Parmesan Crusted Chicken
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Parmesan crusted chicken is easy enough to make for a busy weeknight but also special enough for company.
Parmesan crusted chicken is a great chicken dish to add to your repertoire. It’s easy enough to make for a weeknight dinner but also special enough for company, and it appeals to the whole family. Kids especially love it because it bears some resemblance to chicken fingers. For adults, try topping it with a heaping pile of lemony arugula salad. There are two secrets to success: first, pounding the chicken breasts to an even 1/4-inch thickness tenderizes the meat and ensures even cooking; second, a three-step breading method ensures that the coating adheres to the meat while it cooks, resulting in a crispy crust and juicy interior every time.
For a variation on this recipe, try my easy parmesan chicken, which uses a similar breading and pan-frying technique but is then baked topped with marinara sauce and cheese, or chicken piccata, which is served with a lemon and caper sauce. For a vegetarian option, you can follow the directions for breading and frying eggplant in my eggplant parmesan recipe.
Table of Contents
“This chicken was excellent. Crispy on the outside and super tender and juicy inside. My husband loved it.”
What You’ll Need To Make Parmesan Crusted Chicken
Step-by-Step Instructions
Set up three large shallow bowls in an assembly line. Put the flour in the first bowl.
Beat the eggs in the second bowl.
Finally, mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and chopped fresh herbs in the third bowl.
Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper.
Dredge the first chicken breast in the flour and shake off the excess until just a light coating remains.
Next, dip the chicken in the egg mixture and turn to coat evenly, letting any excess egg drip off.
Finally, dredge the chicken in the bread crumb mixture, turning a few times to coat well. Set breaded chicken on a plate and repeat until all of the chicken breasts are breaded.
Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken breasts to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes until the first side is golden brown. Flip and continue cooking until done, 2 to 3 minutes longer.
Serve immediately with lemon wedges.
Video Tutorial
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Parmesan Crusted Chicken
Parmesan crusted chicken is easy enough to make for a busy weeknight but also special enough for company.
Ingredients
For Breading
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- ⅔ cup seasoned Italian bread crumbs (I use Progresso)
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh herbs, such as thyme, parsley, chives or rosemary
For Chicken
- 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1½ pounds), pounded ¼"-thick (see note)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup olive oil
- Lemon wedges, for serving
Instructions
- Set up three large shallow bowls in an assembly line. Put the flour in the first bowl; beat the eggs in the second bowl; and mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and chopped fresh herbs in the third bowl.
- Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Dredge the first chicken breast in the flour and shake off the excess until just a light coating remains. Next, dip the chicken in the egg mixture and turn to coat evenly, letting any excess egg drip off. Finally, dredge the chicken in the bread crumb mixture, turning a few times to coat well. Set breaded chicken on a plate and repeat until all of the chicken breasts are breaded.
- Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken breasts to the pan and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the first side is golden brown. Flip and continue cooking until done, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.
- Note: If chicken breasts are large (8 or more ounces), it's best to cut them in half once they are pounded out. Alternatively, you can cut them in half horizontally before pounding.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 562
- Fat: 28g
- Saturated fat: 8g
- Carbohydrates: 25g
- Sugar: 1g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 48g
- Sodium: 1218mg
- Cholesterol: 223mg
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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My family loved this recipe! I used 1 cup of Panko breadcrumbs instead of Italian. After I browned the chicken I put it on a baking sheet and topped it with mozzarella cheese and baked it in the oven until it was cooked through.
This recipe is the bees knees! It was easy to prepare and was a smashing success! Another home run as always Jenn, thank you!
Love, love, love this recipe! I finally was able to get my super picky, chicken nugget loving son to eat chicken that I made! Thank you. This recipe is a staple in our house.
I’ve been trying so many of Jennifer’s recipe and so far I’ve not been disappointed with any of them….Last week her Mac N Cheese – word uttered was AWESOME! However at this point, this one is my favorite. I followed the recipe and the chicken comes out so moist and the herbs take it over the top. I’ve made it several times and have not been disappointed. This weekend I’m going to try her Chicken Picatta – can’t wait as I’m sure, this too, will be a winner. Thank you Jennifer for all your wonderful recipes! I’m a huge fan.
Do you have a simple/easy recipe for Chow Mein?
I’m sorry, Sally, I don’t. I’ll have to add it to my list of recipes to potentially develop!
Wonderful flavor. Easy recipe. Our new favorite chicken recipe. Can’t wait to get my copy of your cookbook!
So good!,! I just finished dinner with my family, testing the gluten free version for the first, perfect time. This one goes in the rotation! Easy, fast, and minimal clean-up. I served the chicken with broccoli that I steamed and quickly finished in the frypan/chicken juices, plus a small garnet yam per person.
Gluten free was an easy adaptation: I simply used GF plain bread crumbs and GF Ancient Grains flour blend.
With only pre-shredded fresh parmesan on hand, I topped my chicken with it two minutes prior to finish to avoid burning. Too lazy to finely chop fresh rosemary, I threw big sprigs in the frypan about five minutes into cooking, saving time.
Agree: pounding to even thickness is critical.
Thanks, Jen! Another great recipe!
Yet another winner! Delicious and easily cooked. We used large boneless and skinned chicken breasts and cut them through the middle before pounding. Great tasting and we have plenty for reheating. Thanks!
I made this tonight for my husband and toddler – a big hit and it came together really fast! I had fresh thyme on hand so I used that which worked perfectly. The chicken was nice and juicy and the crust was perfect. I served it with roasted broccoli. The left overs will be perfect over a salad for me or for my son to take to preschool.
Quite possibly the best chicken I’ve ever cooked. My family and I really like this recipe. I did change one thing. Instead of splitting between vegetable oil and olive oil, I used only olive oil. This recipe also works well with chicken tenders.