Caprese Chicken + Kale Skillet

This naturally low carb & gluten free Caprese Chicken + Kale Skillet is a perfectly easy one pan dinner solution if you’re doing keto. (And if you’re not keto, a crusty loaf of bread or baguette pairs with today’s recipe quite nicely!)

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Welcome back to Sunday Scratchups, your weekly recipe from scratch around grocery sales and affordable ingredients. Kale is not only a lovely fall vegetable to pair with the last of your end-of-summer tomatoes, it often goes on sale this time of year. So this week, I took a pack of clearance chicken from ALDI and threw it together with a bunch of kale from my last Imperfect Produce box plus a pint of grape tomatoes that needed using. Add in a little mozzarella cheese & balsamic vinegar, and what do you have? Today’s Caprese Chicken + Kale Skillet recipe, of course!

Oh and — doesn’t this chicken & kale look so pretty on the little plate I picked up at Goodwill the other day? See, I told you it was a justifiable purchase for food photos… 😉

This one pan recipe is naturally low carb & gluten free, and all of the ingredients just work together in a perfect harmony of flavors + textures. Even if you’re not a huge kale fan, the sweetness of the balsamic vinegar and tomatoes really help balance out its bitterness here, so maybe give it another try.

Plus, of course: A little cheese always makes everything better…

Caprese Chicken + Kale Skillet

Ingredients

3 Tbsp olive oil, divided
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
Sea salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
1/2 a medium yellow onion (or one small one), diced
2 tsp minced garlic (about four cloves)
6-8 oz roughly chopped kale leaves (about one bunch)
1 pint grape tomatoes
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper,
1 tsp basil
1.5 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, divided
1 cup shredded mozzarella,
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Trim chicken and season it on both sides with sea salt and pepper.

Head 2 Tbsp olive oil in a 12″ cast iron skillet over medium-high heat for 1-2 minutes. Brown chicken thighs for 4 minutes per side, then remove to a separate plate.

While the thighs are browning, strip the kale leaves from their stems and roughly chop (if not using bagged kale). Dice onion and mince garlic (if using cloves).

After removing the chicken, reduce heat to medium under the same skillet. Saute the onion for 2 minutes, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Stir in the garlic and saute briefly, then add the grape tomatoes and continue to cook for about 7 minutes, until they just begin to wrinkle.

Add a Tbsp of olive oil to the pan. Stir in the kale and season it with crushed red pepper and basil, then saute for another 3 minutes or so until kale is just wilted and dark green. Stir in 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, then turn off the heat under the pan.

Arrange the browned thighs on top of the sauteed kale and drizzle 1/2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar over the chicken. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella over the entire skillet, then top everything with the Parmesan.

Move skillet into the oven and bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through to 165 degrees and cheese is browned. Serve your Caprese chicken skillet with the tomatoes and kale.

All the Caprese flavor you want, punched up with chicken and kale!

Even with just a few simple ingredients, there’s so much flavor going on in this easy one pan meal. This easy Caprese chicken + kale skillet is a perfect dinner option if you’re doing keto — and if you’re not, a crusty loaf of bread or baguette pairs quite nicely.

Boneless chicken thighs tend to remain juicier in the oven than chicken breast, and their blanket of cheese here further helps ensure that they stay moist, despite their thinness. Caprese chicken + kale skillet is easy and filling enough for the family, while also pretty enough for a date night. However you choose to serve it, enjoy!

Caprese Chicken + Kale Skillet, printable recipe

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5 from 3 votes

Caprese Chicken + Kale Skillet

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This one pan recipe is naturally low carb, gluten free, and all the ingredients just work together. Even if you’re not a huge kale fan, the sweetness of the balsamic vinegar and the tomatoes really help balance out its bitterness here, so maybe give it another try. Plus, of course: A little cheese just makes everything better…

Course dinner

Keyword caprese, cast iron, chicken, kale, one pot meals, skillet

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4

Author Rachel Singer

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp olive oil divided
• 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs trimmed
• Sea salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• 1/2 a medium yellow onion (or one small one), diced
• 2 tsp minced garlic about four cloves
• 6-8 oz roughly chopped kale leaves about one bunch
• 1 pint grape tomatoes
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1 tsp basil
• 1.5 Tbsp balsamic vinegar divided
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Trim chicken and season it on both sides with sea salt and pepper.
• Head 2 Tbsp olive oil in a 12″ cast iron skillet over medium-high heat for 1-2 minutes. Brown chicken thighs for 4 minutes per side, then remove to a separate plate.
• While the thighs are browning, strip the kale leaves from their stems and roughly chop (if not using bagged kale). Dice onion and mince garlic (if using cloves).
• After removing the chicken, reduce heat to medium under the same skillet. Saute the onion for 2 minutes, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Stir in the garlic and saute briefly, then add the grape tomatoes and continue to cook for about 7 minutes, until they just begin to wrinkle.
• Add a Tbsp of olive oil to the pan. Stir in the kale and season it with crushed red pepper and basil, then saute for another 3 minutes or so until kale is just wilted and dark green. Stir in 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, then turn off the heat under the pan.
• Arrange the browned thighs on top of the sauteed kale and drizzle 1/2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar over the chicken. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella over the entire skillet, then top everything with the Parmesan.
• Move skillet into the oven and bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through to 165 degrees and cheese is browned. 
• Serve your Caprese chicken skillet with the tomatoes and kale.

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And don’t miss the free weekly ALDI meal plans that show you how to use these recipes to meal plan affordably and realistically for your family!