20+ Italian-Style Chicken Recipes
Turn your dinner table into an Italian restaurant with these easy chicken recipes that are perfect for weeknight meals and entertaining. Bold sauces, hearty vegetables, and plenty of zippy seasonings make these stand out dishes in Italian-inspired cuisine.
Chicken Puttanesca
Instead of cherry tomatoes, you can use larger tomatoes cut into pieces so they cook quickly and release their juices to form the flavorful sauce. Try the dish over pasta or polenta.
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Sausage and Provolone Stuffed Chicken
Serve with sautéed broccolini for a complete meal.
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Chicken Breast with Pancetta Cream and Peas
You can substitute bacon for pancetta, and cream cheese for mascarpone.
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Fast Skillet Chicken Cacciatore
Lean chicken breasts cook quickly--in just 15 minutes compared to the hour-long braise in most cacciatore recipes. If you'd like more heat in the sauce, kick up the crushed red pepper to 1/2 teaspoon.
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Southern Italian Chicken Soup
This simple pasta dish gets some savory Southern flare with the addition of okra and black-eyed peas. In just under an hour, this succulent soup comes together for a flavorful autumn or winter favorite.
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Chicken Parmesan over Zucchini Noodles
A julienne peeler creates lovely "zoodles," but may we suggest a spiralizer? It works like a pencil sharpener, turning veggies into noodles (look for them at kitchen stores and amazon.com).
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Charred Lemon Chicken Piccata
Lightly charring the lemon slices intensifies their flavor and creates a gorgeous look. Be sure to include any of the sweet, tangy liquid the lemons give off in the bowl; it adds incredible depth to the sauce.
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Chicken with Pepperoni-Marinara Sauce
Commercial marinara sauce and quick-cooking chicken cutlets give you a jump start on dinner when preparing this Italian-inspired chicken entree. Pepperoni slices and shredded mozzarella make this meal appealing to kids and adults alike.
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Chicken Marsala
If you're selecting a dish to serve to company, you can't miss with this classic Italian chicken dish. This version is particularly tasty because you coat the thin pieces of chicken in a mixture of flour and ground pecans.
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Meyer Lemon Chicken Piccata
Freshen up a classic chicken dish by using Meyer lemons for the sauce. These lemons have a great tangy aroma and are sweeter and less acidic that regular lemons.
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Tuscan Baked Chicken and Beans
This savory Italian-inspired recipe is a wonderful way to prepare a budget-friendly whole chicken. Fresh rosemary, cannellini beans, and canned diced tomatoes make this dish flavorful, yet simple to prepare.
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Italian Chicken Sausage and Artichoke Soup
We like the fennel flavor of Italian sausage, but any chicken sausage will work. Artichokes and chard amp up the health factor of this heartwarming soup.
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Parmesan Polenta and Spicy Sausage Sauce
Top creamy parmesan polenta with a spicy tomato sauce filled with fresh herbs and sun-dried tomato chicken sausage.
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Chicken Piccata with Capers
To make this classic Italian recipe, brown thin pieces of chicken in a skillet, deglaze the pan with lemon juice, wine and capers, and serve over pasta. It's easy enough for weeknight family fare, but special enough for company.
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Herbed Chicken Parmesan
Take a shortcut with this classic Italian dish and use a jarred pasta sauce instead of making tomato sauce from scratch. Mixing herbs into the breadcrumb coating is an easy way to add extra flavor.
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Chicken and Basil Calzones
Making calzones is easy when you start with a can of refrigerated pizza crust dough. Because this recipe features ground chicken breast in place of ground beef, it's lower in fat and calories than a traditional meat-stuffed calzone.
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Grilled Chicken with Italian Salsa
Make a simple salsa with fresh tomatoes, basil, balsamic vinegar and a splash of orange juice, and spoon it over grilled herbed-marinated chicken breasts.
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Italian Chicken with Chickpeas
This rustic meal is cooked in one skillet in about 20 minutes, making it ideal for a quick weeknight dinner. Pantry items such as canned tomatoes, canned chickpeas and bottled minced garlic keep the preparation simple.
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Sicilian Chicken
Simmering the chicken pieces in tomatoes, olives, golden raisins, balsamic vinegar and basil provides the flavors of Sicily in this one-skillet dish.
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Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Italian Sausage and Breadcrumbs
Stuffing chicken breasts with a mixture of sausage and breadcrumbs is a great way to turn plain chicken into an extraordinary entree.
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Pesto Fettuccine with Chicken
Pesto and pasta are two quintessential Italian ingredients, and when you combine them with tomatoes and chicken, you've got dinner.
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Chicken Focaccia Sandwiches
Top sliced chicken with onion, bell pepper and cheese, and serve on focaccia bread for a quick and easy main dish sandwich.