This barbecue chicken bake makes for an easy dinner with only minutes of prep, and is a crowd pleaser with its tender juicy chicken and bold and delicious flavors.
If you have been around The Pinning Mama long, you will probably have noticed that my new favorite dinner is easy chicken bakes! Â They are great because they only take a few simple ingredients, they are quick and easy to prepare, and they always come out packed full of flavor and delicious! Â Since we love them so much I have been coming up with lots of new twists and combinations and of course sharing the best with you!
This Barbecue Chicken bake had to be one of our all time favorites to date!  I like barbecue so I was sure it would be good, but it is really amazing how you can just throw a few things together and it becomes crazy delicious!!!  There was not a morsel of this left once we were done with dinner!
Easy Barbecue Chicken Bake Recipe
Making this really couldn’t be any simpler. Â You grab four simple ingredients: chicken breast, your favorite bbq sauce, a yellow onion, and some sharp cheddar cheese (or whatever cheese you have on hand.)
Spray a baking dish with baking spray. Â Then place 3-4 chicken breasts in a single layer across the bottom of the dish. I give a little squirt of bbq sauce to each chicken breast, but this probably equals about 1-2 tablespoons per breast if you measure it out. Then slice up half a yellow onion and sprinkle it over the top. Â You can use any onion, but I love yellow in this recipe because once it bakes it becomes so sweet and the contrast to the tangy bbq sauce is to-die-for! Â Top it off with some sharp cheddar cheese and pop it in the oven.
***Scroll to the bottom for a FULL printable Barbecue Chicken Bake recipe!***
A couple of tips based on the other chicken bake recipes I have done. Â First since the chicken breast is covered in “Stuff” you will have to bake it longer than normal chicken breast recipes. Â Depending on how thick your chicken is and how much stuff you put on top, you could end up cooking it over an hour. Â The chicken bake I did in the picture took me a little under 40 minutes to bake. Â If you have super thick chicken breasts I would either butterfly them, make them into cutlets, or cut them into strips to cut down on the cook time.
Second, I get asked a lot if you could make this as a freezer meal. Â I never have because it literally takes 5 minutes to assemble so there isn’t much point for me. Â I think you probably could with this one since onions freeze well, but since it is so easy I think the best idea is just to cut the onions the night before or buy them precut at the store if prep time is an issue.
Third, as for serving– the possibilities are endless! Â I usually serve my chicken bakes over rice with a veggie for a side but since we are going low carb this month, I served this over a bed of greens and it was great. Â I mean so great. Â Like my mouth is watering thinking about it again great. Â Our family eats half a chicken breast as a serving so this usually makes 6-8 servings for us since I use 3-4 chicken breasts based on the size. Â However it is totally scalable! Â If you want to feed more just add as many chicken breasts as you need up the sauce onions and cheese to match and you can cook for a crowd in minutes!
Last, if you have leftovers- and that is a big IF, then they are great to use in so many things!  You can chop it up and throw it on a salad.  You can make nachos with it, or put it in a sandwich or wrap.  It is actually great cold or hot and really good on pretty much anything 🙂
***Scroll to bottom for FULL PRINTABLE recipe!***
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Easy Barbecue Chicken Bake
Ingredients
- 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 4-6 tablespoons barbecue sauce
- 1/2 large yellow onion sliced
- 4 oz sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Place the chicken breasts in a single layer across the bottom of a glass baking dish sprayed with non stick spray.
- Spread barbecue sauce on the top of each chicken breast.
- Sprinkle the onions evenly over the top of the chicken breasts then top with cheese.
- Bake in an oven preheated to 350?F for 40-50 minutes or until the juices run clear and the center is no longer pink.
- Serve hot over rice or greens.
- Enjoy!
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)
Tracy says
I have made this many time delicious on salad and as a sandwich tonight I am serving it with mashed potatoes and corn thanks for the great easy recipe
Julia says
This was delicious. Saw the recipe, but didn’t look at it when I was making it. It’s so easy to make. So so so so good though. Loved the onion cheese combination, and the chicken was so juicy and moist
SH says
I’d like to add peppers to this dish. Do you think that would work well?
Kimber says
Absolutely! Peppers would be a perfect compliment. I hope you love it as much as we do!
Tiffany says
Would mushrooms work well?
Sam says
I’m trying that when I make this I bet it’ll be great.
Nikki says
I made this tonight for my family and it was great! I added yellow peppers and asparagus to the bake (with the same amount of cheese sprinkled over it all) and everything was perfect.
Rachael says
Do you cover it with foil while baking?
Kimber says
I bake mine uncovered on the lower middle rack and have no problems. Some ovens depending on size, altitude and configuration may bake differently. I would recommend keeping an eye on it the first time you make it and if it starts to get too brown then pop some foil on it.
NaomiK says
I made this today but I didn’t have chicken breasts so I actually ended up using pork chops and it was delicious! I also caramelized the onions first which was awesome! This was so easy and yummy and my kids gobbled it down! I will definitely be making this again!
Karen Stilts says
This was so fast and easy! The whole family loved it! Definitely a keeper.