Baked BBQ Chicken Breast

A moist, flavorful Baked BBQ Chicken Breast recipe that has an easy dry-rub seasoning and a maple chipotle BBQ sauce! You can use this foolproof method for baked chicken with any store-bought or homemade barbecue sauce.

I have a strong, well-documented aversion to dry chicken. Nothing makes me more sad than dry chicken breasts (or dry chocolate cake to be honest). This easy baked bbq chicken recipe uses my sear and bake technique that I perfected with these moist grilled chicken breasts!

Searing the chicken locks in the moisture quickly and keeps all those juices inside while the chicken bakes to perfection. Adding a dry-rub and bbq sauce not only adds flavor but it locks in all those juices. Serve this with extra sauce for kick and my sweet cornbread to tame the heat.

Professional Tips for Making Moist Baked Chicken

• Sear on the stovetop before baking. It is one extra step but searing the chicken creates a seal to lock in the natural juices. Baking the chicken will cook it quickly from all directions keeping it from drying out.
• Use boneless, skinless chicken breasts to cook faster. Cutting out the bone decreases the cook time by half! Purchase them boneless or remove the bone yourself using my tutorial for deboning a chicken!
• Don’t crowd the pan. Preheat the pan and leave a little space between the pieces of breast and thighs. Putting to many pieces too close together will cause the chicken to steam rather than brown. This will not lock in the moisture like searing and could cause your seasoning to steam off.  

Ingredients Needed

• Dry Rub Spices: sweet smoked paprika (Hungarian paprika), brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, chipotle powder, kosher salt, black pepper
• Chicken breasts & thighs: I use boneless, skinless chicken breast and thighs for this recipe, so there is a little something for everyone. It is completely up to you.
• Ketchup: Use a brand you like. I like to make sure it has no added ingredients or sugars.
• Maple Syrup: Pure maple syrup adds a sweetness and tempers the heat and smokiness of the chilis. Any quality pure maple syrup will be good. Don’t stress about the grade.
• Unsulphered Molasses: Molasses adds sweetness and complexity.
• Apple Cider Vinegar: Apple cider adds that needed tang. It rounds out the flavors and brightens the ketchup flavor.
• Chipotle chilis in adobo sauce: The chipotle chilis bring the heat and the adobo sauce adds a welcome smokiness to the bbq sauce.
• Worcestershire sauce: Nothing adds subtle depth to a sauce like Worcestershire sauce. I use it in these spicy peach pork chops and my brown sugar glazed meatloaf recipe.
• Dry mustard
• Onion & Garlic Powder
• Canola Oil: This is for searing the chicken. You can use avocado oil or another oil of your choice.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How to Make Juicy Baked BBQ Chicken

Use these instructions to make moist baked bbq chicken breasts every time! Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.

Step 1: Preheat oven to 400°F conventional.

Make the Sauce:

Step 2: In a small saucepan whisk together the sauce ingredients: ketchup, maple syrup, molasses, apple cider vinegar, minced chilis in adobo sauce, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, onion powder and garlic powder.

Step 3: Bring to a boil over medium heat and then reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes to marry the flavors. Set aside.

Prepare the Chicken:

Step 4: In a small bowl combine all ingredients under “For the Chicken” through black pepper (paprika, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, chipotle powder, kosher salt, and black pepper).

Step 5: Dry chicken with a paper towel and place on a clean plate. Sprinkle seasoning generously over both sides of the chicken. Fine Cooking suggests covering the plate with plastic wrap and refrigerating for 2-3 hours. I never have that kind of time, but it can only make it better, right?

Step 6: Heat your large cast iron skillet or oven-proof pan over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add 2 Tablespoons of canola oil and heat the oil until it shimmers. Add chicken to the pan. Brown both sides.

Step 7: Brush sauce generously over both sides of meat and place in preheated oven. After 5 minutes brush additional sauce over chicken and check for doneness. Chicken is done when an instant-read thermometer reads 165°F.

Step 8: Remove the chicken from the pan onto a clean plate (not the one that had the raw chicken!) Let the chicken rest 5 minutes before slicing and serving. You can loosely tent the whole plate if you need to let it sit longer than 5 minutes.

What to Serve with Baked BBQ Chicken

• Easy vegetable dishes. Don’t overcomplicate it! Try any of our easy side dish recipes or make lemon roasted cauliflower, baked acorn squash halves, or roasted butternut squash. I’ve also included the sautéed red kale recipe that is pictured in the photos in the recipe card below.
• A grain or carb. Are you more of a wild rice or a Southern cornbread type? Both will be great to soak up that extra sauce and tame some of the heat. This quinoa pilaf or creamy mashed potatoes would also be excellent.
• You can’t go wrong with bread. If you have the time or you are planning ahead, try my easy dinner rolls, fluffy potato rolls or even these rosemary sourdough rolls.
• A light salad. A simple side salad or healthy creamy coleslaw would also be excellent. This Shredded cabbage and kale salad is also light and crunchy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Before You Go

I hope you enjoyed this professional chef tested recipe. Check out our other delicious, chef-developed chicken recipes, like these Ground Chicken Tacos!