These tasty Italian-inspired Caprese Chicken Sandwiches With Mozzarella And Balsamic Dressing will turn your kitchen into a cucina. Channeling all the Italian getaway vibes, they’re loaded up with flavor from tender balsamic dressing marinated chicken breasts and fresh basil.
As you know, shortcuts in the kitchen are my BFF and I love tasty dressings. And that’s why I was so happy to partner with Annie’s Dressings and Whole Foods to bring this sponsored recipe to you. They asked me to come up with a creative recipe using their dressing, and this is it.
Ingredients for Caprese chicken sandwiches
Zesty, plant-based Annie’s Balsamic Dressing is the star of the show.
It’s accompanied by a few other organic products I picked up at Whole Foods: creamy mozzarella, butter brioche buns, and beefsteak tomatoes. Basil is from my kitchen herb garden which is growing like crazy right now.
Want an easy way to grow herbs indoors for cooking? Check out this AeroGarden grow guide for everything you need to know!
How to make Caprese chicken sandwiches marinated in balsamic
Step 1. Start by placing your chicken in a large dish and adding ¼ cup of Annie’s Balsamic Dressing.
Stir till the chicken is completely coated, then cover the bowl and stick it in the refrigerator for an hour so that the chicken meat will soak in all the good Italian flavor.
Step 2. When your hour is finished, preheat the oven to 400 F. On the stovetop, heat a large oven safe saute pan to medium-high, and add olive oil.
Step 3. You’ll know the oil is ready when it is hot and looks shiny. Add your marinated chicken breasts, carefully to avoid splattering oil. At this point I like to season with a little salt and pepper.
Step 4. Cook for three minutes on each side. You’ll see the sides turn a beautiful golden brown. When it’s nicely browned, move the entire saute pan to the oven and cook another three minutes on each side. This will ensure the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 F and it is fully cooked
Step 5. Now, pull out your pan, add a layer of mozzarella to each piece of chicken breast and change your oven setting to broil. Stick the pan back in the oven for another three minutes, till your cheese is melted and drippy. Move the chicken to a cutting board to cool for ten minutes.
Step 6. While the chicken is cooling, toast your buns. I like to do this on the stovetop: heating a large pan to medium, adding butter, and then placing my brioche buns with the insides facing down.
Step 7. Last step is assembly. Spread the second ¼ cup of Annie’s Balsamic Dressing on the inside of the toasted buns, then put everything together. First is the bottom bun, then comes a slice of tomato, a piece of fragrant balsamic chicken with mozzarella, a little fresh basil, and then the top bun.
You are now ready to serve!
Want to try cooking chicken in your sous vide? Choose the right chicken sous vide temp and time for perfectly cooked white or dark meat. Get temperatures and times for breast, thighs, legs, and from frozen.
Meal prepping chicken sandwiches ahead of time
Yes, this dish works well for making ahead. Sometimes I’ll just marinate the chicken and stick that in the fridge till the next day. Other times, I’ll cook the chicken right up to the last step—broiling with mozzarella—and then refrigerate.
When I want to make sandwiches, all I have to do is warm up the chicken and mozzarella in the broiler, cut the tomatoes, and assemble my sandwiches.
These Caprese style chicken sandwiches are delish loaded up with red wine caramelized red onions, too.
Prepping sous vide chicken for tacos, salads or fried sandwiches has never been easier! My video tutorials walk you through the cooking process, and there are so many of them here on Sip Bite Go. For another recipe for chicken that is tender, juicy, and delicious, see the recipe for sous vide boneless chicken thighs.
Final tips for these tasty balsamic chicken sandwiches
- Marinate chicken with balsamic dressing in the refrigerator for as little as one hour to soak up the flavor and become tender.
- First time halving chicken breasts for sandwiches? Halve the chicken breasts by slicing them down the middle, lengthwise. That makes them perfect sandwich-size, and easy to cook through because they’re thinner.
- Other than brioche buns, you can make these sandwiches with marinated chicken breasts on slices of ciabatta bread as well, or on my own homemade focaccia bread.
- Mix up the recipe by using your favorite cheeses— try it with slices of Fontina or Gouda.
I almost always have chicken breasts ready in my freezer, and Annie’s Balsamic Dressing is going to be one of my cupboard staples.
Being pretty obsessed with Mediterranean flavors, having this recipe in my back pocket means that I’m never more than a step away from transforming my kitchen into a delicious Italian cucina. My family loves when I’m serving up these delicious Caprese balsamic marinated chicken sandwiches, topped with a few fresh basil leaves from my own kitchen herb garden on my windowsill.
Want to add a little something to this sandwich? Drizzle my spinach basil pesto on top for that extra flavor (and extra veggies)!
Try this dish and let me know what you think
Find me on Instagram @sipbitego and subscribe to the Sip Bite Go channel for my best recipes.
The most extensive resource of my sous vide recipes is in The Home Chef’s Sous Vide Cookbook. Check it out if you’re serious about cooking restaurant style food at home.
Next, you’ll have to try this Everything Bagel focaccia bread – even if you’ve never made bread before, you can do it!
Caprese Chicken Sandwiches With Mozzarella And Balsamic Dressing | Sip Bite Go
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts boneless skinless, halved
- ½ cup Balsamic Dressing divided
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 8 oz mozzarella, fresh, sliced
- 4 buns brioche
- 1 tablespoon butter unsalted
- 1 large tomato beefsteak, sliced thin
- 1 small bunch basil fresh leaves
Instructions
- To a large bowl, add chicken breasts and ¼ cup Annie’s Balsamic Dressing. Completely coat the chicken with the dressing. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat a large oven safe saute pan to medium-high on the stove. Add olive oil to the pan. Once the oil is hot and shiny, add chicken breasts. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sear each side of the chicken for about 3 minutes until golden brown on the outside. Then move chicken to the oven and bake it for about 3 minutes on each side until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees and it’s fully cooked throughout.
- Set the oven broiler to high. Add a layer of fresh mozzarella to each piece of chicken breast and broil the chicken for about 3 minutes until the cheese is completely melted. Transfer chicken to a cutting board to rest for 10 minutes.
- Heat a large pan to medium on the stove and add butter. Once butter melts, add the brioche buns, insides facing down. Toast the buns about 1 minute on each side until golden brown. Transfer to a cutting board.
- Spread the remaining Annie’s Balsamic Dressing on the inside of the toasted buns. Assemble sandwiches in this order: bottom bun, slice of tomato, balsamic chicken with melted mozzarella, fresh basil, top bun.
Video
Notes
- Marinate chicken with balsamic dressing in the refrigerator for as little as one hour to soak up the flavor and become tender.
- First time halving chicken breasts for sandwiches? Halve the chicken breasts by slicing them down the middle, lengthwise. That makes them perfect sandwich-size, and easy to cook through because they’re thinner.
- Other than brioche buns, you can make these sandwiches with marinated chicken breasts on slices of ciabatta bread as well, or on my own homemade focaccia bread.
- Mix up the recipe by using your favorite cheeses— try it with slices of Fontina or Gouda.
- Make these with sous vide chicken tenders for super gourmet sandwiches.
See the recipe video: https://youtu.be/uPAZehJl9og
Tara B says
used melted swiss cheese and was overall good