Pesto Chicken Caprese Salad

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Pesto Chicken Caprese Salad — Homemade pesto coats every bite of JUICY chicken, tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella in this fun twist on caprese salad!! EASY, ready in 20 minutes, and loaded with rich basil flavor!!

chicken caprese salad on white plate surrounded by basil leaves

This is a sponsored post for HemisFares™ brand that is available exclusively at Kroger family of stores.  All opinions are honest and 100% my own.

Pesto Chicken & Tomato Caprese Salad

Caprese salads are one of my favorite things, especially in the summer, and I made this amped up version which includes chicken and pesto. 

It’s an easy dish that’s healthy, light, intensely flavorful, and ready in 20 minutes. 

I broke the recipe down into three easy-peasy section: Pesto, chicken, caprese salad. Done.

I love pesto and with all the fresh basil this time of year, ’tis the season. It’s easy and comes together in a food processor in one minute. Homemade is so much better than store-bought.

Simply combine fresh basil with parmesan, pine nuts (I’ve seen people sub walnuts, cashews, or pistachios), garlic, olive oil, and you’re in business. I used HemisFares Olive Oil from Ralph’s (or Kroger depending on where you live).

This velvety and flavorful estate-grown oil features Nocellara del Belice olives grown and harvested by the same family for over 100 years, available only from the province of Trapani in Sicily. Cold-pressed within eight hours of being picked, the oil has notes of artichokes and almonds and a peppery finish that’s perfect for dipping, cooking, and finishing. 

The chicken cooks in the pesto and it really helps the chicken stay tender, juicy, and adds so much basil-infused flavor. The cooked chicken is tossed with cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, and lightly drizzled with balsamic reduction.

All the different textures and flavors complement each other beautifully!

bottle of olive oil in front of food processor

What’s in Chicken Caprese Salad? 

To make this caprese and pesto chicken salad, you’ll need: 

  • Fresh basil 
  • Pine nuts
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Garlic 
  • Lemon juice 
  • Salt and pepper
  • HemisFares Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Chicken breasts
  • Cherry or grape tomatoes
  • Fresh mozzarella pearls 
  • Balsamic reduction or glaze 
chicken caprese salad on white plate next to bottle of olive oil

How to Make Chicken Caprese Salad 

This caprese pesto chicken salad couldn’t be simpler to make! First, you’ll pop all of the basil pesto ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. 

Then, you’ll cook the diced chicken in an oiled skillet over medium-high heat. When the chicken is 90% cooked through, add the pesto and finish cooking. 

After the chicken is cooked, it’s just a matter of tossing together the tomato caprese salad ingredients with the cooked chicken! 

chicken caprese salad on white plate next to two cherry tomatoes

Can I Prep Chicken Caprese Salad in Advance? 

No, this caprese pesto chicken salad is best enjoyed right away. You could likely cook the pesto chicken in advance and eat this as a cold chicken salad, but I don’t recommend tossing the ingredients together until you’re ready to dig in. T

he basil will wilt and the tomatoes will become soggy over time. 

Can I Use Store-Bought Pesto? 

Of course! Although homemade basil pesto is so simple to make and tastes so much better. Store-bought pesto is often quite salty, which is why I prefer making it from scratch. 

Pesto Chicken Caprese Salad - Homemade pesto coats every bite of JUICY chicken, tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella in this fun twist on caprese salad!! EASY, ready in 20 minutes, and loaded with rich basil flavor!!

Tips for Making Chicken Caprese Salad

Be sure to dice the chicken into evenly sized pieces so they cook at the same rate. The chicken should be bite-sized so it’s easy to eat alongside the cherry tomatoes. 

I highly recommend using a balsamic reduction or a balsamic glaze to make this chicken caprese salad. Balsamic vinegar is too runny and is much more acidic than a balsamic reduction.

If you don’t have balsamic reduction at home, try making it yourself! 

Note that you’ll likely have extra pesto, which is great the next day on pasta, zucchini noodles, make a pesto pizza, or simply eat as a dip.

Pesto Chicken Caprese Salad — Homemade pesto coats every bite of JUICY chicken, tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella in this fun twist on caprese salad!! EASY, ready in 20 minutes, and loaded with rich basil flavor!!

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4.56 from 9 votes

Pesto Chicken Caprese Salad

By Averie Sunshine
Homemade pesto coats every bite of JUICY chicken, tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella in this chicken caprese salad! Ready in 20 minutes and loaded with flavor!
Prep Time: 12 minutes
Cook Time: 7 minutes
Additional Time: 1 minute
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4
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Ingredients  

Pesto

  • 1 cup tightly packed fresh basil leaves, from about one 4-ounce container
  • ¼ cup pine nuts
  • ¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 to 3 cloves garlic, to taste
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste if desired
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
  • â…“ to ½ cup HemisFares Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Chicken

  • 2 tablespoons HemisFares Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • about 1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, diced into bite-sized pieces
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
  • â…“ cup pesto

Caprese Salad

  • 1 ½ cups cherry or grape tomatoes, halved if desired
  • one 8-ounce container fresh mozzarella ‘pearls’ or small mozzarella balls, drained
  • about 10 fresh basil leaves, torn in half
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons balsamic reduction or balsamic glaze for drizzling, or to taste

Instructions 

Make the Pesto:

  • To the canister of a food processor fitted with the S-blade, add the basil, pine nuts, parmesan, garlic, lemon juice (helps pesto from oxidizing as quickly) salt, pepper, and blend on high speed momentarily to break ingredients down.
  • With the motor running, drizzle in the olive until the pesto is smooth and emulsified; set aside.

Make the Chicken:

  • To a large skillet, add the olive oil, chicken, season with salt and pepper, and cook over medium-high heat; stir and flip intermittently so chicken cooks evenly.
  • When chicken is about 90% cooked through, add the pesto, stir to combine, reduce the heat to low, and allow the chicken to simmer in the pesto for about 2 to 3 minutes, or until chicken is done (internal temp of 165F).

Assemble the Caprese Salad:

  • To a large bowl, add the chicken including the pesto/pan juices, mozzarella, basil, evenly drizzle with balsamic, stir to combine, and serve immediately. Dish is best fresh.

Notes

  • Extra pesto will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 3 days, noting it will oxidize as time passes although the lemon juice helps to minimize this.

Nutrition

Serving: 1, Calories: 793kcal, Carbohydrates: 22g, Protein: 62g, Fat: 51g, Saturated Fat: 14g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 33g, Cholesterol: 173mg, Sodium: 1454mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 15g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Post is brought to you by HemisFares. The recipes, images, text, and opinions expressed are my own.

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Welcome to AverieCooks! Here you’ll find fast and easy recipes that taste amazing and are geared for real life. Nothing fussy or complicated, just awesome tasting dishes everyone loves!

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Please note: I have only made the recipe as written, and cannot give advice or predict what will happen if you change something. If you have a question regarding changing, altering, or making substitutions to the recipe, please check out the FAQ page for more info.

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    This was so simple and delicious. Used some parsley pesto I had in the freezer. Looking forward to making it in the summer with garden tomatoes and fresh pesto and a glass of chilled wine! Oh and nice gluten free option for the MIL. Thanks.

  2. 5 stars
    This was so simple and delicious. Used some parsley pesto I had in the freezer. Looking forward to making it in the summer with garden tomatoes and fresh pesto and a glass of chilled wine! Oh and nice gluten free option for the MIL. Thanks.

    1. I am glad you this was simple and delicious for you and you could take advantage of some pesto you had in the freezer! This is such a great summer meal too with all those garden fresh ingredients.

  3. I love this! So fresh and flavorful with an extra protein boost. This is a great summer salad and it’s going on my “to-make”list later this week.

    1. This has SO much flavor! The pesto is just so herby and fresh and flavorful. We loved it! LMK how it goes if you try it!

    2. This was the perfect lunch today (and Jon was home to enjoy it too)! I love fresh herbs all year around but basil is one of my three favorites…especially when tomatoes and mozzarella are involved. The balsamic glaze is just the right finish!

      1. I am so glad you loved it and I had a feeling when I was making it, I thought, yep…Paula will probably make this one and love it :)

        Fresh basil is the BEST! And I love that this has so much really robust basil flavor! And you can’t beat balsamic glaze!