Chicken Pizzaiola

Whenever you have even 1 kid with food allergies, you learn pretty quickly which local eatery has something your kid can eat. Whenever my oldest wanted pizza, there is one pizzeria we go to that has a gluten-free/cheese-less pizza. But recently, allergy kiddo decides she wants something completely different! So, we scour through the menu and came across chicken pizzaiola. As long as we order it with no cheese its safe for kiddo, now it’s one of her favorites. Today, I bought a 8 pound package of chicken breast and was prepping them for different dishes. I thought maybe I should try to make chicken pizzaiola! This my friend is how this recipe came about, let’s get started!

Chicken Pizzaiola Recipe

Ingredients:

4 organic chicken breasts (approximately 1-1.25lbs)
1 small onion sliced into semi circles
4 tsp. of extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. pink sea salt
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried chives
1 tsp. garlic powder
Extra pink sea salt and cracked black pepper to adjust for taste
2 cups of your favorite no sugar added marinara or Jenny’s Forgotten Tomato Sauce

Equipment: Just to let you know, I tend to use a large nonstick skillet. The reason is that this controls the amount of oil I add. (Let’s be honest we usually add more oil if we think our food will stick to the skillet.) The other reason is that a larger skillet prevents the food from “crowding” and allows for a better searing of the food.

Directions:

Prepping The Chicken:

Cut the chicken breast into 1 inch by 2 inches pieces. (The thickness is about a 1/2 inch.)
Place the cut chicken in an air tight container or a Ziploc bag, then add the salt and oil.
Really, mix it (shake it) together well so that each piece of meat is coated evenly.
I prefer to let it sit overnight in the fridge, but 3hrs-4hrs is good as well.

Lets Get Cooking:

Heat up the skillet over high heat. Once the skillet is hot, lay out the marinated chicken on the skillet. It is best to have space around the chicken (meaning they are not overlapping each other) or the effect is almost like steaming your chicken.
Let one side of the chicken sear up golden brown before you flip it over, this will help seal in the juices of the chicken. Each side may take about 1-2 minutes depending on the type of stove top you have…it’ll be a little different between electric and gas. I suggest you pick a piece in the center and take a peek to see if it turned golden.
When both sides of the chicken are golden, add the onion slices and spices (oregano, garlic powder, dried parsley and dried chives) into the mixture.
Keep everything moving around and once the onions soften, add in 1 cup of marinara to coat the chicken. (This is the point where you can taste to see if it needs more salt or not)
Once the chicken is coated with the sauce and the sauce is warmed through, turn off the heat and plate the chicken.
In a separate pot, I heat up another cup of sauce to top the chicken.
When the sauce bubbles, turn off the heat and place the sauce on top of the cooked chicken you plated.
At this point, you have the option to top it with chopped parsley and/or cheese (dairy or non-dairy). I personally like my chicken pizzaiola with chopped parsley with some cracked black pepper, Enjoy!

Recipe makes 4 servings