Chicken parmesan is a classic dish that has breaded chicken, a simple marinara sauce and then topped with cheese that is perfectly melted. Serve it over pasta for an easy and delicious meal.
Marinara sauce (optional, you can use a 24-29 ounce jar of your favorite sauce)
2Tablespoonsolive oilenough to barely coat the pot
1small to medium yellow onionchopped
3garlic cloveschopped
15ouncestomato sauce
14.5ouncesdiced tomatoes
1teaspoonparsley
½teaspoonbasildried
½teaspoonoreganodried
½teaspoonsaltsee notes
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400°FPound chicken down to the same thickness - try for an inch thick. Can skip if chicken isn't too thick.
4 chicken breasts
Mix together flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a gallon size bag.Mix eggs and water in a bowl large enough for dippingMix breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese together in a bowl for dipping
One chicken breast at a time:toss in the bag with the flour to coat it. Put into the egg mix and then into the breadcrumbs to coat the chicken. Set aside.
Heat up the cast iron pan on medium. Add in the oil and heat for about 1 minute before adding the chicken.
5 tbsp olive oil
The chicken should sizzle when you put it in. Cook for 6-8 minutes, until it is browning nicely on the bottom.Flip and cook another 6-8 minutes, until it is browning nicely.
Remove from pan and set aside. Add the sauce to the pan and heat it up for about 2 minutes. Gently set the chicken in the sauce, keeping the top out of the sauce.
Add 2 slices of mozzarella to each chicken breast and place in oven preheated to 400°F. Bake for about 8 minutes until chicken is 165°F and cheese is completely melted.Allow to rest about 5 minutes before serving.
8 slices mozzarella cheese
Making the Sauce (optional - you can use your favorite if you prefer)
It is recommended you make this in a separate pot and I start it before I fry the chicken to make it easier.
Heat up your sauce pot over medium. Add in the oil and onions, cook for about 3 minutes.Add garlic and cook for another minute.
2 Tablespoons olive oil, 1 small to medium yellow onion, 3 garlic cloves
Add in the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, salt (if using unsalted tomatoes and sauce), basil and oregano.Bring to a slow simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Before removing from heat, taste the sauce to see if you want more seasoning, add as needed. Reduce heat to low (or can turn burner off) until the chicken is ready for the sauce.
15 ounces tomato sauce, 14.5 ounces diced tomatoes, 1 teaspoon parsley, ½ teaspoon basil, ½ teaspoon oregano, ½ teaspoon salt
Notes
Nutritional values are an estimate and so are the serving sizes. For the salt on the chicken, you may want to use a little more if using unsalted breadcrumbs. Adjust to your preference.For the salt in the sauce - adjust to taste. Taste before putting in the pan with the chicken.For the tomatoes - we use unsalted, if you use regular you may need to adjust the salt a bit. Taste the sauce and add salt to taste.For oil, we use olive oil for most pan frying. Do not deep fry with olive oil and please be aware that your olive oil will start to smoke if left unattended before adding chicken.