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Home » Recipes » Kitchen Skills

How to Bake Frozen Chicken Breasts

By Laura Fuentes Updated Jun 25, 2024

5 from 34 votes

Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy here.

Learn how to bake frozen chicken breasts in the oven so they turn out flavorful and juicy. 

When it’s time to make dinner, but your chicken is frozen solid you probably find yourself wondering “can I cook frozen chicken?”. Yes! I’m sharing everything you need to know about baking frozen chicken breasts so they turn out perfectly every single time.

Chicken is a kid-favorite protein that can be cooked up in a variety of different ways. While I love grilling and pan-searing chicken, baking is often my go-to method since by simply adding a veggie or two to the pan, it transforms into an epic sheet pan dinner.

Ideally, chicken is always defrosted and ready to cook when it comes time to make dinner, but realistically that doesn’t always happen. Sometimes, we’re left with a solid block of chicken and no ideas for dinner.

If that sounds like you, read on, I’ll take you step-by-step on how to pull of dinner tonight without ordering takeout.

Jump to:
  • Can you Bake Frozen Chicken?
  • How to Cook Frozen Chicken in the Oven
  • Following a Recipe with Frozen Chicken Breasts
  • What Temperature to Bake Frozen Chicken Breasts
  • Baked Frozen Chicken Breasts

Can you Bake Frozen Chicken?

When it comes to cooking chicken into delicious, family-pleasing meals, I’ve learned quite a few tips and tricks over the years, including how to bake frozen chicken straight from the freezer, no thawing required.

While you can bake and pan-fry frozen chicken, it’s important to know that chicken should never be cooked in a microwave or slow cooker straight from the freezer. These methods keep the raw, frozen chicken above 40F for longer than the recommended 1 hour. Making it an ideal environment for bacteria to breed and contaminate the food.

three chicken breasts in lemon marinade in a zip bag

How to Cook Frozen Chicken in the Oven

To cook frozen chicken in the oven you will need a sheet pan, chicken breasts and your choice of seasonings, marinade, or sauce. Here’s what to do: 

  1. Prep
    Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a large baking dish or sheet pan with olive oil or cooking spray. Place the chicken breasts on the baking sheet in a single layer.
  2. Add flavor
    Now is when you would season the frozen chicken with your choice of spices or marinade. You can also baste the chicken with BBQ sauce or teriyaki sauce but be sure to add it in the final 15 minutes of cooking so it doesn’t burn or runoff.
  3. Cook
    Bake, as directed, adding 50% of the recipe’s original cook time to the total time or until the chicken, reaches an internal temperature of 165F for white meat or 175F for dark meat cuts.
  4. Rest
    Remove the chicken from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

In a rush? You can air-fry frozen chicken in just 35 minutes!

four baked chicken breasts on a baking sheet

Want to watch how it’s done? Check out this video and I’ll walk you through everything so you can see the whole process.

Following a Recipe with Frozen Chicken Breasts

When cooking with frozen chicken, expect the cook time to increase by 50% of the original cook time. For instance, if the recipe called for 30 minutes, plan for 45 minutes. However, this can vary based on the size of the chicken cuts.

Taking the extra step to pre-slice, cut, or butterfly the chicken ahead of time can help reduce the cook time. The chicken will cook faster and evenly compared to a whole frozen 8-ounce chicken breast.  

sliced chicken breast on a cutting boar with a baking sheet in the background

What Temperature to Bake Frozen Chicken Breasts

An oven temperature of 375 and an internal temperature of 165F are ideal for perfectly cooked frozen chicken.

It’s just enough heat to cook the chicken evenly and low enough so that you can cook vegetables and other ingredients at the same time.

However, you can go as low as 350F and as high as 400F, just be sure to use the meat thermometer to check for doneness. Below is a chart to help you gauge the time it will take your chicken to cook based on oven temperature:

Frozen Chicken Breasts Baking Chart

SizeOven TempCook Time
small 4-6 oz350F / 175C32-45 minutes
traditional 8 oz375F / 190C37-45 minutes
traditional 8 oz400F / 200 Capprox 30 minutes

Baked Frozen Chicken Breasts

Servings: 4 servings
Prep Time: 5 minutes mins
Cook Time: 45 minutes mins
Total Time: 50 minutes mins
Learn how to bake frozen chicken breasts in the oven so they turn out flavorful and juicy. 
5 from 34 votes
Print Pin

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 lb frozen chicken breasts, boneless, skinless

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 375F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. 
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, seasonings, salt and black pepper. 
  • Add the chicken to the baking sheet in a single layer and drizzle the marinade over the tops of the chicken, making sure to coat each piece. 
  • Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, flipping halfway through or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165F.

Equipment

meat thermometer
Meat Thermometer
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Nutrition

Serving: 4oz | Calories: 199kcal | Carbohydrates: 0.8g | Protein: 25.6g | Fat: 10.1g | Saturated Fat: 1.7g | Cholesterol: 8.27mg | Sodium: 632.8mg | Fiber: 0.4g

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Comments

    5 from 34 votes (25 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Lucy says

    March 06, 2025 at 4:13 pm

    5 stars
    Frozen to table so fast!

    Reply
  2. Carla says

    February 27, 2025 at 2:03 pm

    5 stars
    This was so easy!

    Reply
  3. Jackie says

    February 25, 2025 at 3:34 pm

    5 stars
    Easy dinner with frozen chicken!

    Reply
  4. Carla says

    February 19, 2025 at 6:36 pm

    5 stars
    Incredible!!!

    Reply
  5. Rachel Rose says

    March 10, 2024 at 4:26 pm

    5 stars
    The recipe was easy, fast, flavorful, and moist! Thank you for sharing a chicken dish perfect for weeknights and last-minute get-togethers.

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      March 13, 2024 at 1:38 pm

      Thank you for sharing you enjoyed this recipe for baked frozen chicken! I know a lot of people are skeptic of this method so I appreciate you!

      Reply
  6. Helen says

    May 02, 2023 at 8:55 am

    5 stars
    I can’t believe these baked chicken breasts came out this good from frozen. Thank you!

    Reply
  7. Lynn says

    March 19, 2023 at 1:24 pm

    5 stars
    So much easier to bake frozen chicken than i thought. You saved dinner tonight!

    Reply
  8. Becky says

    September 04, 2022 at 11:32 am

    5 stars
    Could you cook in the oven for a while to “defrost” then put it in an instapot to finish it up quicker?

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      September 09, 2022 at 1:03 am

      I’ve never tried it that way but I have simply put the frozen chicken breasts in the instant pot.

      Reply
  9. Kim says

    May 20, 2022 at 12:08 pm

    5 stars
    I forget to thaw chicken tooooo much! baking it frozen will save me so much time!

    Reply

Hi! I'm Laura.
Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, mom of three, and the woman behind the world’s best pancakes—here to help you ditch the mealtime drama with recipes your family will actually eat.

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