Authentic Chicken Parmesan {Family Recipe}
Learn how to make authentic chicken parmesan! Tender breaded chicken topped with hearty tomato sauce, melted cheese, and lots of herbs. This DELICIOUS Italian classic is one my family has been making for years and is to this day the best I’ve ever had!
Chicken parmigiana is an American-Italian dish that consists of tender breaded chicken covered in marinara with melted mozzarella & parmesan cheese! Even though this dish is served in a lot of Italian restaurants, it actually did not originate in Italy, but was created by Italian immigrants here in America! (source)
Growing up, I knew one thing to be true. That my mom made the best chicken parmesan around! No restaurant or other recipe has ever compared.
This recipe is a family favorite and has been served for all of our family birthday dinners, holidays, and special occasions!
You’ll find every bite filled with fall-apart juicy chicken, rich homemade tomato sauce, and so much flavor. And let’s not forget the browned cheesiness on top!
Ingredients – What You Need
Chicken cutlets or breast: use boneless skinless chicken breasts.
Flour: use all purpose flour for dredging the chicken in.
Eggs: an egg mixture is used to help the breadcrumbs stick to the chicken after coating in flour.
Breadcrumbs: for the breading mixture – you can use store-bought panko breadcrumbs or use homemade breadcrumbs (see below for recipe).
Marinara: use a quality store-bought marinara sauce or make a homemade sauce! See below for my top recommendations.
Olive oil: oil is used to brown the chicken in batches.
Parmesan cheese: to add salty flavor to the breadcrumbs and for sprinkling over the chicken at the end!
Fresh mozzarella cheese: to layer over the chicken and for sprinkling over the top! You can use shredded or sliced pieces of mozzarella.
Dried Italian herbs: to season the breadcrumbs so the chicken cuts have lots of herb flavor.
Fresh basil: Add fresh basil at the end for bright flavor!
Garlic powder: for flavoring the breadcrumb mixture.
Black pepper & salt: for flavor!
How to Make Authentic Chicken Parmesan (Parmigiana) – Step by Step
(1) Tenderize the chicken – Place chicken cutlets/breasts in a ziplock bag, and firmly pound with a rolling pin or smooth side of a meat mallet – chicken thickness should be 1/2 inch.)
(2) First, in a shallow bowl, dip the chicken cutlets in the flour on both sides.
(3) Then, transfer floured chicken and dip in egg mixture on both sides.
(4) Last, dip both sides of chicken in bread crumbs. Evenly coat and pack breadcrumbs lightly with your hand
How to Make Crispy Chicken
(5) In a cast-iron skillet or heavy pan, heat olive oil on medium heat. Lay breaded chicken in an oiled pan and brown chicken for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown in color.
(6) Place browned chicken cutlets in a baking pan or dish (9×13), top with mozzarella and a layer of marinara sauce. Bake for 13-15 minutes – then sprinkle with shredded parmesan and mozzarella and broil on HIGH for 1 additional minute – the cheese will be bubbling and browned.
Make it Low Carb
To make this recipe a little healthier and without breading use 1 1/2 cups of parmesan cheese mixed with the herbs, garlic powder, and salt & pepper. Dip chicken into egg, then parmesan cheese mixture, and then bake accordingly. The result will be so cheesy and delicious!
My Favorite Homemade Italian Breadcrumbs
This isn’t required but is recommended to elevate your recipe even more. Homemade Italian breadcrumbs take only a few minutes and make a world of difference for this dish!
How to make Italian breadcrumbs: Toast 5-7 slices of your choice of bread – whole wheat, Ezekiel bread, or gluten-free. Blend toast in a food processor or high-powered blender with 1 tsp garlic powder, 2 tsp Italian herbs, and 1/2 tsp salt. SO easy and absolutely delicious!
Extra Helpful Recipes Tips
choosing the right baking vessel
Our Favorite Stainless Steel Pans
Growing up, my mom ALWAYS used her stainless steel hotel pans for Italian recipes – especially chicken parmesan. We recommend using them over glass baking dishes because of how well they heat up and help perfectly cook the chicken! They've been a staple in our kitchen for years.
- Chicken breast vs chicken cutlets: For chicken parmesan you can use either chicken breast or chicken cutlets. The difference? A chicken breast is the whole thing; a chicken cutlet is a slice of meat cut from a chicken breast. It is generally thinner than the whole breast.
- Make our homemade sauce: What makes this Authentic Italian Chicken Parmigiana delicious is using my family’s San Marzano Tomato Sauce or this fresh tomato sauce. This sauce we simmer for several hours to perfection to get a thick, rich, and flavorful tomato sauce. You can also use our favorite store-bought suace to save time.
- The best pot for browning chicken: Use a cast iron skillet for browning chicken. This heavy duty pan gets hot quick and helps brown the breading perfectly for this recipe. You can also use stainless steel if you don’t have cast iron on hand.
- What to use instead of breadcrumbs: If you do not have breadcrumbs, you can either make your own (see notes below) or grind up old-fashion oats, crushed regular corn flakes, or cracker crumbs.
- Best baking vessel: my mom always recommends using a stainless steal pan for baking chicken – especially chicken parm. It will heat up fast, stay hot, and keep the chicken crispy – not soggy!
Our Favorite Ways to Serve It
You can serve this chicken parm with pasta noodles, such as spaghetti, rigatoni, penne, or even gluten-free pasta if needed! If you’re looking for a lighter side to pair it with, you can do zucchini noodles or vegetable noodles as a healthier replacement for pasta. For salad, you can serve it with a simple green salad, caesar salad, our Tuscan artichoke salad or this abundant Italian salad with some crusty bread on the side.
Tips For Freezing & Storing Leftovers
Keep leftovers fresh: store cooked chicken in an airtight container and refrigerate for 3-4 days. To reheat, place in a baking tray and cover with foil, bake at 350F until warm.
Freezing tips (2 ways):
Freeze chicken parm: as the recipe instructs, let cool the room temperature and then store in an airtight container. Freeze for 1-2 months. When ready to serve, let thaw at room temperature, and cover in foil, and bake 425F until warm.
Freeze chicken cutlets: another way to freeze is by breading the chicken cutlets and browning them in a pan. Let cool to room temperature before storing in freezer-friendly bags (air removed). Freeze for 1-2 months then thaw at room temperature and assemble in chicken parmesan when ready to bake.
Other Delicious Italian Recipes to Try
- Baked Eggplant Rollatini
- Classic Eggplant Parmesan
- The Best Vegetable Lasagna
- San Marzano Tomato Sauce
- Sweet & Spicy Italian Sausage Lasagna
- Easy Baked Ziti
If you tried this Authentic Chicken Parmesan (Parmigiana) recipe or any other recipe, don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know what you think. I love hearing from you! You can also follow me on PINTEREST, INSTAGRAM, and FACEBOOK for more crave-worthy content.
Authentic Chicken Parmesan (Parmigiana)
Crispy baked chicken with hearty tomato sauce, melted cheese, and herbs. A famous family recipe that is the BEST chicken parmesan I've had – A must-try recipe that makes plenty of leftovers!
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 3 chicken breasts or cutlets, sliced in half into 6 cuts (see notes for difference)
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (use gf flour blend if needed)
- 3 eggs, whisked
- 1/3 cup olive oil
Breadcrumbs
- 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs (see notes to make homemade bread crumbs)
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
- 1/2 tsp (each) salt & pepper
- 2 tsp Italian herb blend (thyme, oregano, basil, rosemary)
- 1 tsp garlic powder
For the Topping
- 6 slices Mozzarella
- 1 1/2 cups marinara sauce
- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
- 2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 425F
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Tenderize chicken: place chicken cutlets/breasts in a ziplock bag, and firmly pound with a rolling pin or smooth side of a meat hammer (chicken thickness should be 1/2 inch).
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Breadcrumbs: In a shallow dish, mix all of breadcrumb ingredients together.
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Assembly line: Set up a line of shallow bowls/dishes with flour, whisked eggs, and breadcrumbs.
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Bread the chicken: First, coat chicken in flour on both sides. Then, transfer to whisked eggs, dip both sides. Last, lay both sides of chicken in bread crumbs. Evenly coat and pack breadcrumbs lightly with your hand.
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Brown the chicken: Heat 3 tablespoons of oil at a time in a cast iron skillet or pan on LOW to MEDIUM heat. Brown chicken for 2 minutes on both sides.
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Layer and bake: arrange browned chicken in a large baking dish or pan. Layer first with mozzarella slices then tomato sauce over top. Bake uncovered in oven for 14 minutes – remove from oven then sprinkle with shredded parmesan cheese. Place pan back in oven and broil on HIGH for 1 minute until cheese is melted and browned. Sprinkle with fresh basil and serve with your favorite pasta!
Did you make this recipe? Share your photos and tag @asimplepalate #asimplepalate.
I made this and it is delicious! Very easy to make too! Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe! I served it over spaghetti squash, to keep the carbs down and it was wonderful!
Thank you, Amy! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it so much 🙂
Delicious and most of all easy ! I use this recipe every time ..love it .
I’m thrilled to hear it! Thanks so much, Camilla!
This was YUMMMAZING! Thank you so much for this simple, wonderful recipe. It was a huge hit with my family. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
P.S….If you are out of breadcrumbs, croutons make a great substitute. 😋
I’m so happy to hear it was such a hit! Great idea with the croutons! 🙂 I will remember that.
This was so good. Being a garlic lover, I’d add more. My husband said this was gourmet. He’d never order it in a restaurant now. Great compliment. LOVED IT!
I’m never against more garlic! 😉 And so so happy to hear you guys enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing.
Sooooo good. I added extra garlic and 1.5 tbsp brown sugar and did 20 min in Instant Pot for the sauce
So happy to hear! Love the instant pot sauce. Thanks for sharing!
So good, my go to from now on. Thank you!
Wonderful! I’m so happy to hear that 🙂
Just as good as Tony’s Dinapoli by the Sondheim Theater in New York which is as my mother’s (taught by Mrs. Spinelli nextdoor) was.
Such a compliment. Thank you, Michael! 🙂
Excellent – hate to say it, but better than my favorite Italian restaurant…
wow, such a compliment! Thank you, Steve. 🙂 super happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Tried the recipe tonight. It was amazing! Definitely one of the best chicken parmigianas I’ve had. Thank you!
Thank you, Geetha! Means a lot to hear that. So happy you enjoyed it!
This is delicious. I made for my family and my wife and kids love it. I added blue cheese on top instead and boy!,… it’s amazing! Thanks for the recipe. I definitely recommend this to my friends.
I’m so happy to hear that!! Thank you, Ally! 🙂
This recipe is AMAZING. I will eat this for the rest of my life! So good and easy-peasy.
That makes me smile. Thanks so much, Rose! So glad you loved it 🙂
This was easy and soooo good! I will be making this again for guests. Huge hit with my husband!
Thank you Heidi! I’m so happy to hear it was a success 🙂
Cant wait to try this recipe thank you ?
The homemade breadcrumbs made all the difference. Thank you for the amazing recipe! My family loves it!
I’m so glad to hear you made the breadcrumbs – they really are a game changer! 🙂 So happy you enjoyed it.
I’m going to follow this recipe I hope it comes out the way it says because when I make it something always goes wrong. I always cut the cutlets in half so they are thin I thought that was ok but I guess I still have to pound them out. Plus the sauce comes out to thick or something after I bake it so I stopped making it for dinner and my husband loves it
I hope it works out for you! I do my best to simplify and explain cooking steps to ensure success.
Hello! Can’t wait to try this recipe! Quick question, I typically place the sauce first on the chicken then the mozzarella but in the directions it’s mozzarella first then the sauce, is this a mistake or the mozzarella should be put first on the chicken (step 7). From the images it looks like sauce first?
Hi Nicole! Yep, you read correctly. In classic chicken parmigiana’s the mozzarella is placed first, then the sauce, then the parmesan! You can do the order however you please though. 🙂
Wow it looks so good. Do you have Italian roots? Because you are so good at cooking our recipes, I ve read some of them on your blog and they’re very similar to our traditions. You have a new subscriber!
Thank you so much Sara! My family is from New York/Jersey city. No Italian roots – Just the NY way. I learned from my mom and she was Italian taught. 🙂 So glad you enjoy my blog!
Made it for the fam tonight,turned out amazing… love this recipe!!!!
yay! So so glad you all enjoyed it! 🙂 Thanks, Kimberly!
I’ve made this 3 times now and my family loves it! Even my daughter who does not like chicken very much…she ate every last bite on her plate! Thanks for a great recipe 🙂
Yay! So happy you and your family enjoy this recipe 🙂
This is hands-down, the best chicken Parmesan I have ever had !!!!! The sauce is so yummy . Thanks for sharing the secret family recipe ?
I’m SO glad you liked it Julie!! Thank you! <3
For the lower carb/healthier option how long do you bake the chicken?
same time to bake!
Looks sooooo yummy Bethany… can’t wait to make it!
You’ll have to let me know how you like it! ❤️
Love Chicken Parm and this is a great recipe!
Thank you! 🙂