This Air Fryer Caprese Chicken recipe is chicken breast sliced in the Hasselback style and stuffed with Pesto, fresh tomato, and cheese. Each bite has a burst of savory flavor that’ll have you forgetting all about boring old chicken dinners. Made in the air fryer in under 15 minutes, I love how it turns tender juicy inside with a beautifully caramelized exterior.
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This Caprese stuffed chicken is inspired by my Air Fryer Caprese Melt Sandwich. It combines the flavors of Caprese salad with the juicy protein of chicken, all while utilizing the magic of the air fryer to create the perfect blackened exterior.
I love how the hasselback technique adds a fancy touch and also ensures even cooking throughout the chicken breast. More of my favorite jazzed-up juicy chicken breast recipes are Air Fryer Pickle Juice Chicken and Crispy Air Fryer fried Chicken breasts.
How to make Hasselback Caprese Stuffed Chicken in the Air Fryer
Please see the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities, detailed instructions, and nutrition info.
Prep the Chicken Breast: You’ll need boneless and skinless chicken breasts. Approximately 1 inch thick. To make a pocket in the chicken, use a sharp knife and carefully cut through the thickest part of the chicken breast. Make about 5 slits in each piece of chicken. Do not cut all the way through.
Season. In a small bowl combine oil, Pesto, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste, and garlic powder. Using your hands or food-basting brush, rub the seasoning mix all over the chicken, including the inside of the slits.
Add the Tomato and Cheese: Now it’s time to make the stuffing. Cut some fresh tomatoes into thin slices (approx 3 mm thick) and cheese sliced into ¼ inch slices. Fill the chicken pockets with tomato slices, and cheese.
Hint: The cheesy tomato filling may ooze out of the chicken pocket during cooking. You may close the pockets with toothpicks to ensure that the stuffing stays inside the chicken.
Cook: Preheat the air fryer to 375°F (190°C). Place the chicken in the basket and cook for 12-15 minutes (depending on the size of your chicken breasts). You don’t need to flip halfway through. If you have a meat thermometer, use it to check the chicken’s internal temperature. Once it reaches 165°F, it’s ready to be taken out of the air fryer.
Serve: Using a large spatula, carefully remove the stuffed chicken from the air fryer and let it rest for 3-5 minutes. Enjoy the delicious combination of flavors.
You can serve it with some Air-fried Peppers & Onions, Blooming Baked Potatoes, or a salad.
Tips and Variations
Cheese: Fresh mozzarella cheese is the perfect match for Caprese chicken. Its gooey texture will add just the right amount of richness to every bite. However, Provolone works just as well.
Spread: Instead of Pesto, you can spread mayo inside the pockets or any spread of your choice. Roasted red pepper sauce or a tangy sun-dried tomato pesto works great as well. Or try it with Creamy Avocado Cilantro sauce.
Top the cooked chicken with fresh chopped basil and drizzle with balsamic vinegar or Homemade Balsamic Reduction.
Leftovers
Store the leftover stuffed caprese chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat in the air fryer for 2 minutes per side until heated.
My favorite: Top the sandwich with cut-up chicken breast and more cheese to enjoy the crispy chicken melt.
Top tip – Do I need to stuff the chicken before cooking?
Yes, stuffing the chicken before cooking adds extra flavor and moisture to your chicken. You can stuff it with your favorite herbs, fruits, or veggies. Just be sure to cook it thoroughly and use a food thermometer to ensure that the chicken reaches the right temperature of 165 F.
Related
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Air Fryer Caprese Chicken with Pesto, Tomato and Cheese
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 1-inch thick
- 1/2 cup pesto
- 1/2 cup Tomatoes About 10 slices of fresh tomato, sliced in half
- 8 oz Fresh Mozzarella 5 slices of mozzarella cheese, cut in half, for a total of 10 slices
- ½ teaspoon salt salt and pepper to taste
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Prep the Chicken Breast: You'll need boneless and skinless chicken breasts. Approximately 1 inch thick. To make a pocket in the chicken, use a sharp knife and carefully cut through the thickest part of the chicken breast. Make about 5 slits in each piece of chicken. Do not cut all the way through.
- Season. In a small bowl combine oil, Pesto, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste, and garlic powder. Using your hands or food-basting brush, rub the seasoning mix all over the chicken, including the inside of the slits.Add the Tomato and Cheese: Cut fresh tomatoes into thin slices (approx 3 mm thick) and cheese sliced into ¼ inch slices. Fill the chicken pockets with tomato slices, and cheese: place a piece of cheese into each slit, followed by a piece of tomato (cut in half to fit, if needed)
- Cook: Preheat the air fryer to 375°F (190°C). Place the chicken in the basket and cook for 12-15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the cheese is melted and bubbly. You don’t need to flip halfway through. If you have a meat thermometer, use it to check the chicken's internal temperature. Once it reaches 165°F, it's ready to be taken out of the air fryer.Using a large spatula, remove each stuffed chicken breast from the air fryer and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve hot by itself or with your favorite side dish and enjoy!
Ho how much oil?
1 tablespoon for 2 large chicken breasts
There is on oil amount listed in the ingredients. Chicken breasts need to be very thick for the tomato and mozzarella to stay in the the slits. Balsamic glaze and fresh basil will add more flavor.
Hi.
Just looking at this and contemplating cooking it.
However! I think you have miscalculated as 2 chicken breast will not serve 4 people.
Does sound scrummy though
Made yesterday, very good, however the amount of pesto ( (1/2 cup) is excessive for 2 chicken breasts, wasted at least half of it. But it was lovely and only 15 mins cooking 🙂
Hi Kate. I am glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for letting me know about Pesto.