Family-Style Chicken Parmesan

A tried-and-true recipe for crispy breaded chicken cutlets topped with gooey melted mozzarella served family-style for easier prep PLUS my hack for Perfectly Sauced Pasta using jarred sauce.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

1. JUMP TO THE RECIPE
2. GETTING THE RIGHT CHEESE
3. A FEW NOTES WORTH READING

EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. I ask Husband what he wants for supper he says chicken parmesan. It’s like one of those automated responses he has programmed in his husband brain.

How do I look?  Beautiful.

Did you take out the trash?  I will in a minute.

Do you have any cash?  No.

What do you want for supper?  Chicken parmesan.

I guarantee you he has said this to me at least 400 times in the last 15 years.

And I’m like do you really want chicken parmesan or is that just the first thing that popped in your head?  And he’s like does it matter? 

Fair point.

So I have had a lot of experience making chicken parmesan. And this is my absolute favorite way to prepare and serve it. I love that you finish it off in one dish in the oven because then you’re not trying to do 47 things at once AND prepare individual servings. 

You can whip up the Perfectly Sauced Pasta (recipe included below) while everything’s getting happy in the oven then it's all ready to serve at the same time. And everybody can serve themselves at the table family-style.

Plus when you let the chicken bake in a little bit of sauce, it gets even more tender and juicy.

WHAT TYPE OF MOZZARELLA IS BEST FOR CHICKEN PARMESAN (PIZZA AND LASAGNA)?

Getting the cheese right is important. I ruined one too many meals that would have been perfect otherwise before I did some research into which kind of mozzarella to use for dishes like this. When you want the gooey, stringy, molten goodness found on the perfect slice of pizza or slab of lasagna (or... chicken parmesan), opt for a block of whole-milk mozzarella - this will be in a vacuum-sealed pack and be firmer than fresh mozzarella.

Fresh mozzarella will put off too much water (and turn that homemade pizza crust you worked on for hours into a swamp - ask me how I know). Pre-shredded mozzarella will brown too fast then become firm and plastic-y because of the coating that prevents it from clumping. 

NOTES ABOUT MAKING FAMILY-STYLE CHICKEN PARMESAN

• You don't have to prepare the pasta and sauce the way I've described above but you will LOVE IT and never not cook it like this again. The butter and starchy pasta water emulsify then bind the sauce to the pasta. The garlic, salty water, butter and leftover sauce in the empty jar will flavor the pasta before the marinara coats it. It is glorious.
• If I can find a 32-oz jar of marinara or spaghetti sauce, I will use it instead of the 24-oz jar of sauce plus the 8-oz can. You will need more sauce than the standard 24-oz jar and a little can of tomato sauce is a lot cheaper than a big jar of pasta sauce.
• Use whole-milk mozzarella - this will be in a vacuum-sealed pack and be somewhat firm. Fresh mozzarella will put off too much water. Pre-shredded mozzarella will brown too fast then become firm and plastic-y because of the coating that prevents it from clumping.

Recipe for Family-Style Chicken Parmesan

parmesan, parmesean, Perfectly Sauced Pasta, chicken, family, family-style, italian, pasta, classic, eggplant, casserole, parm, Italian, how to. best, recipe, easy,

dinner, supper

italian

Yield: 6 Servings

Author: Mandy Rivers | South Your Mouth

Chicken Parmesan

My tried-and-true recipe for crispy chicken cutlets breaded in parmesan and bread crumbs topped with gooey melted mozzarella over marinara sauce.

Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 1 Hour

Ingredients

• 3 large boneless chicken breasts
• Salt & pepper
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 3/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
• Olive oil
• 1 24-oz jar marinara sauce
• 1 8-oz can garlic & basil tomato sauce
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 lb spaghetti or linguine
• 8 oz whole milk mozzarella, shredded (about 2 cups)

Instructions

Chicken Cutlets

1. Slice each breast into two cutlets (reducing the thickness by half, not the width or length). Gently pound out the cutlets with a meat mallet (or juice glass or rolling pin or whatever gets the job done) until flattened and even in thickness. Season both sides liberally with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Whisk eggs well in a wide bowl; set aside.
3. Combine bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoon garlic powder and salt in a shallow bowl or pie plate; set aside.
4. Add enough olive oil to a large skillet to coat the bottom then heat over medium heat. You want the oil to be hot enough to fry but not hot enough to burn the parmesan cheese and bread crumbs.
5. Dip each cutlet in egg wash then shake off any excess. Dredge chicken in bread crumb mixture and shake off any excess. Working in two batches, brown chicken on both sides in hot pan. Don't worry about cooking it through as it will continue to cook in the oven.
6. When all chicken is cooked, spread can of tomato sauce and 1/2 cup of marinara sauce evenly over the bottom of 13x9 baking dish then arrange chicken cutlets in a single layer over sauce.
7. Top chicken with mozzarella then bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted.
8. Serve chicken with Perfectly Sauced Pasta (below). Garnish with fresh grated parmesan and parsley if desired.

Perfectly Sauced Pasta

1. Heat remaining marinara sauce. To the empty jar add butter and remaining 1 teaspoon garlic powder then set aside (keep the lid).
2. Cook pasta in liberally salted water one minute less than manufacturer's instructions for al dente preparation. Just before draining pasta, add 1/2 cup hot pasta water to empty sauce jar with butter.
3. Place lid on jar then shake until butter has melted into hot pasta water.
4. Pour drained pasta back into pot then stir in butter/water combo from jar. Cook and stir over medium heat until water is mostly absorbed (about 2 minutes).
5. Stir heated marinara into noodles then cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Remove from heat and keep covered until ready to serve.

Notes

• Getting the cheese right is important. Opt for a block of whole-milk mozzarella - this will be in a vacuum-sealed pack and be firmer than fresh mozzarella. Fresh mozzarella will put off too much water. Pre-shredded mozzarella will brown too fast then become firm and plastic-y because of the coating that prevents it from clumping.
• You don't have to prepare the pasta and sauce the way I've described above but you will LOVE IT and never not cook it like this after you've had it. The butter and starchy pasta water emulsify then bind the sauce to the pasta. The garlic, salty water, butter and leftover sauce in the empty jar flavor the pasta before the marinara coats it. It's divine.
• If I can find a 32-oz jar of marinara or spaghetti sauce, I will use it instead of the 24-oz jar of sauce plus the 8-oz can. You will need more sauce than the standard 24-oz jar.

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