Easy Chicken Parmesan

Chicken Parmesan is a classic dish that everyone needs to have a recipe for! Crunchy, fried chicken breasts layered with fresh tomato sauce and parmesan cheese, topped with fresh mozzarella all melted and bubbly.

It’s no wonder Chicken Parmesan is one of those dishes that just makes everybody happy – at least it is in our family!

This is one of my son’s favorite dishes of all time! When we go to an Italian restaurant, this is his go-to. Always!

Even when he was little (maybe 3 or 4) and most kids his age wanted spaghetti and meatballs, he wanted chicken parmesan. Over the years, it has become a staple in our household.

I actually developed this recipe more than 25 years ago!

We served it in both restaurants, always with rave reviews! I’ve tweaked it a bit over the years, but only minor things like changing the panko I use. This recipe has really stood the test of time!

It’s a great dish when I want to serve something hearty and full of flavor, and I don’t have a lot of time to cook. I can throw this together in about 20 minutes. The cook time is about 25 minutes. Even with sides, this comes together in less than an hour!

This is also a really easy dish to adjust! Use one egg, 1/4 cup of flour, 3/4 cup of panko, 1 cup of tomato sauce, 2 ounces of parmesan, and about 3 ounces of fresh mozzarella for every 2 chicken breasts.

How to make chicken parmesan

This really is a fast, easy dish to put together! Gather the ingredients first. Make sure you have chicken cutlets (unless you want to thinly slice your own chicken breasts). You need 3 separate bowls and a plate or pan. In the first bowl, season some flour with salt and pepper. In the second bowl, beat the eggs. The third bowl is for the panko. The plate is to lay the chicken on after it is breaded.

• 

• 

The next steps are simple! Coat the chicken cutlets, one at a time, in the seasoned flour. Dip both sides in the egg wash. Coat with panko. Set aside!

• 

• 

• 

• 

Once the chicken is breaded, you’ll need to heat about 1/4″ of olive oil in a skillet. (You can tell it’s hot when it starts to shimmer.) Cook the breaded chicken on both sides until it’s golden, literally 1-2 minutes per side.

• 

• 

Drain on paper towels. When the chicken is all cooked, place it in a casserole that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Spoon tomato sauce (preferably homemade from my Easy Tomato Sauce Recipe) over each chicken breast, top with grated parmesan cheese, put in a 350 degree oven, and bake for about 15 minutes. Remove the chicken breasts from the oven and top with sliced fresh mozzarella cheese. Put it back in the oven for another 10 minutes or so until the mozzarella gets nice and bubbly.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

What to serve with chicken parmesan

The best part of this dish is how many sides you can serve it with! It is terrific (and very classic) served with fettuccine alfredo! If you want something a little lighter but still want pasta, you could serve it over angel hair (or your favorite shape pasta) with a bit of fresh tomato sauce. For those not in the mood for pasta, this could easily be serve over zucchini noodles! Heck! I think it would probably even stand up to mashed potatoes! (After all, I am from the Deep South.) So, to make things a little easier, here’s a small list you can always come back to check without having to read everything all over again!

• Pasta (angel hair, bucatini, fettuccine)
• Zoodles (zucchini noodles)
• Fettuccine alfredo
• Mashed potatoes
• Vegetables

Expert tips

• Use chicken cutlets instead of whole boneless, skinless breasts.
• Use a seasoned panko. (We use Italian-style for this dish.)
• Lighter olive oil is better for frying because the smoke point is higher.
• Fresh mozzarella is much better for this dish than regular shredded mozzarella.
• While you can use a jarred pasta sauce, fresh is always better! With our Easy Homemade Tomato Sauce, this dish quickly becomes a house favorite!

When you make this Easy Chicken Parmesan recipe, leave a comment down below! We love hearing from you and answering any questions you might have! Also, be sure to tag us on social media and hashtag it #MSDHospitality.