Crispy Baked Tomato-Oregano Chicken

Updated October 9, 2025

Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Spencer Richards.
Ready In
40 min
Rating
5(1,874)
Comments
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Baked in the oven and sealed with a layer of tomato paste and yogurt, this chicken — your choice: breasts or thighs — stays juicy as it cooks on top of a bed of tomatoes. The tomatoes deflate and collapse, becoming a little saucy, as the panko and Parmesan layer on top of the chicken crisps and melts. To maximize this dish’s appeal to kids and crowds alike, it doesn’t have any heat, but red-pepper flakes would be a welcome addition, as would grated garlic or chopped basil. You can serve the chicken with rice or bread, to soak up the pan juices, or bring it as is to picnics and potlucks. 

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 2 tablespoons full-fat yogurt

  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste

  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce

  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon dried oregano, divided

  • 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces, or breasts cut horizontally to form cutlets

  • Salt

  • 2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

  • ¾ cup grated Parmesan

  • ¾ cup panko bread crumbs

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

18 grams carbs; 233 milligrams cholesterol; 527 calories; 11 grams monosaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 24 grams fat; 3 grams fiber; 1080 milligrams sodium; 58 grams protein; 6 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the yogurt, tomato paste, soy sauce and 1 tablespoon oregano. Add the chicken; season lightly with salt and toss to coat.

  2. Step 2

    Add the halved tomatoes to a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish, season with salt and the olive oil, and spread out into an even layer. Nestle the chicken on top of the tomatoes. Sprinkle the Parmesan and remaining 1 teaspoon oregano over everything. Cover with a layer of panko. 

  3. Step 3

    Bake in the oven until the top crisps and the tomatoes collapse and get saucy, 20 to 25 minutes for breasts and 22 to 25 for thighs, depending on the thickness.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
1,874 user ratings
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Comments

I needed to make a really quick dinner. I had all the ingredients and the last of my cherry tomatoes. It was just the 2 of us, so I used what I had which was about a pound of chicken breasts, a pint of cherry tomatoes plus a couple of Campari tomatoes. I followed the recipe as written with my smaller amount of ingredients and added some red pepper flakes and Penney's roasted garlic. I had some leftover rice from last night and served the chicken over it. It was a great, yummy, easy dinner!

Oh... this was excellent. I had 3 large chicken breasts that I cut in half, doubled the yogurt mixture & marinated for a couple of hours. I combined the Parmesan, panko & oregano & coated both sides of the marinated chicken. Put the chicken on top of 24 oz of a cherry tomato medley & baked for 30 min. The chicken was just so tender & flavorful. Served the tomato goodness over Lundberg wild rice blend with a simple salad. A keeper.. husband wants it every week. And it's easy!!

I used thinly sliced chicken breast and was impressed by how juicy it was. Loved the coating combination. Looking forward to doing this again with more of a piccata flavor profile by adding lemon zest, capers and swapping out the oregano for basil.

For the second time making this, I cut up the chicken thighs and made the marinade with sun-dried tomato pesto, which was incredibly flavorful with the rest of the marinade ingredients (I did not have any tomato paste). Using just over a pound of skinless boneless chicken thighs, I added a layer of raw spinach on top of the tomatoes, then the chicken in marinade, and finally followed the suggestion to combine the panko with more olive oil, added some Greek seasoning, and the parmesan. Delicious and moist this time, and perfectly cooked after 25 minutes.

This was easy and so tasty and delicious. My husband said it is company worthy! I substituted sour cream for the yogurt. I used breasts and cooked for 25 minutes. Served with garlic green beans and crusty garlic bread.

A wonderful, easy way to bake chicken breasts and now on my favorite list. I used a small amount of preprepared spaghetti sause instead of tomato paste and used 6 Roma tomatoes (no cherry tomatoes on hand) and one sliced red bell pepper. I'm at high altitude so ended up baking at 430* for 45 minutes w/ 15 of those covered with foil. Delicious!

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