Chicken Parmesan

Just like spaghetti and meatballs, lasagna and baked ziti, chicken Parmesan is a family favorite in the great canon of stick-to-your-ribs Italian-American cookery. The traditional dish consists of breaded, fried chicken cutlets topped with cheese and tomato sauce, and it’s often served with a side of pasta for extra comfort. This easy chicken Parmesan recipe is uncomplicated enough to make on a weeknight, but it’s also fancy enough to serve to company at Sunday dinner.

Chicken Parmesan Ingredients

Emily Davis for Taste of Home

• Tomato sauce, Italian seasoning and garlic powder: Simmering canned tomato sauce with Italian seasoning and garlic powder is a minimal-effort way to infuse it with flavor. You can substitute jarred marinara sauce and skip this step.
• Egg: Dunking chicken cutlets in beaten egg helps the bread crumbs stick to the surface of the meat.
• Seasoned bread crumbs: Bread crumbs form the crisp coating for the chicken. If you have the time, make your own bread crumbs by cutting a loaf of fresh Italian bread into thick slices, baking it at 350°F until crusty, then pulsing it in a food processor until it’s finely ground. If you’re making your own, mix in some dried oregano, salt, black pepper and dried basil. Using store-bought seasoned bread crumbs will yield cutlets with a finer crumb texture.
• Parmesan cheese: Adding a little grated Parmesan cheese to the breading boosts the bread crumbs with nutty richness.
• Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken breast halves make for juicy chicken Parmesan. If your chicken breasts are very large, split them in half and pound them into thin cutlets, otherwise the bread crumb coating may get too dark before the chicken is cooked through.
• Olive oil: This Parmesan chicken recipe is shallow-fried in olive oil, which lends a signature Italian flavor to the fried cutlets.
• Mozzarella cheese: Thinly sliced part-skim mozzarella melts into gooey strands on top of the hot cutlets. You can substitute fresh mozzarella, if you like, but because it’s higher in moisture, the cutlets will go soggy more quickly.
• Fresh basil leaves and additional Parmesan cheese (optional): Adding the perfume of fresh basil to the finished chicken Parmesan infuses the dish with a heady aroma, and finishing it off with an extra grating of Parmesan cheese adds even more nutty richness.

Directions

Step 1: Cook the tomato sauce

Emily Davis for Taste of Home

In a small saucepan, combine the tomato sauce, Italian seasoning and garlic powder, then bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat, then cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Step 2: Dredge the chicken

Emily Davis for Taste of Home

In a shallow bowl, lightly beat the egg. In another shallow bowl, combine the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese. Dip the chicken in the egg, then coat it with the crumb mixture.

Step 3: Fry the chicken cutlets

Emily Davis for Taste of Home

In a large skillet, cook the chicken in the oil over medium heat until a thermometer reads 165°, about five minutes on each side.

Step 4: Top the chicken with cheese

Emily Davis for Taste of Home

Top the chicken with mozzarella cheese, then cover the skillet and cook until the cheese is melted, three to four minutes longer.

Step 5: Serve it with sauce

Emily Davis for Taste of Home

Serve the chicken Parm with tomato sauce, and if desired, sprinkle it with basil and additional Parmesan.

Editor’s Tip: You likely won’t use all the tomato sauce to top the chicken. Serve the rest on the side or toss it with pasta to accompany your chicken Parmesan.

Emily Davis for Taste of Home

Chicken Parmesan Variations

• Make your own marinara: The best way to take your Parmesan-crusted chicken from good to out-of-this-world amazing is by making your own homemade tomato sauce. A homemade sauce will provide a fresh, authentic flavor that simply can’t be beat.
• Get cheesy with it: Try incorporating creamy goat cheese, smoked provolone or salty pecorino Romano into your cheesy topping.
• Stuff it: Stuffed chicken Parmesan is a fun spin on the classic dish. Carefully make a slit in the chicken and stuff it with your favorite thin-sliced Italian deli meat—prosciutto, pepperoni or capicola—fresh spinach or extra cheese before breading and frying.
• Try new toppings: A sprinkle of spinach or even spicy arugula can provide extra freshness and texture.
• Forget the fork: Serve your chicken Parmesan on a toasted baguette for a chicken Parm sandwich!

How to Store Chicken Parmesan

Store leftover chicken Parmesan in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days. Reheat it gently in a covered casserole to remelt the cheese.

Can you freeze chicken Parmesan?

We generally don’t recommend freezing dishes with cheese, as doing so can interfere with the texture of fresh dairy. The best way to freeze chicken Parmesan is to freeze the cooked and cooled cutlets and sauce separately. When you’re ready to serve them, defrost both in the refrigerator and then bake them together as described in the final step of this recipe. This will give you crisp cutlets with melty toppings.

Chicken Parmesan Tips

Emily Davis for Taste of Home

What goes well with chicken Parmesan?

Serve your chicken Parmesan with an antipasto platter, a side of pasta or spaghetti squash, a simple Italian salad with pepperoncini peppers and some classic garlic bread.

What’s the best pan for frying chicken Parmesan?

Fry your chicken in a cast-iron skillet or, to reduce splatters, a cast-iron Dutch oven. Nothing beats the even heat distribution and temperature regulation you get from frying in cast iron.

Can you make chicken Parmesan in the air fryer?

The traditionalist in me wants to say no, but I also love the convenience of the air fryer (or the convection bake setting of a traditional oven). Though the air fryer isn’t great for batter-dipped frying, it’s quite good at approximating the crispness of shallow-frying in breaded and fried dishes, including the cutlets for chicken Parmesan. To get a better idea, here’s our air-fryer chicken Parmesan recipe.