One pot meals are always a winner in my kitchen. I was getting a little bored with chicken and rice bakes and needed to develop some new easy chicken recipes.
I decided on One Pot Italian Chicken. My favorite italian flavors in a one pot meal!
One Pot Italian Chicken is a favorite simple chicken recipe using only one dish and simple ingredients. Ready in just 45 minutes!
So technically, One Pot Italian Chicken isn’t made in a pot. More of a casserole dish or 9×13 baking dish, but those names didn’t roll off the tongue like One Pot Italian Chicken did.
The problem with most simple chicken recipes is that they lack flavor. Simplicity and ease also equals boring. I wanted to change up the usual chicken and rice bake by using couscous instead!
Couscous is a gift from heaven for those who are low on time or have trouble perfectly cooking rice or pasta.
Couscous is a pasta and comes in both a fine, medium and large grain. The larger grains are typically referred to Israeli couscous and are better for soups and stews, while a fine or medium grain are so small and dainty, that some actually think they are rice.
Rightfully so, this type of couscous cooks more like rice, absorbing cooking liquid, instead of boiling and draining. No draining needed saves a step.
It isn’t nearly as temperamental as rice and only takes about 4-5 minutes to fully plump up. So if you are dish has a little too much liquid, add a few more tablespoons and fluff, it will take care of it!
Couscous still too al dente? Add a few tablespoons of water, fluff and in 2-3 minutes, it is done. Couscous also comes in a whole wheat variety.
In my One Pot Italian Chicken, I use white wine and the natural juices from the chicken and vegetables to flavor the couscous. If you do not cook with alcohol, feel free to substitute that with chicken broth or plain old water.
I made it this way, but it still lacked the robust flavor I was looking for. How did I know? Hubby insisted on dumping a ton of hot sauce on top of it.
Back to the drawing board for something easy and zesty. Italian dressing! Funny enough, I don’t use store bought dressings on my salads, but I always have bottled Italian dressing lying around to use a marinade.
It is great for any meat or fish and pairs well with nearly any sauce. It was just what a needed to make this One Pot Italian Chicken a winner instead of a loser. Another bonus? Make a whole batch for meal prep and you’ll have lunch for the whole week.
More easy chicken recipes!
One Pot Italian Chicken Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 cup baby spinach packed
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 onion cut into eighths
- 8 ounces white mushrooms sliced
- 1 cup grape tomatoes quartered
- 1 zucchini roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup dry couscous fine or medium grain
- 1/2 cup Italian dressing
- Cooking Spray
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Lightly coat a glass 9×13 baking dish or a large casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Combine all ingredients in baking dish and mix well, spread out evenly.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until chicken juices run clear when punctured. Turn off oven and remove dish.
- Remove, fluff with a fork and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
- If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it went!
This was such an easy recipe and so full of flavor! The whole family loved it!
This was so good! I especially loved that I could make it all in just one dish!