Pan-fried black pepper chicken

Served it on top of a spinach salad, and it was so good. Chicken breast usually dries out so quickly, but this stayed nice and moist. I'm guessing it has something to do with the addition of baking soda, because I've tried this recipe without it and it's not the same, but I honestly couldn't tell you the science behind it. Just don't omit the baking soda even if it seems weird.