Made in one skillet in just 30 minutes, this easy Mediterranean chicken recipe shows off with juicy chicken cutlets nestled in a saucy fresh tomato, olive, and artichoke-studded dish.
My New Go-To Chicken Dinner When I’m in a Rush
Like all of my favorite Mediterranean Diet-inspired recipes, this saucy one-pan chicken goes heavy on the vegetables, lean protein, and healthy fats.
It’s a fast and easy recipe that layers all of the ingredients together in one skillet for maximum flavor (and minimal dirty dishes!). Instead of canned tomato sauce, I cook down sweet cherry tomatoes in a little chicken broth for added freshness, no matter the season.
Briny capers and Kalamata olives complement the tomatoes, while canned artichokes add an almost creamy texture.
If you’ve grown tired of your usual dinner rotation, inject some Mediterranean flair into your dinner rotation with this one-pot chicken and veggie skillet.
Enjoy!
Heidi’s Tips for Recipe Success
Slice your chicken breasts lengthwise to shorten the cook time. Cooking whole chicken breasts in a skillet often results in a slightly dry, rubbery exterior and a juicy interior simply because they can be so darn thick. To prevent this (and to drastically reduce the cook time), I like to slice chicken breasts into thinner cutlets before pan-frying.
Brown the chicken first to build flavor. Browning the chicken leaves behind lots of golden bits, called fond. That fond makes the Mediterranean chicken even more flavorful and prevents us from having to load up the meal with tons of seasonings.
Add the tender artichoke hearts last. Canned artichoke hearts have already been cooked and have a delicate, almost creamy texture. Adding them to the skillet in the last few minutes of cooking prevents them from falling apart in the sauce and preserves their luscious texture.
What’s in This Recipe?
The full recipe, with amounts, can be found in the recipe card below.
- Chicken breasts — If you can get your hands on chicken cutlets at the grocery store, go ahead and grab them. Otherwise you’ll want to slice the chicken breasts lengthwise to make your own cutlets. (Don’t worry, you won’t have to pound them thinly, too!)
- Olive oil + butter — The butter adds so much richness to the sauce, while the olive oil raises the smoke point and prevents anything from burning.
- All-purpose flour — Coating the chicken in a little flour encourages browning and gives the dish more flavor.
- Chicken broth — Homemade chicken broth is always preferred, but I’m no stranger to subbing in a quality store-bought variety if my freezer stash has run out.
- Cherry tomatoes — This small variety of tomato is naturally much sweeter and juicier than Roma, plum, or even grape tomatoes. They’re also naturally high in pectin, which creates a silky smooth sauce without having to add any heavy cream.
- Kalamata olives — These Greek olives have a meaty, firm texture and a milder, fruitier flavor.
- Capers — Capers might be tiny, but their briny flavor sure is mighty. The combination of fresh tomatoes, olives, and capers is what puts the “Mediterranean” into this Mediterranean chicken skillet. (If you don’t normally cook with capers, use any leftovers to make one of my many favorite caper recipes next.)
- Artichoke hearts — Buy the kind packed in water, not oil. I like to quarter them so they go farther.
How to Make Mediterranean Chicken in One Pan
- Slice and season the chicken. By slicing two large chicken breasts in half lengthwise, you’ll create four thinner chicken cutlets that will cook more evenly and stay super juicy. Season the chicken all over with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, then dredge in flour.
- Brown the chicken in a large skillet. At this point, you’re not trying to cook the chicken all the way through. You just want it to develop good color on both sides to start building up the flavor foundation of the dish. Remove the chicken to a plate while you make the sauce.
- Make the sauce. To the now-empty skillet, add the chicken broth cherry tomatoes, olives, and capers with a flour slurry.
Heidi’s Tip: To thicken the tomato sauce without making it clumpy, I like to mash a little flour into 1 tablespoon of chicken broth to create a paste. Then, I stir the paste into the sauce and simmer until thickened to my liking.
- Add the chicken and artichokes, then finish cooking. Once the chicken is cooked through, the sauce is thick, and the artichokes have warmed through, your Mediterranean chicken skillet is ready to serve.
FAQs
I prefer using cherry tomatoes in this recipe because they’re super sweet and juicy. You’d likely be fine using grape tomatoes (which have a thicker skin and aren’t as sweet) or Campari tomatoes (which are larger and would need to be cut in half before cooking).
For a similar flavor profile, sub in another brine-cured Mediterranean olive, such as Niçoise or Gaeta.
I think the combo of briny olives and capers is essential to creating the signature Mediterranean flavor of this skillet chicken dinner, but you can omit the capers if you’re not a fan.
Or, if you simply ran out of capers, try adding in extra olives, a splash of lemon juice, or extra artichokes. You need something that’s both tangy and salty to mimic the flavor of the capers.
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below, leave a comment to tell us what you think, and tag me on Instagram @foodiecrush.
Mediterranean Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts (or 2 whole chicken breasts)
- 1 ½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper, divided
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 cups chicken broth, 1 tablespoon reserved
- 8 ounces cherry tomatoes
- ½ cup pitted kalamata olives, halved
- ¼ cup capers
- 14 ounces canned whole artichoke hearts in water, drained and quartered
Instructions
- Prep the chicken for frying. Trim any excess fat from 1 ½ pounds chicken breasts and slice each in half lengthwise to make two thin cutlets (four total). With 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper and 1 teaspoon Kosher salt, evenly season both sides of the chicken breasts. Add 2 tablespoons flour to a plate and dredge each side of the breasts in the flour, shaking off any excess.
- Brown the chicken. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high. Add the chicken breasts and cook for 2-3 minutes per side or until golden brown. Transfer to a platter or sheet pan and cover with foil.
- Add the vegetables and sauce. Add 2 cups minus one tablespoon chicken broth (add to a small bowl) to the skillet with 8 ounces cherry tomatoes, ½ cup halved kalamata olives, and ¼ cup capers. Bring to a boil then reduce to simmer and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Use a fork to mash the reserved 1 tablespoon flour into the reserved 1 tablespoon chicken broth to make a paste (this helps avoid clumps.) Whisk into the sauce until smooth and taste for seasoning, adding more salt or pepper to taste.
- Add the artichoke hearts. Stir in the drained 14 ounces of quartered artichoke hearts, then nestle the chicken breasts back into the skillet. Cook for 5-10 more minutes until the artichokes are warmed through and the sauce thickens. Serve with pasta, rice, or pearl couscous.
Nutrition
Side Dishes to Make This a Meal
You can serve the chicken breasts and their sauce over a bed of pasta, rice, or couscous. Or, pair the chicken with one of the following sides:
Storage Tips
Leftover chicken will last up to 4 days in the fridge. Let the dish cool completely before transferring to an airtight container to prevent any condensation from forming.
I’ve not tried freezing this dish before, but it should work just fine.
More Mediterranean-Inspired Chicken Recipes
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