This Chicken Parmesan recipe (aka chicken parmigiana) is a family favorite! Tender pan fried chicken breasts topped with tomato sauce and cheese baked until golden and bubbly.
It’ll look like you spent hours in the kitchen but this parmesan chicken recipe comes together easily with ingredients you probably already have in the pantry…all the way down to the marinara sauce!
Serve Chicken Parm over spaghetti, egg noodles or mashed potatoes for the perfect weeknight dinner.
Homemade Chicken Parmesan
Chicken Parmesan is thought to have originated from Eggplant Parmesan, a traditional Italian recipe! Traditionally, chicken parm is a fried breaded chicken breast topped with marinara sauce and melted cheese. It makes for a deliciously filling Sunday dinner and the best part is that it is ready in under 30 minutes!
While this dish is often deep fried, this version is breaded and pan fried with just a little bit of oil and then topped with tomato sauce and cheese. The chicken finishes baking in the oven.
How to Make Chicken Parmesan
Chicken parmesan starts with crispy breaded chicken for delicious flavor and texture!
- Pound the chicken to 1/2″ with a meat mallet or rolling pin to ensure even cooking.
- If the chicken breasts are extra large, you can cut them in half before breading.
- Pat dry before dipping into the beaten eggs and then the breading/parmesan mixture.
- Press the breading onto the chicken to help it adhere.
Brown the chicken breasts in a bit of oil, a few minutes on each side (no need to cook through, it’ll bake in the oven). Place in a casserole dish and top with marinara sauce, mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Don’t skimp on the cheese, the gooey cheese really makes the best chicken parmesan!
To Lighten it Up
To make this baked chicken parmesan recipe a bit healthier, there are a couple of options.To reduce calories and carbs, you can skip the breading (as I do in my Parmesan Chicken Foil Packets) and just use Oven Baked Chicken Breasts (or if you’re low carbing, you can also use a mixture of almond flour and parmesan cheese)!
Lighten up the meal by serving this with zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash in place of pasta.
What to Serve with Chicken Parmesan
Whether you serve your chicken parm recipe over pasta or not, it really is a whole meal unto itself.
We usually add a side Caesar salad, or a side of roasted brussels sprouts and of course dinner rolls with Homemade Garlic Butter!
Or, switch it up and serve chicken parmesan burger-style for a fun twist on a classic!
Can Chicken Parmesan be Frozen?
Yes, chicken parmesan can be frozen once cooked through.
Keep in mind that while the chicken may not be as crispy once frozen it is still absolutely delicious!
Seal in freezer safe food storage containers or quart sized freezer bags. Don’t forget to label with contents, date, and if you need to, brief reheating instructions! Instant entrée!
More Baked Chicken Recipes!
- Bruschetta Baked Chicken – tomatoey goodness!
- Cheesy Chicken Casserole – cheeeeeese!
- 4 Ingredient Chicken Rice Casserole – reader favorite!
- Oven Baked Chicken Breasts – classic and delicious
Easy Chicken Parmesan
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breast halves skinless boneless
- ½ cup flour
- 2 eggs
- ⅔ cup Panko bread crumbs
- ⅔ cup Italian seasoning bread crumbs
- ⅓ cup parmesan cheese grated
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
- 4 tablespoons oil or as needed
- 24 ounces marinara sauce homemade or jarred
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese shredded
- basil & parsley fresh, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 425°F.
- Place flour in shallow dish. Place the eggs in a second dish (and beat with a fork).
- Combine Panko, Italian seasoning crumbs, grated parmesan, 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, salt, and pepper to taste in a third shallow dish.
- Pound chicken breasts to ½" thick (if they're very large you can cut them in half).
- Dip chicken into flour and shake to remove any excess. Dip chicken in beaten eggs & then into bread crumb mixture (press to adhere).
- Preheat oil in a large pan. Brown chicken on each side, about 2-3 minutes per side or until golden (it does not need to cook through as it will continue to cook in the oven).
- Place 1 ½ cups of marinara sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 dish. Add browned chicken. Top each piece with a couple tablespoons of marinara sauce, mozzarella and parmesan.
- Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden and bubbly and chicken reaches 165°F. Sprinkle with fresh herbs and serve over pasta.
Video
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Entree, Main Course
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Thank you Holly for the amazing ‘Easy chicken parmesan’ recipe ..it is very delicious!!!!!!!!!
You’re very welcome Monica! So glad you love this chicken parmesan!
My husband, 9 and 12 year old children raved over this recipe! Not difficult to make.
Muchas Gracias ☺️ y feliz año
Thanks, this recipe is to die for. I am going to just have to break down one of these days and make this one. As I know< that I love this in Restaurants Thank you, Holly. I love your recipes as they all look and sound so very very good..
Love your easy and tasty recipes
My sons girlfriend eats a plant based diet. Do you think it would be a huge difference to substitute in a few portobello mushroom caps for her? Or if you’ve got another suggestion I’d love that as well.
The mushroom caps might get watery and make the breading soggy. I would suggest using eggplant and making an eggplant parm for a few of them.
Thanks!
Made this for my husband tonight; he absolutely loves chicken parmesan at a local restaurant (prepandemic) and this recipe definitely hit the spot for him. He loved it! Thank for your good instructions. I will say, I started to put the timer on for 4 mins per side and thought better of it; about 2.5 mins max is all I needed. Thanks for a great recipe!!
Will be trying this to-day. Ingredients similar to recipe I have already but cooking process is different so assume it will be great.
Holly,
We made this dinner to ring in the new year, and it was delicious! Please keep creating new recipes! I wish you many blessings in 2021!
So glad you loved it, Happy New Year to you and your family Leslie!
I made this tonight, and it was a HIT!
I love this version of Parmesan Chicken. It was simple to put together and tasted delicious.
Love new recipes!
Made it tonight! It was super easy to make and delicious ❤️
Chicken Parmesan
This was Tasty!!
A delicious and easy to make crispy chicken parmesan recipe i have ever tried so far. Thanks for sharing this recipe with all of us.
Delicious and so easy to prepare. Thank you for sharing!
Oooh, so delicious. Tummy likes. Mmmhhh. Wooooaauw, so good.
I couldn’t have said it better myself, Bjarke! =)
Easy and delicious! I wouldn’t “tweak” a thing.
I am excited to start receiving mail from you!