This chicken Parmesan (or chicken Parmigiana) is a classic Italian entree featuring breaded chicken breast fried and then baked! The Parmesan breaded chicken breast combines mozzarella, marinara, and pasta for a simple and complete meal!
Help Us Out!If you love a recipe, be sure to come back and share your ratings. This helps future users, and allows me to continue sharing free recipes! Angela
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 425°F (218°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Prepare three shallow dishes. The first with the flour, the second with the beaten eggs, and the third with the Panko breadcrumbs, Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, grated Parmesan cheese, chopped fresh basil or parsley, and salt and pepper combined.
Your chicken breasts need to be thin, cut them along the center like you would to butterfly the chicken breasts. Pound the chicken breasts into pieces that are approximately ½ inch in thickness, if needed. *Some stores have thin cut breasts like this, and chicken breast cutlets can also be used.
Dip and coat the chicken breast halves into the flour first, shaking off the excess flour before dipping them into the beaten eggs. Dip into the eggs and then into the breading mixture. Use your fingers to pat the breading firmly into place on each side of the chicken breast pieces. Transfer breaded chicken pieces to a plate.
In a large skillet or non-stick frying pan, heat the cooking oil over medium high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the breaded chicken breast pieces (in batches, if needed, so you don't over crowd the pan) and cook until golden browned. About 3-4 minutes per side. Reduce heat as needed if your chicken is browning too quickly.
Place the browned chicken breast pieces onto your prepared baking sheet. Top each of the chicken pieces with approximately 2 tablespoons of the marinara sauce, shredded or sliced mozzarella cheese, and shredded Parmesan cheese.
Bake at 425°F (218°C) for 20-25 minutes. The chicken should be a lovely golden brown and have an internal temperature of 165℉ (74℃), as read by a digital meat thermometer, when done.
Remove the chicken parmesan when done, and serve over pasta and warmed marinara sauce. Garnish with fresh basil or parsley and freshly ground black pepper.
Notes
If you have store-bought thin boneless, skinless chicken breast halves available, that's super! Chicken cutlets are also available at times, and these are thin enough to work wonderfully in this recipe. If you have whole chicken breasts, they will need the thickness sliced in half along the length of the chicken breast. Slice the chicken breast carefully, like you would if you were to butterfly the chicken breast meat.
Once you have the chicken breasts sliced, they will need to be about a half inch in thickness.
You don't need to drown the chicken in sauce. This will cause the breading to get soggy! 2 tablespoons is a good amount, plus you can always add more sauce to the pasta itself.