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This chicken Parmesan recipe pairs juicy, golden-crisp chicken with melted cheese and marinara, with a simple technique that keeps the breading from getting soggy.
Chicken parm is always a hit with my family, but the traditional recipe can be a production. Between making tomato sauce, pounding and breading the chicken, frying it, and then baking it with sauce and cheese, you can easily end up spending over an hour in the kitchen with a sinkful of dishes. My version takes a few smart shortcuts, using quick-to-flatten chicken tenderloins and good-quality jarred marinara to make it much more manageable for a weeknight.
The other thing I do differently is resist the urge to smother the chicken with sauce and cheese. I use panko for an extra-crisp crust, add the cheese mostly to the center, and spoon the warm marinara over the top after broiling, leaving those crunchy edges exposed. You can always serve more sauce on the side. The result is everything I want in chicken Parmesan: juicy chicken, a crisp golden crust, gooey cheese, and plenty of marinara—without all the fuss.
“Huge hit with the family! Seasoning, moisture, crispness all on point…This is some really great chicken.”
What You’ll Need To Make Chicken Parmesan
- Chicken Tenderloins: I prefer tenderloins to boneless, skinless chicken breasts here because they’re naturally tender and juicy and can be quickly flattened with the palm of your hand—no slicing or serious pounding required. They also stay moister than store-bought thin chicken cutlets.
- Marinara Sauce: A good-quality jarred marinara is one of the shortcuts that makes this chicken Parmesan weeknight-friendly. Since you only need a modest amount, there’s no need to make a sauce from scratch. Rao’s and Victoria are both good options.
- Panko Breadcrumbs: Their coarse, airy texture creates an especially crisp crust—and helps it stay crisp even if you bread the chicken ahead of time.
- Dried Oregano & Thyme: Season the breading with classic Italian flavor.
- Flour & Eggs: These make up the first two layers of the breading station: the flour gives the egg something to cling to, and the egg helps the panko coating adhere.
- Olive Oil: Used for pan-frying the chicken until the coating is crisp and golden.
- Fontina Cheese: I prefer fontina to mozzarella here because it has a buttery, nutty flavor and melts beautifully without becoming rubbery. Look for Swedish or Danish fontina with a red wax rind; mozzarella works well if you can’t find it.
- Parmigiano Reggiano: Adds salty, nutty flavor to both the breading and the cheesy topping.
- Fresh Basil: Adds freshness and a pop of color to the finished dish.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Chicken Parmesan
Prep the chicken: Trim away any visible tendon, then gently flatten the tenderloins with your palm so they’re an even thickness. This ensures they cook quickly and evenly.
Bread the chicken: Set up a breading station with flour, beaten eggs, and the seasoned panko-Parmesan mixture. Coat each piece in flour, then egg, letting the excess drip off, and finally the panko mixture. Press the coating on gently so it adheres well. At this point, the breaded chicken can be covered and refrigerated (or frozen) until you’re ready to cook.
Pan-fry the chicken: Heat the oil until it shimmers before adding the chicken; if the oil isn’t hot enough, the breading will absorb oil rather than turning crisp. Work in batches so you don’t crowd the pan, and cook until the coating is deeply golden and the chicken is cooked through. Add more oil between batches as needed, allowing it to heat before adding more chicken.
Add the cheese and broil: Arrange the cooked chicken on a foil-lined baking sheet and add the cheeses mainly to the center of each piece, leaving the breaded edges exposed. Broil just until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Keeping those edges uncovered is one of the keys to preserving the crisp crust.
Finish with the marinara: Warm the marinara separately, tasting it before serving; a little fresh basil can perk up a jarred sauce. Spoon the warm sauce over the melted cheese rather than covering the entire piece of chicken, again leaving the crisp edges exposed. Finish with fresh basil and serve extra marinara on the side.
What To Serve with Chicken Parmesan
Chicken Parmesan is delicious with pasta or creamy polenta to catch the extra marinara. For something lighter alongside, try an arugula salad or roasted broccoli.
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Chicken Parmesan
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken tenderloins
- 2 teaspoons salt, divided
- ¾ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper, divided
- 1½ cups panko
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons grated Parmigiano Reggiano, divided
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ cup flour
- 3 large eggs
- Olive oil, for cooking
- 1½ cups homemade or store-bought marinara sauce, best quality such as Rao’s or Victoria
- 6 oz fontina, shredded (about 1½ cups)
- 3 tablespoons fresh chopped basil
Instructions
- Using kitchen shears, trim off any white tendons at the ends of the tenderloins. Using the palm of your hand, gently flatten the tenderloins so that they are an even ¼-in (6-mm) thickness. Season the chicken all over with 1¼ teaspoons of the salt and ½ teaspoon of the pepper.
- In a large shallow bowl, combine the panko, ¾ cup (75 g) of the Parmigiano Reggiano, the oregano, the thyme, the remaining ¾ teaspoon salt, and the remaining ¼ teaspoon pepper. Mix well, making sure there are no clumps of cheese.
- Place the flour in another shallow bowl. Beat the eggs in a third bowl. Set up a breading station in this order: flour, eggs, panko. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper for easy clean up. Dredge the chicken in the flour, coating evenly; dip in the eggs, letting any excess drip off; then dredge in the panko mixture, turning and patting to adhere. Place the breaded chicken on the prepared baking sheet. (The recipe can be prepared up to this point, covered, and refrigerated up to 8 hours ahead of time.)
- Preheat the broiler and set an oven rack about 4 in (10 cm) from the heating element. Bring the marinara sauce to a simmer over low heat. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking (with store-bought sauce, I find a generous pinch of sugar and fresh basil go a long way). Cover and keep warm.
- Line another baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment for easy clean up; set aside. In a large nonstick skillet, heat about ⅛ in (3 mm) of oil over medium heat until shimmering. Place 5 or 6 tenders in the pan in a single layer and cook until the first side is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the chicken and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, until golden and cooked through. Place the cooked chicken on the prepared baking sheet. Cook the remaining chicken in the same manner, adding additional oil only if necessary. You may need to lower the heat as you go, so that the chicken doesn't brown before it is cooked through.
- Sprinkle the fontina and remaining 2 tablespoons Parmigiano Reggiano over the center of the chicken tenderloins, leaving the sides bare so that they remain crispy. Broil until the cheese is melted and bubbling, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Transfer the chicken to a serving platter or individual plates. Spoon the marinara sauce over the cheese, again leaving the sides bare so that they stay crispy. Sprinkle with fresh basil and serve.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Not sure I’d call this “easy” due to all the steps involved but it is FANTASTIC!!!!! My pack of tenderloins had a LOT of small, thin strips so that made this more labor intensive for me. I’m hoping the more I fix this, the easier it will seem. :o) Thank you for another great recipe Jenn!! XOXO
Very tasty, liked the instructions on how to keep it crispy. A bit of prep involved but worth it. I used chicken breasts pounded thin but tenders would be much easier. The chicken was very moist.
This turned out really good and I followed the recipe exactly. Loved the fontina for mozzarella swap. Much better texture. Using tenders and hand pressing them just genius. My family loved this. On regular rotation.
Hi Jenn, first of all I’d like to thank you for your fabulous recipes: I made several desserts recipes that I have read here and they were all delicious.
I just have a request: I am italian, I live in Italy and I appreciated when I saw you always say to buy real Parmigiano, real mozzarella and so on, so I hope you will not take my words wrong.
Please, please, please don’t serve breaded chicken with pasta! I can stand reading the chicken parmesan recipe (it’s not an italian recipe, no restaurant in Italy would serve it, it’s an italian american recipe, made by italian immigrants in the USA, I guess…), but even if I would cover breaded chicken with sauce and cheese, I’d never eat it in the same plate with pasta.
I hope you are not offended by my words, it’s just that in the internet or on tv I see so many recipes (or ways to cook things) that in America you think are italian, and they are not…
Anyway, you are always my best choice when I want to bake muffins, or Kentucky butter cake, or a peach cobbler 😉
Anna, Italy
Hi Anna, thanks for your nice words about the recipes — so glad you like them! And I appreciate your honest comments about serving chicken parm with pasta — that’s definitely more of an American tradition. I definitely appreciate that the two would never be served together in Italy! 🙂
Going to make this for Sunday dinner this weekend. Avoiding carbs (dr. suggestion) substituting roasted Asparagus for pasta.
Gave it pre five stars because never cooked one of your recipes that wasn’t five stars.
Hi there! For starters, this recipe is delicious. Thank you for sharing. I haven’t made this in awhile, but am looking to make it soon. I want to freeze half of it when I make it and I read the freeze ahead instructions but am confused. Do I freeze it before cooking it or after? Please let me know when you can. Thanks so much!
So glad you like this! The chicken should be cooked before you freeze it. I’ll clarify that in the recipe. 🙂
My husband said this was the best chicken he has ever eaten prepared this way- better than his Italian mother’s chicken! I have to agree- it was delicious! However, I do think it is a bit labor intensive, so make sure you give yourself plenty of time and be sure to plan out your sides. You wont be disappointed- can’t get chicken this good in any restaurant!
this recipe turned out awesome thank you mam
I breaded too much chicken….can I freeze them already coated?
BTW, made the parm for dinner tonight with a salad and rosemary bread. A keeper for sure. Thanks..
Hi Charlotte, I haven’t frozen it breaded but uncooked, but I think it should be okay. (And glad you enjoyed it!)
You knocked another one out of the park with this recipe. I needed something for dinner and had a few thin sliced chicken breasts lying around, and this recipe was perfect. I love that your blog is straightforward, easy to follow and offers useful tips and variations. I had never made chicken parm before, and this came out great. I had never heard of putting the parm in the breading, but love it!