Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Mesquite Chicken Bake
Mesquite chicken has a smoky barbecue coating with cheese and bacon over the top. A little onion cooks into the sauce for a savory bite underneath.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Original yield
- Serves 4
- Ingredients
- 6 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Dinner
- Primary protein
- Chicken · Pork
- Cooking method
- Barbecue · Baking · Baked & roasted
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: 30 minutes or less
A few quick notes
1. Season both chicken sides
Coat each side with mesquite seasoning before laying the breasts flat in the large baking dish.
2. Sauce and onion go on first
Drizzle barbecue sauce over each breast and sprinkle with finely diced onion before the initial uncovered bake.
3. Save cheese and bacon for later
Add cheddar and bacon after the first baking stage, then return the dish to finish cooking.
Get to know the ingredients
Chicken breasts laid flat
Arrange the seasoned breasts flat in the large dish before adding their barbecue sauce and onion topping.
Barbecue sauce choice
Mesquite-flavored barbecue sauce is optional in the ingredient note; use the listed barbecue sauce for drizzling over the breasts.
Finely diced onion
Dice onion finely before scattering it over the sauced chicken, keeping it beneath the later cheese and bacon layer.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 4. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 4 steps completeMake room for Mesquite Chicken Bake
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
Check chicken and melted cheese
Finish baking until cheddar melts and the chicken reaches the stated 165 degrees Fahrenheit internally before serving.
A little more help as you go
Leave the dish uncovered
The chicken starts its baking uncovered, with cheese and bacon added when it comes out for the final stage.
Use bacon bits for topping
Keep the bacon bits for adding with cheddar rather than mixing them into the barbecue sauce before baking.
A few questions you might have
Does the cheddar bake from the beginning?
Add it after the first uncovered chicken bake, together with bacon, before the final oven stage.
Should I mix seasoning into the barbecue sauce?
Season both chicken sides directly first, then lay them in the dish and drizzle sauce over the tops.
What temperature is given for doneness?
The directions give an internal chicken temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, with cheese melted, at the end of baking.
Does the onion need sauteing first?
Sprinkle finely diced onion directly over the sauced chicken before baking; no separate sauteing step is included.
Do I turn the breasts halfway through?
The directions keep them laid flat, removing the dish to add cheese and bacon before returning it to the oven.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: easyfamilyrecipes.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.