Chicken Parmesan - classic recipe with marinara - A Gouda Life (2024)

Chicken Parmesan recipe – crispy breaded chicken topped with marinara and melty mozzarella. Serve over pasta for an easy restaurant quality meal at home.

Classic Chicken Parmesan is easier to make at home than you may think and is one of my favorite comfort food meals.

Tender pieces of chicken breaded and browned to golden crispiness topped with homemade pasta sauce and melty cheese.

It’s an easy dinner recipe from simple ingredients the whole family will love and is also ideal this holiday season because it’s a guaranteed crowd pleaser.

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Crispy breaded tender chicken is the hallmark of this recipe.

Never greasy, juicy perfectly cooked chicken topped with rich homemade tomato marinara and plenty of melty cheese.

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THIS RECIPE:

• This is an easy, restaurant quality recipe for traditional Chicken Parmesan at a fraction of the cost of what restaurants charge.
• It’s a delicious dinner – and easy weeknight meal if you opt for your favorite jar sauce.
• The breading combination of Italian, panko and parmesan creates a crispy breading loaded with delicious flavor that you can’t get from plain breading.
• Crispy chicken outside, tender white meat inside topped with marinara and gooey cheese. OMG.
• My homemade marinara is simple to make and takes this dish to the next level for entertaining.

WHAT’S IN CHICKEN PARMESAN?

• boneless skinless chicken breasts
• salt and pepper
• eggs
• all purpose flour
• Italian bread crumbs
• Panko bread crumbs
• grated Parmesan cheese
• olive oil
• ​butter
• sliced or shredded mozzarella
• pasta of your choice (spaghetti, penne or short pasta) + reserved pasta water

WHAT’S IN HOMEMADE MARINARA?

• onion
• garlic
• salt and pepper
• tomato paste
• dry red wine (cabernet, pinot noir or chianti)
• canned crushed tomatoes
• Italian seasoning
• fresh Italian parsley chopped
• pasta water

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE MARINARA SAUCE:

Over medium heat, add the onion to a pot or skillet with high sides.

Season with salt and pepper. Cook 2-3 minutes until onions have softened then add grated garlic and cook one minute.

Add tomato paste, blend with the onion and cook 1 minute.

Pour in the wine, reduce heat to medium low and cook 3-4 minutes letting the wine reduce by about half.

Add crushed tomatoes and italian seasoning then lightly season with salt and pepper.

Give it a good stir to combine then cover and simmer over low heat 15 minutes stirring occasionally.

Fold in the parsley then taste and adjust for salt.

HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN PARMESAN:

BREADING:

Trim excess fat from the chicken breasts then pound or slice to an approximately 1/2″ thickness.

​Season generously with salt and pepper on both sides.

Set up a dredging station in three shallow bowls:

In the first bowl, whisk the eggs. Add flour to the second bowl and in the third bowl combine Italian bread crumbs, panko and parmesan cheese.

Working one piece of chicken at a time, dip the first piece in the eggs, then dredge in flour, dip back into the egg then coat with the breadcrumb mixture gently pressing into the chicken (EGGS, FLOUR, EGGS, BREADCRUMBS)

Repeat the process until all the chicken is breaded then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 15 minutes.

This step helps the breading stick to the chicken when you cook it.

COOKING THE CHICKEN:

To a large skillet heat add oil over medium to medium-high heat then melt in the butter.

Once the oil/butter are hot, add the chicken without overcrowding the skillet (work in batches if needed).

Cook 3-4 minutes until a light golden brown, then transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.

ASSEMBLY:

Add a thin layer of sauce to the bottom fo a shallow baking dish or baking sheet (just enough to lightly coat the bottom).

Transfer the chicken to the baking dish, top with a couple of tablespoons of the tomato sauce (or more to your liking) and a few slices of mozzarella.

Bake at 400° for 8 minutes or until the cheese is melty and chicken is cooked through to an internal temp of 165°.

PASTA AND SERVING:

VARIATIONS TO THIS RECIPE:

• Garnish with fresh basil leaves.
• Boneless chicken thighs can be used instead of chicken breasts
• Sub chicken tenders for chicken breasts (adjust cook time accordingly)
• Garlic powder instead of fresh garlic in the sauce.
• Try creamy alfredo sauce instead of red sauce for a tasty twist.

WHAT TO SERVE WITH CHICKEN PARMESAN:

Garlic Bread Sticks

Antipasto Salad

Green Beans

Cheesy Christmas Tree Bread

HOW TO STORE LEFTOVER CHICKEN PARMESAN:

Leftover Chicken Parm can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days.

Enjoy!

Let’s cook together!

If you make thisChicken Parmesan recipeor any other recipe on the blog, don’t forget to leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating!