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Italian Dressing Chicken is an easy baked chicken dinner made with bone-in chicken pieces marinated in bottled Italian dressing, then baked uncovered with peppers, onions, and seasonings until juicy, golden, and full of pan gravy. It’s a quick, cheap, easy meal to pair with any side.
This is the version of Italian Dressing Chicken I grew up with. It’s not just chicken and dressing, but a full pan of seasoned chicken, peppers, onion, and sauce that tastes like it simmered longer than it did.
The chicken bakes uncovered until golden and juicy, while the dressing creates a sweet, garlicky pan sauce that’s perfect over creamy garlic mashed potatoes, rice, vegetables, or honey butter cornbread. This is a dinner you’ll be proud to put on your table. It’s a classic you’ll make all the time!
What is Italian Dressing Chicken?
Italian dressing chicken is a baked chicken dish marinated and cooked in store-bought Italian dressing. This gives the chicken a sweet, garlic-forward flavor that produces an amazing light gravy!
You’ll love this recipe for many reasons.
- The Italian dressing does all the heavy lifting. It works as both the marinade and the sauce, giving the chicken tons of flavor with very little prep.
- Simple ingredients, big flavor. Everything comes together in an easy dinner that tastes way more flavorful than the effort required.
- You can make it your own. This is one of those freestyle dinners. Yellow peppers instead of red? You can go for it. Chicken breasts instead of wings and drums? Absolutely! The marinade is the key; aside from that, you can get creative.
- Perfect for busy nights. You can whip it up while you multitask. It’s great for meal prep and feeding the family.
Ingredients You Need
- Mixed chicken pieces: I like to use a mix of thighs, wings, and drumsticks for this recipe. But use what you have!
- Italian Dressing: This is the key to this sweet and flavorful chicken. Any Brand will do. Buy the best you can afford.
- Peppers & Onions: This adds so flavor and texture to your dish.
- Seasonings: In this recipe, I use paprika, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, adobo, all-purpose seasoning, and pepper. But use what you have. This is a recipe that you can adapt to fit your needs.
- Butter (optional)- Butter makes everything more rich and flavorful.
Variations to Try
- Make it with chicken breast: This dish is perfect with chicken breast! It’s just as flavorful and juicy
- Make it Keto: Use a low-sugar Italian Dressing and this recipe becomes 100% keto!
How to Make Baked Chicken with Italian Dressing
- Season the chicken: Add the chicken to a large bowl with the peppers, onions, Italian dressing, and seasonings (except all-purpose).
- Allow to marinate: Mix well and let it marinate for 1 hour or overnight. Longer marinating time increases the flavor of the chicken.
- Arrange in baking dish: Transfer everything to a baking dish in an even layer. Add butter on top if using.
- Baked uncovered: Bake at 375°F until the chicken is golden and cooked through, about 60 minutes. Let the chicken rest for a few minutes, then spoon the pan sauce over everything before serving. (The peppers soften in the sauce and the dressing creates plenty of pan juices.)
My Top Tips for Making Italian Dressing Chicken
- Pat the chicken dry. You want your Italian dressing and spices to cling to your chicken! Pat your chicken down before you begin seasoning it.
- Bake uncovered. No need to cover while baking; you want a beautiful crust on your chicken!
- Buy high-quality Italian dressing. This is the key to your dish! This is the brand that I like to use because it’s flavorful and sweet, but get something good!
Storage and Reheating
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat covered in a 350°F oven until warmed through, or microwave individual portions with a spoonful of pan sauce to keep the chicken moist.
FAQ for this Recipe
I love using House Italian dressing versus Zesty Italian! But, any Italian dressing from the store will do!
You can marinate the chicken for 1 hour or up to overnight. The Italian Dressing is so flavorful that it will penetrate even if you’re short on time!
Italian Dressing Chicken
Ingredients
- 6-8 peices chicken
- 1/2 cup Italian Dressing
- 1 small red bell pepper sliced
- 1 small green bell pepper sliced
- 1/2 small yellow onion sliced
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon adobo
- 1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
- all-purpose seasoning
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter optional
Instructions
- Add the chicken to a large bowl and pat it down. Add sliced peppers and onions, then pour in Italian dressing and seasonings. Mix well and let it sit for 1 hour or up to overnight.
- Place your chicken, peppers, and any sauce from the bowl in a 13×9 baking dish and sprinkle with some all-purpose seasoning. Add 3 tbsps of sliced butter on top of your chicken (if using)
- Bake at 375°F uncovered, in the middle rack for 1 hour, or until the chicken is thoroughly cooked and the top is golden brown. Serve hot.
Notes
- Bone-in chicken pieces like thighs, drumsticks, and wings stay especially juicy in this recipe, but boneless chicken breasts or thighs also work. Adjust bake time as needed.
- For the best flavor, marinate the chicken for at least 1 hour.
- Cooking time may vary depending on the size and cut of chicken. Chicken is done when it reaches 165°F internally.
- Want to make it a full meal? Add potatoes or carrots directly to the baking dish before baking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
The chicken turned out super juicy and flavorful. Will be making again for sure!
It’s soo good, this is a staple recipe for my household. The best part, you can change it up.. add different peppers, no peppers, only onions .. only chicken.. however you want it. We only use Olive Garden Italian dressing for ours, but it’s a go to and so easy. Just don’t forget to marinate!
This is going to be my new go to meal! I put it over garlic mashed potatoes as recommended and it’s so delicious!
I made this for a family get together, and marinated over night! They went crazy!! Thank you! 😊
Absolutely amazing!!!! Even my husband loved it!!!
I love to meal prep my chicken with this recipe. It goes with so many things
Perfect easy dinner recipe, so much flavor. I use Trader Joe’s Italian dressing with Romano cheese.
I enjoyed this recipe
i made these with mashed potatoes like you did and it was the perfect side dish
Love love love! I will be making this recipe again.