
    • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
    • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
    • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper - optional
    • ½ teaspoon celery salt - optional if you have it
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder - optional Aluminum-free
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 400° convection or 425° conventional oven.
      spices for crispy chicken breasts
    • Pat dry the chicken, trim the chicken of any trimmable fat and remove the rib area.
    • Cut the chicken into pieces—the normal-size ones in half and the huge ones into thirds.
      cutting chicken breasts into chunks
    • Prepare a baking sheet with aluminum foil and a baking rack—coat with PAM cooking spray.
      spraying a rack on baking sheet with PAM
    • Combine spices and baking powder (if using) in a small bowl. Sprinkle and rub on all surfaces, but you may not need all of the spice mixture, just season to your taste.
      mixing seasonng in small bowl
    • Place on a rack skin side up with larger pieces in the corners—and thinner edges to the center. If you used baking powder and have time, let it set for 30 minutes to help dry the skin.
      chicken pieces on rack ready for oven
    • Bake until internal temp of 165°. It takes about 35 minutes, depending on your oven and the thickness of the chicken.
      browned pieces of chicken out of the oven
    • Let the chicken rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
      piece of chicken on white plate
    See the step-by-step photos in the post. Some recipes have an option to display the photos here with a switch above these instructions but the photos DO NOT print.

    Your Own Private Notes

    Click here to save your own private notes only you will see. These will print and be saved for your next visit.
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    Recipe Notes

    Pro Tips:

    1. Scale to the amount you want. I was cooking for leftovers and the packages usually have 3 breasts at our store.
    2. Properly cutting up and trimmed chicken breasts are important for this recipe to work. Better serving sizes, more even cooking, easier to get properly cooked and more surface area for seasoning. Good in every way.
    3. The celery salt adds some taste but skip it if you don't have it.
    4. The cayenne pepper is also optional/to taste. The ¼ teaspoon is a 2 or 3/10 heat level. Don't use it if feeding kids.
    5. I like cooking chicken on racks, but it is not that important here.
    6. Keep the thicker parts of the chicken towards the outside of the baking tray.
    7. Be sure to check for a final internal temperature of 165°. Do not guess or cook by time alone. Use an instant-read thermometer.
    8. Great leftover in the refrigerator for 3-4 days and can be frozen for 3-4 months.

    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

    Nutrition Facts
    Baked Split Chicken Breasts (Bone-in)
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 159 Calories from Fat 72
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 8g12%
    Saturated Fat 2g10%
    Cholesterol 58mg19%
    Sodium 498mg21%
    Potassium 205mg6%
    Carbohydrates 1g0%
    Fiber 1g4%
    Sugar 1g1%
    Protein 19g38%
    Vitamin A 144IU3%
    Calcium 59mg6%
    Iron 1mg6%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    Serving size is my estimate of a normal size unless stated otherwise. The number of servings per recipe is stated above. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
    Course : Main Course
    Cuisine : American

    © 101 Cooking for Two, LLC. All content and photographs are copyright protected by us or our vendors. While we appreciate your sharing our recipes, please realize copying, pasting, or duplicating full recipes to any social media, website, or electronic/printed media is strictly prohibited and a violation of our copyrights.

    Editor's Note: Originally Published May 25, 2011. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation. Please enjoy one of our easiest, most flavorful chicken recipes.

    Molly looking good

    More Chicken Recipes

    • Grilled Whole Chicken without Spatchcocking
    • Super Moist Grilled Reversed Seared Chicken Breast with Marinade
    • Extra Crispy Oven Baked Chicken Wings
    • Oven Baked Chicken Thighs

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    1. Jane Nicholls

      January 11, 2023 at 4:20 pm

      5 stars
      Your recipes help me cook more healthy and flavourful meals. I appreciate your detailed instructions and your excellent information.
      Pats to the girls.

      Reply
    2. Eva

      November 17, 2020 at 12:02 pm

      This was great exactly as is and as promised! I do have a tip. Invest in a good pair of kitchen shears! You can then easily and safely snip through those bones.

      Reply
    3. Brooke

      October 03, 2020 at 10:36 am

      5 stars
      So many thanks for creating this post! I bought split chicken breasts at the grocery last night due to the unbeatable price! I knew I could tackle a little bit of trimming and basic deboning (One of the best kitchen skills I have learned is deboning chicken thighs.) but I needed to find a “how to” and your article explained it perfectly. I’m about to prep all of these super huge breasts for the freezer, and one or two (not decided yet if I want leftovers) for supper later tonight for my husband and me. Thank you so much for this valuable info, and the delicious sounding recipe!

      Reply
    4. Deborah Lein

      July 01, 2020 at 6:17 pm

      Dear Dr Dan, Bought split bone-in skin-on chicken breasts by mistake. Here was your recipe to the rescue! However... I rarely cook with bone-in chicken. now I know why boneless is more expensive. More work and more waste. I sure could have benefited with more detailed explanation of cutting the ribs off. I worked my way through ribs AND wish bone AND breast bone and several more bony things. When I looked through the recipe for the tenth time, I realized the chicken photos had bones in them that I had so diligently and laboriously removed. Which just goes to show that I don't know what I don't know. Maybe it should have read, cut the ribs and don't worry about the other bones. Husband is lurking in kitchen saying this smells delicious. I hope so. I'm not cut out to be a poultry butcher on a regular basis.

      Reply
    5. Karen

      January 08, 2020 at 5:38 pm

      5 stars
      Very,very good. Has been well received by fussy water in my house. Your dog's are lovely and I really enjoy the pictures.

      Reply
    6. Andi Fox

      July 21, 2019 at 3:33 pm

      Just love the backing powder tip (hack? lol). Just wish I'd seen this recipe before I put the 3 huge chicken breasts into the oven. Love rosemary & thyme seasonings with chicken, but I like the idea of a little zing the cayenne will give.
      Thanks & I'm signing up for your newsletter.
      Andi Fox

      Reply
    7. J.J.

      April 18, 2019 at 3:35 pm

      5 stars
      So delicious, crispy, fast, easy. This one is immediately in my top 3 chicken recipes--there used to be only 2! Will work into the regular rotation.
      I have used skin on, bone in chicken pieces for a very long time. That's where the flavor and moisture come from.

      Reply
      • susan

        July 17, 2019 at 4:48 pm

        I have not made this yet, but wondering what the baking powder does. I've never seen it in this type of recipe before. Thanks.

      • Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

        July 17, 2019 at 6:20 pm

        Hi Susan,
        Welcome to the blog.
        The baking powder pulls water out the skin so it is crispier when cooked. It is a fairly common trick. You can skip it if you want and the skin will be a bit less crispy.
        Dan

    8. SurfNturf

      February 20, 2019 at 1:23 pm

      So good!
      I prepared this recipe as outlined and it is a winner.
      Nice and crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside and a little heat for the tastebuds.

      It's so simple and tasty that is going to be added to the regular rotation!

      Reply
      • DrDan

        February 21, 2019 at 7:11 pm

        Hi SurfNturf,
        Welcome to the blog.
        I do love this recipe, it is just so easy to get good results.
        Thanks for the note.
        Dan

    9. Deb

      October 21, 2018 at 12:59 pm

      Chernobyl chicken breasts on sale cheap - trying tonight 😊

      Reply
    10. dick

      October 16, 2018 at 4:17 am

      easy recipe, baked instead of fried, pleasantly surprised as it is delicious, will make this and share with friends

      Reply
    11. Bonnie DiNardo

      October 10, 2018 at 5:21 pm

      This recipe is both tasty and extremely practical for a two person household. Our supermarket frequently offers a 4-pack of bone-in skin-on split chicken breasts at a sale price. Trimming the ribs off and cutting the breasts in half enables me to bake all of them at the same time. Each piece is a nice portion. We can enjoy the crispy skin the day they are baked, refrigerate 2 pieces, and freeze 4 pieces. The skin and remaining bone partially encase the meat to help protect it from drying out. The pre-cooked chicken meat is like money in the bank. So worth the little bit of effort to cut it up!

      Reply
      • DrDan

        October 10, 2018 at 10:35 pm

        Hi Bonnie,
        Welcome to the blog.
        It is the easy solution to the problem of those huge chicken breasts they sale. You can't reasonable cook them well and one is too much for some of use to eat anyway. So this is my solution.

        The first time I cut them up, I was thinking more surface area for seasoning. True but the portion sizes and ease of cooking are the main benefits.

        I do like the skin on this recipe also.

        Thanks for the note.
        Dan

    12. Richard

      October 04, 2018 at 8:00 pm

      Great recipe. Thank you very much. Cook for a gang (gaggle?) of people. As a single dad this is a major hit! Only problem, they often invite their friends, without notice...(good problem to have.) Thanks again. You Rock!

      Reply
      • DrDan

        October 06, 2018 at 9:28 pm

        Hi Richard,

        Welcome to the blog.

        This is one of favorite recipes and as you see, it scales great. Glad it works well for you.

        Thanks for the note

        Dan

    13. Monique

      July 16, 2018 at 3:42 pm

      Making this for the third time this month. This recipe blew me away, soooo easy but oh so tasty :) my whole family loves it.

      Thank you and greetings from Sweden :)

      Reply
    14. Christina

      May 28, 2018 at 7:18 pm

      Hi Dan,

      Thanks for the recipe - it turned out great! It was very good - juicy and flavorful:) Earlier tonight my husband said "eh" to chicken, after dinner said "very good, really good, etc."

      Used spices as listed, but a few changes since I was using an air fryer - didn't cut in half, sprayed both sides of chicken with canola spray, cooked in air fryer at 390F for 25 minutes. Let rest w/foil tent for 5 mins.

      The only thing I'll try different is to put some of the spices (no baking soda) under the skin and let it sit longer to get more flavor in the meat.

      Thanks again,
      Christina

      Reply
    15. Cristina

      April 24, 2018 at 6:21 am

      Delicious and easy to make! Even my one year old loved it and he can be a fickle eater.

      Reply
      • DrDan

        May 08, 2018 at 1:01 pm

        Hi Cristina,
        Sorry for the delayed response.
        Gald it worked well for you.
        Dan

    16. LAURIE

      April 13, 2018 at 3:45 pm

      Love the tip about cutting breasts into smaller pieces, BUT -- discard what's cut off? Save any bones and scraps and freeze to make stock later on.

      Reply
      • DrDan

        May 08, 2018 at 1:00 pm

        Hi Laurie,
        First, sorry to everybody for the lack of replies. I will try to do better.
        Yep that works, but I lack freezer space anymore
        Thanks for the note.
        Dan

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