These easy to make, pesto chicken pull apart sliders are the perfect quick and easy dinner – and the leftovers make the best lunch!
These little pesto chicken pull apart sliders are amazing.
And I don’t often say that about a simple sandwich. I don’t mind sandwiches, but they’re not usually something that I get excited about.
They’ll do for lunch, but not really a meal that I often break out for dinner. Unless of course we are at some kids activity or other and I need to pack supper to eat on the go!
In that case, as long as everyone is getting fed something fairly healthy, I’m happy. Sandwiches are just fine.
Cute little sliders served warm and loaded with pesto sauce, shredded chicken and mozzarella cheese are not just a sandwich though.
And I will happily devour several of them for dinner anytime.
I think it’s the pesto. I’ve decided I need to have this homemade spinach pesto on hand at all times, just so I can jazz up those boring lunchtime sandwiches.
Or maybe it’s the melty mozzarella cheese. Or the garlicky butter brushed on top of the best dinner rolls.
Store-bought tray buns will work just as well, but if you have time to make these dinner rolls, they really are the best!
And they freeze beautifully so you can easily make them ahead of time.
Or maybe I just really like baked sandwiches and that’s why I feel these are a suitable main course.
Combination of the above? Yeah, we’ll go with that. Baked, cheesy, pesto chicken pull apart sliders – fast and easy to make and everyone will love them!
If you are lucky enough to have any leftovers – they also make a fantastic lunch the next day!
How to make Pesto Chicken Pull Apart Sliders:
- If you make the dinner rolls, form them into 2 ounce rolls, making 18 from one recipe of dough. The baking time is the same as written for 12 larger rolls.
- You do need to plan ahead for this recipe and have cooked chicken on hand. I like to make this slow cooker shredded chicken and then portion it into freezer bags to have waiting in the freezer for meals like this.
- For this recipe, I recommend using full fat mozzarella cheese (low fat doesn’t melt well) and shredding it yourself. The pre-shredded cheese has a coating on it that keeps it from clumping together in the bag, but it also keeps it from melting as nicely.
Here are some more great sandwich recipes for you:
- Pepperoni Pizza Rolls
- Ham Egg and Cheese Pretzel Rolls
- Buffalo Chicken Sliders
- Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches
- Slow Cooker Pulled Pork
Pesto Chicken Pull Apart Sliders
These easy to make, pesto chicken pull apart sliders are the perfect quick and easy dinner. And the leftover sliders are amazing for lunch the next day!
Ingredients
- 9 Slider Rolls, or tray buns
- 1/4 cup Pesto
- 2 cups Cooked Shredded Chicken
- 1 cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
- 2 tablespoons Butter, melted
- 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Salt
- 1 teaspoon Dried Parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly spray an 8x8-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Slice the dinner rolls in half, if they are pull apart rolls you can leave them stuck together and slice them all at the same time.
- Place the bottom halves into the prepared baking dish.
- Spread the pesto sauce over the bottom halves of the dinner rolls.
- Spread the chopped chicken on top of the pesto, and sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the chicken.
- Cover with the top halves of the dinner rolls.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the butter, garlic salt and parsley.
- Brush this mixture over top of the sliders and cover the whole dish tightly with aluminum foil.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Serve warm.
Notes
For the rolls, I used these dinner rolls. If you use that recipe, make the rolls a bit smaller then called for, using 2 ounces of dough per roll, which will give you 18 rolls total. The baking time is the same, and the baked rolls freeze beautifully. If you bake them in 8x8-inch baking dishes instead of on a sheet pan (make sure to grease the dishes!) then they will be ready to proceed with this slider recipe, and will fit in the dish perfectly. Alternatively, you can use store-bought tray buns for this recipe.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
9Serving Size:
1 sliderAmount Per Serving: Calories: 232Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 37mgSodium: 394mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 1gSugar: 3gProtein: 15g
Nutrition Information is estimated based on ingredients used and may not be exact.
I’ve also shared this Pesto Chicken Pull Apart Sliders recipe over on Food Fanatic.
Best Finger Sandwiches For Party, Picnic -
Thursday 31st of October 2024
[…] 22. Pesto Chicken Pull Apart Sliders […]
Kirsten
Friday 12th of July 2024
Are there any tips on freezing and reheating the chicken pesto pull apart sandwiches?
Stacey
Monday 15th of July 2024
To make them ahead of time and freeze them for later, make the recipe as written up to the baking step and cover the pan of uncooked, prepared sandwiches with two layers of tin foil. Freeze them in the pan for up to three months. When you'd like to bake them, thaw them in the refrigerator for 24 hours. When they're completely thawed, follow the baking instructions as written. If they are still a bit frozen in the middle, they will take a bit longer to bake, just make sure that the cheese is melted before serving them. If you just want to freeze and reheat leftover sandwiches, I would freeze them individually, wrapped in foil, and once thawed reheat them in a 325F oven for 10-15 minutes or until they're heated through. I haven't tried that though, as my kids always eat any leftovers the next day for lunch, just reheated in the microwave.
Cheryl A.
Saturday 23rd of September 2023
Wow! These were fantastic. My homemade pesto didn’t hurt. 😉 I tried to convince my hubby they were awful, and that because I love him so much, I was going to make the sacrifice of eating them all so he didn’t have to eat any. LOL. He didn’t fall for it and even declared they were so good, they’d probably cost $20 each at Whole Foods. ❤️
Meredithe
Thursday 3rd of February 2022
THIS WAS THE BEST RECIPE IVE FOUND IN A LONG TIME
Robin
Tuesday 2nd of November 2021
It looks delicious- what kind of pesto do you use? It looks much richer and creamier than the store brand I use!
Cynthia
Thursday 15th of December 2022
@Stacey, Hello. May we have your spinach pesto recipe also? I can’t wait to try this recipe, looks amazing!
Stacey
Thursday 4th of November 2021
I use my homemade spinach pesto for this recipe. I have made it with store bought pesto too, but you're right, pesto from the store tends to be a bit thinner than the homemade version. It's super easy to make too!