Chicken Parmesan
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 35 hours | Serves: 6
I have truly fallen in love with Chicken Parmesan. The first time I had ever heard of Chicken Parmesan was when my husband and I were dating as seniors in high school (29 years ago!). His family had me over for dinner and his mom made this wonderfully delicious meal of crispy breaded chicken covered in a red tomato sauce over spaghetti noodles. It was divine. My husband’s mom is still a very good cook. We don’t see them as often, but she usually has some sort of dessert for us, or a yummy, warm meal. But that meal stuck with me all these years. She can be given credit for opening me up to quite a few different foods! I’ve had Chicken Parmesan in restaurants and it’s been good, but I had to try my hand at it and give it a little twist. I think this recipe is quite amazing. It’s one of those where you do the “happy dance” in your head at the table on the first bite because you nailed it in attempt #1. (You foodies know exactly what I’m talking about.)
Basically, the common way to cook Chicken Parmesan is to bread chicken breasts and cook until crispy, top with marinara (or tomato sauce), cover with cheese, and serve over spaghetti pasta. You can take these basics and turn your Chicken Parmesan into an Ah-mazing meal! I added some not-so-traditional spices to the breading and made my own marinara, which I think makes this just scrumptious.
Some people add about a tablespoon of oil to the boiling water for the pasta, or toss their cooked pasta in some oil to simply keep the pasta from sticking together. I rarely do that because I think the oil keeps the pasta from absorbing the wonderful sauce. I stir the pasta often to keep it from sticking together.
The cheese! Slices of fresh mozzarella are also delicious on Chicken Parmesan, as well as provolone. Use whatever you personally like.
I learned about the dry-wet-dry method from watching a Food TV show, Giada de Laurentii’s show, I’m pretty sure. Come to find out, it’s truly worth the few extra steps and dirty bowls to wash later, just to enjoy the crispy, flavorful breading on the chicken.
Chicken Parmesan
I think this recipe is quite amazing. It’s one of those where you do the “happy dance” in your head at the table on the first bite because you nailed it in attempt #1. (You foodies know exactly what I’m talking about.)
Ingredients
- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
- 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
- 3 teaspoons lemon pepper seasoning
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more if needed
- 1 pound spaghetti noodles, cooked according to package directions
- 3 cups Mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 recipe Quick and Simple Marina or 24 ounces store-bought marinara
Instructions
- If you choose to use my marinara recipe, begin cooking the marinara, so it can be simmering while you’re working on everything else. (If you’ve opted for a jar of prepared marinara, you can pour into a small pan and heat on the stove, or a microwave-safe bowl heated in the microwave.)
- Using a very sharp knife, cut chicken breasts in half long-ways through the middle to make 2 thinner breasts.
- In one shallow bowl, combine flour, salt and pepper. In another shallow bowl, beat eggs with 1 tablespoon of water. In another shallow bowl, combine bread crumbs, poultry and lemon pepper seasonings.
- Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. (I used my electric skillet for this recipe.)
- You’ll be using a dry-wet-dry method: Dip the chicken breasts into the flour (gently shake off excess flour), then into the eggs (allow excess to drip back into the bowl), then into the bread crumbs.
- Cook the chicken approximately 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until cooked through and your breading is nicely browned, adding more oil as necessary throughout cooking.
- Once all the chicken pieces are cooked through, gently remove them to a serving platter.
- Pour marinara over the chicken breasts and top with the cheese. Allow the cheese to melt.
- Serve over warm spaghetti pasta noodles.
Notes
I used Nutrifox nutritional calculators and charts. To me, the sodium seems to be higher on the chart than it should be. Please, adjust the salt according to your tastes and/or diet, if need be.
Nutrition Facts
Chicken Parmesan
Amount per Serving
Calories
745
% Daily Value*
Fat
20.2
g
31
%
Cholesterol
183.2
mg
61
%
Sodium
1232.7
mg
54
%
Carbohydrates
90.6
g
30
%
Fiber
4.1
g
17
%
Sugar
4.3
g
5
%
Protein
47.4
g
95
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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