Grilled Chicken Margherita Olive Garden Copycat Recipe

This Olive Garden grilled chicken margherita tastes exactly like the one you'd get at the restaurant! It has juicy chicken covered in melted mozzarella cheese, a basil pesto, and lemon garlic sauce. 

 

The Best Chicken Margherita

The grilled chicken margherita serves is a classic for a reason. It has so many flavorful elements that will seriously blow you away! 

The juicy chicken and melted mozzarella combined with the basil pesto and lemon garlic sauce are a flavor combination that everyone is guaranteed to love. 

And this grilled chicken marghertia Olive Garden copycat recipe brings all of the Italian flavors from the restaurant right into your own kitchen.

Serve it with a side of this garlic bread or Italian cheese bread, and you've got yourself one delicious Italian dinner recipe. 

Why This Recipe Works

Restaurant quality. I seriously think this recipe is better than Olive Garden's. It's that good.

Easy to make. You can whip up this Olive Garden chicken margherita in just 30 minutes. It's so simple to make too.

A winning combination. I can't decide which part of this recipe I like best, the juicy chicken, melted cheese, or buttery garlicky pesto. It's all so good!

Ingredients

Now, the ingredients list may look long, but I promise you it's worth it. Not to mention, most of the ingredients you need you probably already have, or you can easily find at any store.

Anyway, here's what you'll need:

• 2 pounds chicken breasts, divided in 4 portions
• 1 cup Italian salad dressing 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
• About ½ pound sliced mozzarella (1 slice for each piece of chicken)
• ½ cup pesto
• ¼ cup basil sliced thin
• 1 cup grape tomatoes

By the way, if you have to run to the store to pick up anything, grab some extra chicken breasts to make this Olive Garden chicken scampi or Olive Garden's chicken & shrimp carbonara next!

They're both knock-out chicken recipes that taste like it's from they're from the restaurant and are sure to be a big hit.

How To Make Chicken Margherita

From start to finish, this Olive Garden margherita chicken recipe takes only about 30 minutes to make.

And half of that time is passive cooking. So it's a perfect busy weeknight meal to whip up for the family.

And it's delicious leftover so you can enjoy some for lunch or dinner the next day!

Now, enough delaying, grab the ingredients, and Olive Garden's grilled chicken margherita!

Step 1: Prepping The Chicken

First, place the chicken breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap and then pound them lightly until they reach an even thickness. 

Then, remove them from the plastic, cut the chicken into 4 portions, and transfer them to a bowl.

Now pour the Italian dressing into the bowl and place it in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

When the time is up, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175°C).

Step 2: Cooking the Chicken

After the chicken marinates, heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and add some olive oil to it. 

Now cook the chicken for a few minutes on both sides until golden brown. Then, remove the chicken from the pan and reserve it for later.

Step 3: Making the Lemon Garlic Sauce 

Next, add the butter, garlic, and lemon juice to the same pan that the chicken just cooked in.

Let these ingredients cook for a few minutes on medium heat until the butter melts and the garlic is fragrant. 

Then, return the chicken to the pan with the lemon garlic sauce and toss it in all the buttery goodness.

Step 4: Baking The Chicken

And now all that's left to do is to bake the chicken!

So, to do that, you'll want to transfer the chicken to a baking dish and make sure there is enough room for each one to lie flat.

Then, add the slices of mozzarella cheese on top of each chicken breast and pour the pesto sauce on top.

Now, once it's ready, bake the chicken for about 15 minutes - or until the cheese bubbles. 

Finally, top it with some fresh basil and sliced juicy grape tomatoes and serve.

Enjoy!

Storing and Reheating Chicken Margherita

So, this recipe will make 4 chicken breasts or 4 servings. But if you need more servings, you can easily double or triple the recipe! 

Then, if you have any leftover grilled chicken margherita, wait for the chicken to cool, then transfer to an airtight container, and it'll last in the fridge for 3-4 days.

And then, to reheat the chicken without drying it out, you can either put it back in the oven, or heat it up in a skillet until warm.

My Final Thoughts

Well, that is how to make grilled chicken margherita Olive Garden style.

If you serve this to someone, they'd have no clue it wasn't from the restaurant! 

The freshness of the tomatoes and basil, metly mozzarella cheese, and flavorful lemon garlic butter combined with the juicy chicken is a meal that you'll want to make over and over again. 

Anyway, I hope you love this grilled chicken margherita recipe as much as I do.

If you make it, leave a comment below and let us know your thoughts!

And make sure to check out our Youtube, where we post recipe videos weekly! 

More Copycat Recipes

If you like recreating dishes from restaurants in the comfort of your own home, we have a ton of other copycat recipes you can try next! 

Here are some of our favorites for an easy dinner:

• Olive Garden Chicken Marsala
• Olive Garden Cheese Ravioli
• Olive Garden Chicken Alfredo
• Olive Garden Chicken Pasta
• Olive Garden's Lasagna Fritta
• Olive Garden's Giant Cheese Stuffed Shells
• Ruth Chris's Stuffed Chicken
• Ruth Chris's Lobster Mac & Cheese
• Applebee's Bourbon Chicken & Shrimp

Print