Easy Chicken Parmesan Recipe

Have you struggled with getting a fantastic-tasting chicken parmesan at home, like you do in restaurants? Well, struggle no more! You'll love my Easy Chicken Parmesan Recipe for a Sunday night dinner.

It's crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside thanks to my 6 foolproof tips. It's the one dish that is sure to bring the whole family to the table!

For a vegetarian option try my Easy Baked Eggplant Parmesan Recipe!

Why You'll Love This Recipe:

• The 2-step process, frying the chicken until golden brown and crispy, then placing the chicken in the oven until cooked all the way through assures a crispy juicy chicken breast.
• Baking the chicken in the oven after frying also helps melt the cheese and heat the tomato sauce.
• This dish makes a fantastic kid-friendly dinner! Since it involves so many of kids' favorite flavors; cheese, tomato sauce, and crispy chicken! But yet gourmet enough for the grown-ups to enjoy too!

Watch my Video Demo of this recipe below! 

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Tip #1: Buy Chicken Cutlets and salt 24-hours in advance

• Instead of buying boneless, skinless chicken breast and slicing them, and pounding them yourself. Buy chicken cutlets that are already sliced and pound them gently yourself if needed.
• This will assure your chicken is uniform in thickness which will assure the chicken will cook at the same rate.
• Salting 24-hours before assures ultimate juiciness and tenderness! This is a trick I learned in one of my favorite new cookbooks Salt, Fat Acid by Samin Nostrat and it makes such a big difference! 

Tip#2 Breading the Chicken

For the best flavor, crunch, and coating that won’t slip off, follow this plan

• Prepare the dipping/coating station. It will make the process easier and less messy if you set up your station ahead of time. 
• Dip the chicken in the flour to coat, then the egg, then the panko cheese mixture.
• This is the order that I think helps the breading stick best and will prevent any slippage of breading falling off the chicken breast during cooking.

How do you make chicken parmesan crispy?

• There are really 3 secrets to keeping chicken parmesan crispy.
• The first secret is to use a mixture of panko bread crumbs, traditional bread crumbs, and parmesan cheese. This combination of textures will provide the best crispiness to your chicken.
• The second two tips involve how you cook the chicken. If you ask me, it's a 2-step process of frying first and then baking in the oven.
• The third tip is to bake the chicken in the oven on a baking pan fitted with a roasting rack. 

Tip# 3: Fry in a cast-iron pan 

• The hallmark of great chicken parmesan is its crispy exterior.
• Frying the chicken in a cast-iron pan will keep the heat even and consistent and is great for getting the ultimate crispy exterior.
• But you also need to have enough oil to fry the chicken in.  It's important to make sure it's deep enough.
• A good rule of thumb is to assure that at least one side of the chicken is completely submerged in the oil on at least one side.

Select an Oil with a High-Smoke Point

• Keep in mind that the oil you fry the chicken in needs to be an oil with a high smoke point like vegetable oil or canola that can withstand high heat.
• Do not use olive oil since it has a low smoke point and cannot withstand high temperatures without smoking. It will set off the fire alarm!
• Fry the chicken until it is golden brown and crispy on both sides.
• Don't worry about it being cooked all the way through at this stage, you'll finish cooking it in the oven. 

Tip#4: Place chicken on a baking sheet with a rack

• Once the chicken is fried, transfer it to a rimmed baking sheet fitted with a roasting rack.
• The roasting rack keeps the chicken elevated and assures it stays crispy while it finishes baking in the oven.

Roasting the Tomatoes at the Same Time

Place cherry tomatoes tossed in olive oil below the rack to roast while chicken cooks. The tomatoes will be used as a garnish for the pasta when you plate the dish.

Tip#5: To do not cover chicken in sauce

• To keep the chicken extra crispy do not drown it in the tomato sauce.
• Only 1-2 tablespoon of sauce is all you need and be sure to leave a perimeter of crispy breading around the chicken.

Tip#6: Use low-moisture mozzarella cheese

• Low-moisture cheese will not release excess water, which will make your sauce runny and your chicken soggy.
• It will also help to preserve the crispiness of your chicken parmesan that you worked so hard to achieve!

What is a good side dish with chicken parmesan?

• The classic side dish for chicken parmesan is pasta. I really like the bucanti style of pasta because it's familiar like spaghetti, but just a bit more gourmet and "fancy". 
• Bucanti is hollow inside. I think the texture is easier to create the pasta mounds because it's heavier than spaghetti (watch the video above to learn how to create the pasta mounds!)

Plating Tips

• It also looks really pretty on the plate with the tomatoes and shaved parmesan.
• I find it's also more filling than spaghetti so you don't need to serve a lot of it, two mounds is really all you need.
• After tossing the pasta with the sauce, swirl the pasta with a carving fork in a spoon (see video demo!) that's the best way to achieve the decorative mounds. Then garnish each mound with a tiny basil leaf. Enjoy!!

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Easy Chicken Parmesan

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

A delicious crispy chicken parmesan recipe that is crunchy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside!

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Ingredients

For Chicken:

• 4 Chicken breast cutlets, salted to taste 24-hours before serving
• ⅓ cup (35g) flour
• ⅓ cup (50g) bread crumbs
• ⅓ cup (50g) panko crumbs
• 1 ½ teaspoon (7.5ml) Italian seasoning
• salt and pepper to taste
• ⅓ cup (30g) freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 egg, beaten
• vegetable oil for frying

For sauce:

• 1 15-ounce (443ml) can tomato sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon (15ml) olive oil

For Topping and serving:

• 1 cup (100g) shredded mozzarella cheese
• ½ lb (230g) buccatini pasta or spaghetti
• 15 cherry tomatoes
• drizzle of olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Garnish:

• fresh basil
• parmesan cheese shavings

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425F (218C).
2. Start by boiling salted water for pasta.
3. Then prepare the sauce and allow it to simmer. In a medium sauce pot add 1 can of pure tomato sauce, garlic, salt and pepper to taste, and olive oil. Set to simmer
4. Then cook pasta. 1 bunch the size of a quarter enough for 2 people so just double that for 4.
5. Prepare the dipping/coating station: Place Flour in one shallow bowl, then in a second bowl place the Italian Bread Crumbs, Panko Bread Crumbs, Italian Seasoning, Parmesan cheese and in the third bowl add the beaten egg .
6. Dip the chicken in the flour  on both sides to coat, then the egg on both sides, then the panko cheese mixture until covered on all sides with the crumbs.
7. Then in a small bowl toss the cherry tomatoes with a drizzle of oil olive, salt and pepper. Place them on a rimmed baking sheet, and place a roasting rack on top. Set aside.
8. Fry chicken in a cast-iron pan with at least 1" of oil. Hallmark of a great chicken parm is a crispy exterior. You need to have enough oil that can withstand a high smoke point. Like vegetable oil or canola. Do no use olive oil as it has a low smoke point and can't get to a high enough temperature without smoking. The cast iron pan will keep the heat even and consistent and is great for frying
9. Once the oil is hot fry chicken on both sides until golden brown. Transfer to the rimmed baking sheet fitted with the roasting rack. This preserves the crispness.
10. Place only 1-2 tablespoon of sauce on each chicken cutlet. Be sure to leave a perimeter of crispy breading around the chicken. Place shredded mozzarella on top.
11. Bake chicken at 425F for 10-15 minutes until chicken is cooked through and cheese is melted.
12. Meanwhile, drain pasta. Place pasta in a pot with sauce, mix to combine. Allow pasta to rest at room temp, and then reheat right before serving.
13. See plating tips below!

Notes

TIP #1: Buy Chicken Cutlets and salt 24 hours before!  Cutlets will be uniform in thickness b/c cut by a skilled butcher. Assures chicken cooks at the same rate. Salting 24-hours before assures ultimate juiciness!

TIP#2: Do Not skip the 3-step coating process! And be sure to do it in that order. This will allow for maximum crispiness and prevent the breading from slipping off the chicken!

TIP# 3: Use a cast iron pan with a good amount of oil to fry.Hallmark of a great chicken parm is a crispy exterior. You need to have enough oil that can withstand a high smoke point. Like vegetable oil or canola. Do no use olive oil. The cast iron pan will keep the heat even and consistent and is great for frying

TIP#4: Place chicken on a baking sheet with roasting rack. This preserves the crispness. Place cherry tomatoes tossed in olive oil below the rack to roast while chicken cooks.

TIP#5: To do not cover chicken in sauce. Only 1-2 tablespoon of sauce is all you need be sure to leave a perimeter of crispy breading around the chicken.

TIP#6: Use already grated low-moisture mozzarella cheese. Low moisture cheese will not release excess water, which will make your sauce runny and your chicken soggy. Using the low moisture retains the crispiness!

Plating tips!

• Place chicken on plate, garnish with thin chiffonade of basil.
• Twirl pasta with serving fork or carving fork, transfer to large spoon, place two swirls on plate. Garnish with parmesan shavings made with a potato peeler
• Add a tiny basil leaf to each pasta mound
• Add roasted cherry tomatoes around pasta

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 613Total Fat: 26gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 164mgSodium: 3146mgCarbohydrates: 47gFiber: 9gSugar: 19gProtein: 52g