Chicken Parmesan — or Chicken Parm, as true devotees casually call it — is the king of Italian-American comfort foods. But if you’ve only ever eaten it in a restaurant, you’ve just got to try making it at home because it’s SO much more delicious. Juicy chicken breast, sliced into thin cutlets and fried to crispy perfection are coated in marinara sauce and topped with fresh mozzarella cheese, then baked to perfection. All that crisp crust and pooling melted cheese, salty Parm, and marinara sauce—it’s impossible to get a bite from that pan of baked chicken parm that’s anything less than insanely delicious. For more classic Italian chicken recipes, check out our Chicken Cacciatore.
Chicken Parm Ingredients
Chicken breasts. You’ll ‘butterfly’ these, which means cutting them in half horizontally until they’re almost sliced entirely through, and then you’ll cut each chicken breast into six thin cutlets.
Marinara sauce. Homemade marinara is terrific here — we’ve got a 20-minute Marinara Sauce Recipe — but it’s totally OK to use a jarred marinara sauce if you just need your chicken Parm ASAP!
Mozzarella cheese. Fresh mozzarella is our pick here. Some chicken Parmesan recipes use a variety of Italian cheese (like provolone), but when we can use fresh mozzarella, it’s our very favorite. It’s so milky and melts nicely.
Fresh basil. Fried chicken cutlets covered in cheese really do need a little herbal lift, and basil is perfect!
Flour. Flour is the first thing that you’ll dredge the cutlets in, and it will help the egg and breadcrumb mixture stick.
Eggs. Eggs will help the breadcrumbs stick to the cutlets.
Panko and regular breadcrumbs. Why both? Because nothing makes crispy crust like panko, but we also love the hearty way that the regular, heavier breadcrumbs coat the entire chicken.
Parmesan cheese. The “Parm” in Chicken Parm, it’s obviously a must. As always, it’s best if you buy a hunk of Parmesan cheese and grate it yourself.
Garlic powder. Just a hint of garlic!
Italian seasoning. Herby and good, to emphasize what the herbs in the marinara sauce, and ensure that every bite of chicken Parmesan is delicious.
- Extra-virgin olive oil. We fry the chicken in olive oil because it adds so much flavor to the finished chicken.
How To Cook Chicken Parmesan
Cut the chicken breasts into cutlets by carefully slicing them in half horizontally. You want them thin, so that they cook really evenly.
Prep your chicken dredging station by lining up three shallow dishes, pie plates, or even small baking pans. Fill one with beaten egg, one with a combination of panko, bread crumbs & parmesan cheese, and one with flour.
Season the chicken! Sprinkle the chicken cutlets with garlic powder, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.
Time to dredge! Coat the chicken cutlets entirely — like, every nook and cranny! — with flour, then egg, then the Parmesan-panko-breadcrumbs mixture.
Fry the chicken cutlets in olive oil for two minutes per side.
Assemble! Put the crispy fried chicken on a baking sheet, top each chicken piece with tomato sauce and cheese.
Bake the chicken Parmesan until the chicken is done and the cheese is melty and bubbly.
How To Keep Chicken Parm From Being Soggy
Coat every nook and cranny of your chicken with the breading, so that there’s plenty of crust to crisp!
When you fry the chicken, don’t overcrowd the pan! Fry the breaded cutlets in batches so that each one gets really nice and crispy.
Don’t overdo the sauce. You want to top the crispy chicken cutlets with just a little sauce on top, not so much sauce that it pools under the chicken as it bakes — that’ll make your chicken Parm soggy for sure.
Slice the mozzarella thinly! Fresh mozzarella has a lot of moisture, so it could make your chicken Parmesan a little soggy if your slices are too thick.
Serving Suggestions
While you can serve chicken Parmesan over pasta—that’s classic, and always delicious—you can also serve it as meaty, cheesy main dish with a few well-chosen side dishes. We love to serve chicken Parmesan with:
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