I was asking my friends what recipes they wanted and I had a few requests for chicken parmesan. Truthfully, I never really think about chicken parmesan. We didn’t really eat it growing up (I think my dad has always thought of both lasagne and chicken parm as being beneath him and yes, this is most definitely where I got my snobbery from.)

All of that is about to change though. The reason that I never really cared about chicken parmesan is that a lotttttt of restaurants and home cooks use regular bread crumbs and overcook the chicken, so you end up with a soggy mess. 

I ended up accidentally buying a low moisture shredded mozzarella, and let me tell you sometimes life is series of beautiful accidents. I love me some fresh mozzarella, but the shredded mozzarella was perfect for this recipe. 

Combining both panko and seasoned Italian breadcrumbs means that you end up with tons of crispy flavor, and who doesn’t like that?

If you HAVE to, you can totally use store-bought marinara sauce, but this sauce is stupid simple and the prep time is 5 minutes, so just make the damn sauce yourself.

Dry ingredients 

1.5 cups Panko breadcrumbs 

1 cup Italian breadcrumbs 

1 tablespoon garlic powder 

1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan 

1 tablespoon dried parsley 

Salt 

Pepper

1 package Low-moisture shredded mozzarella 

1 cup grated parmesan (in addition to 1/2 cup listed above)

3 chicken breasts (sliced in half lengthwise)

3 eggs 

Olive oil 

Vegetable oil 

Stupid Simple Marinara Sauce 

1/2 large onion (Finely chopped)

2 cloves garlic (Finely chopped)

2 tablespoons Italian seasoning 

Salt 

Pepper

1 - 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

Olive oil 

1. Heat olive oil in sauce pan. 

2. When oil is hot, add onions and cook until translucent (about 5-6 minutes).

3. Add garlic and cook for another minute.

4. Add can of crushed tomatoes. 

5. Fill empty can halfway with warm water and swirl around. Add to sauce pan. 

6. Turn heat on high - bring to a boil. Once sauce reaches a boil, turn heat down to low and let simmer for around 30 minutes, or until water has evaporated. 

7. Add salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning while simmering. 

The Way to his Heart Chicken Parm

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. 

2. Make your Stupid Simple Marinara Sauce. (Instructions below)

3. If your chicken breasts are really thick then slice them in half lengthwise. 

4. Pound out your chicken breasts until they are thin (if you don’t have a meat hammer, just use a cleaned off wine bottle- sounds weird but does the trick.) Make sure they are even so they cook thoroughly. 

5. Heat a saute pan up on medium high heat with a few tablespoons of olive oil and vegetable oil.

6. Meanwhile, whisk the two eggs in a baking dish. 

7. Combine the dry ingredients in a separate baking dish.   

8. Take a chicken breast and first dip in the eggs, then in breadcrumb mixture making sure everything is evenly coated. 

9. Add to frying pan and let cook until one side is brown and crispy, probably around 4 minutes depending on size of chicken.

10. Take a fork or set of tongs and flip chicken over to cook on the other side. Be careful not to overcook the chicken- it will keep cooking in the oven!

11. Transfer cooked chicken to a baking dish. Later the shredded mozzarella on top, then add sauce, then add parmesan. 

12. Place in oven and cook until the cheese on top is browned and slightly bubbling, around 25 minutes.

13. Take out and serve. I highly recommend eating this right away.