Chicken Parmesan

This week I decided to make chicken Parmesan. It's something that I don't typically order when I got out to Italian restaurants but always wish I did when I see someone else eating it. This recipe is delicious, the outside of the chicken is crispy and the inside stays very juicy. You don't want to over do it on the cheese or the sauce. You don't want to drown the chicken in so much sauce and cheese, that it ends up being a big soggy chicken/cheese clump. I don’t put any sauce under the chicken breasts, just a little bit on top, so the breading stays relatively crisp. Also, using fresh mozzarella cheese and fresh Parmesan makes a huge difference. Piacere!

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 cups “Panko” Japanese style bread crumbs
1 cup grated parmesan ( put about half a cup with the bread crumbs)

4 oz fresh mozzarella
salt and pepper to taste
3 Eggs

olive oil for frying
1/2 cup prepared tomato sauce
1/4 cup fresh shredded basil, or pesto, or dried Italian herbs of your choice, or omit
*Baked for approximately 15-20 minutes at 450F

Take your 4 boneless skinless chicken breast and pound the thicker part so that the whole piece is about an inch thick.   Then dredge the chicken in flour. Take the chicken and put it in the beaten eggs then add it to the bowl of Panko crumbs/parmesan mixture.  Make sure that the bread crumbs are completly covering the chicken, gently push the bread crumb mixture in the chicken. After you are done doing that with all 4 chicken breasts, let them sit on a plate for about 15 mintues so that the bread crumbs seal into the chicken. 
Add the chicken to a medium-high frying pan (put about an inch of olive oil). Fry on the sides until golden (NOT golden brown), its only a few seconds on each side. If you fry it too long the chicken will become dry in the oven. Place the chicken in a glass cooking pan. Put sauce, then fresh mozzarella, then herbs, then parmesan on top. Not too much of any ingredient (see pictures for proper amount). Drizzle the top with about a 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil.  Bake for approximately 15-20 minutes at 450F

I would have liked to have made my own tomato sauce but I ran out of time. I just used some store brand. I added fresh garlic, oregano and salt and pepper to make it taste better. 

 






Anne liked the Chicken Parmesan so much that Todd went crazy!