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Parmesan crusted chicken breasts have a golden crust, juicy chicken, and all of the crunch without deep frying. Crispy and easy-cheesy, they really are oven-baked perfection.
Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: Not to be confused with chicken parmesan, these breasts have a crunchy golden Parmesan crust and aren’t saucy.
- Recommended tools: A meat thermometer is the best way to tell if chicken is cooked through without overcooking it.
- Serving suggestions: Serve these chicken breasts as a meal on their own, as a crispy chicken sandwich, or over a salad.
Ingredient Tips For Parmesan-Crusted Chicken
- Chicken: Chicken cutlets, or skinless, boneless chicken breasts, or boneless chicken thighs all work in this recipe. Adjust the cooking time as needed for different cuts of chicken.
- Coating: Panko breadcrumbs add a lighter crispy texture while cornflake crumbs add crunch and a subtle sweetness.
- Parmesan cheese: You can use either shredded or grated in this recipe. I prefer shredded.
- Seasoning: Add additional seasonings to your preferences. Italian seasoning, onion powder, and smoked paprika are all great options.
Quick Recipe Tips
- Be sure to pound the breasts to an even width so they cook evenly.
- Toasting the Panko is optional but adds extra crunch.
- Spritz with oil before baking. If you don’t have a spritzer or spray, stir a little bit of oil into the breadcrumb mixture before dipping the chicken.
Storing Leftovers
Keep leftover parmesan-crusted chicken in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
More Crispy Chicken Recipes
Did you enjoy this Crispy Parmesan Chicken Recipe? Leave a comment and rating below.
Crispy Parmesan Crusted Chicken
Crispy Parmesan chicken is golden and crunchy on the outside, tender inside, and so good no one will guess it's baked instead of fried.
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts about 6 ounces each
- 2 eggs beaten, more if needed
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt divided
- ¾ teaspoon black pepper divided
- 1 ¾ cups Panko bread crumbs
- ¾ cup cornflake crumbs
- ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley
- 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder
Instructions
- Optional: Add the Panko crumbs to a small dry skillet and cook over medium heat, while stirring, until fragrant and lightly toasted. Cool.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. If you have one, place a metal rack on a large rimmed baking sheet. If not, spray the baking sheet with cooking spray.
- Beat the egg in a shallow bowl and set aside. In a separate shallow dish, combine flour, ½ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper.
- In a third shallow dish or plate, combine Panko bread crumbs, cornflake crumbs, Parmesan, parsley, garlic powder, and ½ teaspoon salt.
- Using the flat side of a meat mallet, pound each chicken breast to ½-inch thickness. Season the chicken with the remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.
- Dip chicken in flour first and then egg and finally in the crumb mixture, gently pressing the crumbs to adhere.
- Add the chicken to the rack or pan and spray each chicken breast with cooking spray.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until juices run clear. Broil for 2 to 3 minutes until crispy and the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
Notes
Larger chicken breasts will need additional cooking time. Cook until the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165°F.
Nutritional information includes ⅔ of the crumb mixture, as I always have some leftover. Discard leftover crumbs.
Keep leftover Parmesan-crusted chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 281 | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 157mg | Sodium: 355mg | Potassium: 515mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 205IU | Vitamin C: 2.2mg | Calcium: 112mg | Iron: 2.3mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Chicken, Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I was honestly shocked because I thought this would have a lot of flavor and the reviews were so good. I hate to say it, but this had absolutely no flavor. It made way too much of the crumb mixture and the flour mixture, but it had no flavor. The breadcrumbs I used were just regular Panko. Perhaps if somebody used seasoned breadcrumbs that would help. There was not enough salt. I was very disappointed. So sorry!
This recipe sounds perfect! Could I use this as a chicken parm recipe? I love that the chicken is baked, but I wasn’t sure how best to adjust the cooking time and temperature after I added the marinara and mozzarella. Love your advice! Thanks!
Sure you can Pamela. If using this recipe to make chicken parmesan, I would suggest warming the sauce and adding it with the cheese just before serving. Broil it to melt the cheese. If you prefer, we use this Chicken Parmesan recipe (the chicken is panfried to keep the crust from getting soggy). Let us know how it works out for you!
Hey Holly! Thank you for posting such a tasty recipe! I wanted to make something nice for Saturday night dinner with my husband and saw your recipe at 5:00 but didn’t have all the ingredients and decided to make it anyway. It was amazing! What I did: mixed half Panko with half freshly grated high quality Parmesan ($20/lb). Skipped the flour part. Skipped the pounding part (my knife skills are at the point where I can render a double D chicken breast into parts of equal thickness). Sprayed tops with olive oil (great tip!). Wish I had sprayed tin foil with olive oil (it stuck a little getting the pieces off). Hubby loved it! Served with roasted potatoes and onions; roasted Brussel sprouts (for me); steamed broccoli (for him). Used maybe 3/4 cup Panko and 3/4 cup grated Parm. And maybe 1.5 lbs chicken breasts with like 75% leftover.
I’m so glad it worked out well for you Sarah, your entire meal sounds amazing!
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Can a person make this ahead of time?
Sure you can! If you make it ahead and are refrigerating, I would suggest putting the chicken on a baking rack (on a sheet pan to catch crumbs) so the bottom doesn’t get too moist.
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE this recipe! It is delicious! Thank you Holly!
If you marinate the chicken with the buttermilk, do you wipe/dry it before coating in flour? Looking forward to trying this recipe!
I just let the excess drip off so it’s not too wet. A little moisture helps the flour to adhere to the breast.
Can I prep this a day in advance and vale day of?
Sure you can! If you make it ahead and are refrigerating, I would suggest putting the chicken on a baking rack (on a sheet pan to catch crumbs) so the bottom doesn’t get too moist.
I love this recipe, but made it lower fat by using 6 tablespoons of dijon and a bunch of chopped fresh herbs and 3 crushed garlic, salt and pepper (vs egg) and 1 cup panko with 1/4 cup fresh grated parm vs cornflakes etc. love my olive oil sprayer too. I soak my chicken cutlets in buttermilk the night before, for all of my chicken dishes — way more moist that way. The chicken is done in no time. We server it with roasted veggies, my other go to for 3 to 4 nights per week.
Delicious! Just follow the recipe.
Can I use 2% milk if I don’t have buttermilk?
Sure you can. Buttermilk has a little bit of acidity which helps to tenderize. To make your own buttermilk substitute, combine 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice with 1 cup of milk. Stir and let rest 5 minutes.
Are chicken halves the one you buy in a pack?
They can come in various packages but are usually labeled boneless skinless chicken breasts.
Sounds great. Can you use thighs and legs. Husband is not into chicken breasts.
Sure you can! You might need to adjust the cook time but the coating should work just fine.
Ok. Measurements leave so much waste on flour and bread crumbs. I also doubled the parmesan cheese, but yet the chicken is bland and tastes nothing like parmesan. Also, fake pictures? They do not look like the photo. Dont quit your day job.
As you doubled the cheese, this certainly could change the appearance of the chicken slightly (and make for extra breading). However, I can assure you the images are not “fake” as I personally took them myself. The appearance could also be different if you used a powdered parmesan (I used freshly shredded from a block as you can see from the ingredient image) or if you skipped or changed any of the crumb ingredients.
Did you include the cornflake crumbs (they add a bit of sweetness and flavor) as well as season the mixture? If so you could certainly increase the seasonings if you’d like. Hope that helps.
Stephanie…. rude
There’s no need to be so rude here. If you have nothing constructive to say, keep your comments to yourself.
So so so good! Made this tonight for dinner and I didn’t have cornflakes so just used more panko, but it was plenty crunchy. I had thawed already cubed chicken instead of breasts, so breading the bite sized nuggets was a pain, but poppable Parmesan bites were a big hit! Definitely on the regular rotation now!
Hi Holly, LOVE LOVE your recipes & not only that, but the fact that you respond to all the questions quickly is so awesome. Can I replace the corn flakes with something else please?
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much Ferryal! While it will change the flavor you can definitely substitute any of the following: crushed Rice Krispies, crushed crackers or even crushed potato chips. Let us know how it goes for you!
I added a couple tablespoons ranch dressing to the egg mixture..and then followed recipe exactly. Holy cow!! That’s fantastic!
Yum!! Great addition!
I did fudge a little. I run short on Panko so I crushed up some graham crackers (ONLY thing I had) to finish the amt needed. AND I used Frosted Cornflakes. My great-grandchildren finished the other and did not tell me. So it was a little on the sweet side but don’t tell my great-grandchildren. They PROUDLY told my granddaughter and my daughter I made BETTER chicken than they did.
It was different but not really all that much sweet. For adults maybe but not for my little ones.
The chicken was tender and juicy. Best chicken from oven I have made in a long time. THANKS
Thank you for sharing that sweet story Ralph!
Trying this now. I made extra of the crump and cheese mixture. It is all combined but hasn’t been used on meat. Can I store this in an airtight container in fridge to use next week? The parm is already mixed in. Thanks!
If it hasn’t touched the meat yet it should be just fine in the fridge or freezer for a week. Enjoy the recipe!
Thank you so much! It has not touched the meat. I will store this and make it again. The whole family loved it. I even maid a dairy free version for one of my kids (including dairy free buttermilk). Everyone ate this up! This is a new regular in our house.
So glad your family loved it! :)
I used crushed croutons instead of cornflakes because that’s what I had. I also added dash of paprika to the flour and the Panko. I also added onion powder in addition to the rest of the seasoning. My boyfriend loved it! He’s a big chicken tenders fan and automatically asked me if I could make more again. I did marinate over night in buttermilk which I think made a big difference. Will be making again.
Crushed croutons is a great idea!
I can’t wait for more healthy recipes.