A simple pan seared chicken breast marinated in a bright combination of lemon, garlic, and olive oil is a quick and easy meal, filled with lots of mouthwatering flavor. Prepared with a light coating of panko breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese for a deliciously crispy texture, my pan seared chicken breast recipe comes complete with an earthy accompaniment of garlicky mushrooms and healthy kale!
A Crispy and Delicious One-Pan Chicken Recipe
Light, healthy, and vibrantly flavorful chicken dishes are among my favorites to prepare during a busy week. And if they have just a handful of very simple ingredients, that's even better.
My pan seared chicken breast recipe is terrific for such an occasion.
Brimming with bright flavor from a quick marination in olive oil, lemon, and garlic before a little press into a crispy combination of panko breadcrumbs and grated parmesan...
Seared off in just a few minutes per side in a nice, hot skillet...
A pan seared chicken breast makes for the perfect light-yet-mouthwatering chicken dinner, especially when paired with earthy and garlicky sauteed shiitake mushrooms and hearty shredded kale.
It's a one-pan chicken recipe that tastes like a bit of a gourmet indulgence or a light-yet-rustic supper you'd enjoy at your favorite local bistro, yet without much muss or fuss!
How To Pan Sear Chicken Breasts with Lots of Flavor
Chicken breasts are a terrific culinary “canvas” because they take on bright, bold flavors such as lemon and garlic splendidly.
A few minutes of marination in those ingredients, plus a little drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper added to that mix, makes for tender, juicy and mouthwatering chicken breasts, which equals happy tastebuds.
But for this pan seared chicken breast recipe here, I don't stop at marination...
I like to give these thin cutlets a quick press in a mixture of panko breadcrumbs and a sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese to create a light-yet-golden-and-crispy outer crust once the chicken is seared in the hot pan.
Since I like to use two larger skinless, boneless chicken breasts, and slice those in half lengthwise to create four thinner cutlets, the coated cutlets sear up in just a few minutes to tasty perfection, ready to be paired with some savory mushrooms and kale for a complete meal.
Here's a peek at my Pan Seared Chicken Breast recipe: (or just jump to the full recipe...)
- To get started, I marinate my chicken cutlets in a combo of olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and garlic for about 10 minutes.
- Then, I lightly press each cutlet into my panko-parmesan coating, just to lightly “dust” the chicken breasts with it and create a bit of a crispy outer coating.
- Next, I sear my chicken breasts in a bit of oil in a large skillet for a few minutes per side, just until cooked through and golden on the outside.
- To finish the dish, I add my shiitake mushrooms to the same skillet and sear those for a about 5-7 minutes until golden-brown, then add in touch of wine. I add my kale in next, just to soften it up and allow it to wilt for a moment or two, and finish by stirring in my garlic until aromatic.
- I serve a pan seared chicken breast on a bed of the mushrooms and kale, and perhaps top the crispy breast with a couple of the mushrooms.
Recipe
Pan Seared Chicken Breast
by Ingrid Beer
Print RecipeThis pan seared chicken breast is marinated in lemon and garlic, with a light, crispy, and deliciously flavorful panko and parmesan crust!
Category: Entree
Cuisine: American
Yield: Serves 4
Nutrition Info: 322 calories per serving
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Total time: 35 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts, sliced in half lengthwise to create 4 thinner cutlets
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Black pepper
- 4 cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press, divided use
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese, divided use
- 8 ounces shiitake mushrooms, slices thinly
- ¼ cup white wine
- 2 heaping cups Tuscan kale, finely chopped or shredded
- Begin by gathering and prepping all of your ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
- Marinate the chicken cutlets by adding them to a bowl along with 1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a couple of pinches of salt and pepper, 2 cloves worth of the pressed garlic, and the lemon juice. Toss to combine and coat, and set aside for 10 minutes.
- Mix together the panko breadcrumbs and the grated parmesan cheese, and add it to a large plate or shallow dish. Press each chicken cutlet in the mixture firmly and shake off any excess, and set the coated chicken on a plate to hold.
- To pan sear the chicken, place a large non-stick pan or skillet over medium-high heat, and add in about 3 to 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Once hot, sear the chicken breasts (working in batches, if necessary) for about 4 to 5 minutes on the first side, or until golden-brown, and about 3 minutes on the second side, or until cooked through. Remove the cutlets to a plate, and keep warm.
- With the heat still on medium/ medium-high under that same skillet, add in the shiitake mushrooms, and saute them for about 5 to 6 minutes, or until nicely browned and seared. Next, add in the wine and deglaze the pan, allowing the wine to almost reduce completely.
- Add in the kale, and stir to combine with the mushrooms, sauteing for a minute or two. Add in the remaining 2 cloves of garlic, stir to combine, and once the garlic becomes aromatic, turn off the heat. Add a pinch or two of salt and pepper, according to your taste.
- To serve, spoon some of the garlicky mushroom and kale mixture to the plate as a little bed, then top with a crispy pan seared chicken breast.
Tips & Tidbits for my Pan Seared Chicken Breast recipe:
- Slice your chicken breasts lengthwise to create cutlets: To ensure quick searing, I like to use large skinless, boneless chicken breasts and slice them in half lengthwise to create thinner cutlets. This helps the chicken to cook evenly and quickly in the pan.
- Panko breadcrumbs for extra crunch: Panko breadcrumbs are my favorite type of breadcrumb to use as a coating, as they have an incredibly light texture which creates a deliciously crispy outer crust for chicken. And the addition of parmesan provides a touch more flavor—so tasty!
- Wine, for a hint of flavor for the mushrooms: I use a small amount of wine to deglaze the pan once the mushrooms are golden-brown, but you can simply omit this if you prefer, and proceed by adding the shredded kale to the pan to wilt.
- Roasted Roma tomatoes on the side: If you'd like to enjoy some of the roasted tomatoes featured in the photos, then click here for the basic recipe, only then sprinkle some additional panko and parmesan over the seasoned tomato halves before roasting them.
Craving more light and healthy recipes? Check out this Parmesan Crusted Chicken, this Pan Seared Salmon, this Grilled Chicken with Tomato-Basil Salsa, or this Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Pesto!
Cook's Note: This recipe was originally published in 2014, and has been updated with even more love!
This sounds (and looks!) amazing! I love that it's all cooked in the same pan. What a perfect, easy weekday meal. And great photos! Mt mouth is watering! -Rebecca
Thank you, Rebecca!
Mmmm. I'm excited about this one. Planning to try it this weekend!
That's great, Katherine - if you do, please let me know how things turn out for you!
A lovely recipe. I do enjoy all your recipes. You're so professional in your presentation and write-ups. Thank you.
Liz, thank you; it's truly my pleasure. I appreciate your readership, and am very happy that you're enjoying the recipes & posts!
Do I need to put the chicken in the oven?
Hi Katie, no - just sear them in the pan as directed. Because they are thinner, they cook pretty quickly.
I'm going to attempt this one for tomorrow night (a friend of mine will be my guinea pig!) It looks so good and healthy!! Thank you for your lovely recipes!!
Hi Meg! How fun—and how wonderful that you're friend is going to be the "test" subject, haha! Actually, she'll most likely end up having a happy belly full of good food. Hope you enjoy preparing (AND eating, of course) this recipe! 🙂
I made this dish and it was excellent! It was so delicious and my friend loved it! I will definitely be making this one again. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Thank you again. I'm so happy that I've found your site. It's nice to try new dishes with ingredients that are new to me. Keep up the wonderful work!
Meg, I'm really so glad that you came back to let me know how it all went; I didn't want to ask you to, but I was hoping you would! So excited for you that this turned out well, and that you, indeed, found the site. Hope you try many more dishes!
Excellent AND healthy! I'm no dynamo in the kitchen, but this looked delicious so I figured I'd give it a try. My girlfriend and I both loved it! Thank you.
Well, hey Josh! You know, you may just be more of a "dynamo" cook than you think! 🙂 What a wonderful thing to prepare this meal for both you and your girlfriend to enjoy; very sweet! Thanks for sharing your experience, and glad you both enjoyed!
Thank you for this wonderful recipe! I didn't have chicken breasts, but I used boneless skinless chicken thighs (which I flattened into "cutlets). I left the oil out of the marinade because I thought the thighs had more fat, but I don't think it was necessary to do so. Since it's now summer, and I didn't want to use the oven, I made a quick tomato salad because I wanted to have that pop of color on the plate. Delicious. Beautiful. Healthy. <3
Hi Kathleen, thanks so much! Glad you enjoyed this recipe.
This was SO good and so easy to make! Next time I'm doubling the recipe so I can have more leftovers!
Sara, that's great! Glad you enjoyed. And yes, extras or leftovers are perfect for this, so doubling up next time is a good idea!
This was amazing!!! I added quinoa is chicken broth for a side....so delicious! Chicken was the most amazing flavor. Will def be making this again and again
That's wonderful, Kristen! So glad that you enjoyed, and your side of quinoa was a great choice! Thanks for your comments.
Making right now. Looks and smells amazing! Trying (with much resistance) to get my family to eat greens! I hope they will at least TRY the kale! Kale + garlic=yummo! I will get back to you with our results! Just found your page! LOVE!
Tried this last night and it was delicious!
Hi Sharon, I'm so excited to read that! Thanks so much for commenting.
Ingrid, this chicken dish is just SO GOOD. I love how flavorful it is but also how simple and quick it is to prepare. We were able to use our own homegrown kale and shiitake, which made the meal even more delicious! I didn't have any fresh tomatoes on hand, BUT I did have some of your wonderful marinara in the freezer...I thawed it and tossed it with some bowtie pasta, then topped with the kale/shiitake mixture and chicken. I'm having what few leftovers there are for a delicious, light lunch tomorrow. Love, Melissa
Hi Melissa, this is wonderful! I'm so happy you continue to find new recipes that tickle your fancy on the site, cooking your way through many tasty dishes!
I'm thrilled you enjoyed this simple-yet-tasty recipe, and that you were even able to use your homegrown kale and shiitake (how cool is that?!). You even found a creative way to use some of the beloved marinara, haha!
Thanks, as always, for sharing your experience with me. Sending love and happy cooking vibes your way!