Parmesan Crusted Chicken
on Jan 09, 2023, Updated Jan 29, 2024
This Parmesan Crusted Chicken is an easy meal idea. We use pounded thin chicken breasts, coat in a delicious Parmesan coating, and then fried to make them crispy. Add this chicken idea to your dinner this week.
This is one of our favorite chicken dinner recipes: crispy chicken breast pan-fried to perfection! Serve up with some Garlic Green Beans and The Best Mashed Potatoes.
Why You’ll Love This Parmesan Crusted Chicken
- It requires only a few ingredients and is a quick chicken recipe.
- It is restaurant quality, yet kid friendly.
- This recipe makes for a tender juicy chicken with a crunchy crust.
- It makes for a super simple weeknight meal. No oven, no baking sheet, no Panko bread crumbs or regular breadcrumbs, no flour.
If there’s one thing everybody hates, it’s bland and boring chicken breast. Chicken is a wonderful bit of poultry that- while lacking in flavor- definitely isn’t lacking in promise! You can use all sorts of different chicken seasoning blends and mixes to make a wide range of delicious chicken recipes. However, one of our favorite ways to make chicken taste better for a chicken dinner is to make some Parmesan Crusted Chicken.
You’ll find plenty of other recipes online for stuff like Longhorn Parmesan Crusted Chicken with mayo or ranch. For us, those recipes never worked as well as this one and they’re nowhere near as easy either. Keeping things simple like us ensures perfect chicken every time! Best of all, this recipe is also gluten-free and keto-friendly for all the folks who want some sort of keto breaded chicken.
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Parmesan Crusted Chicken Ingredients
- Chicken – We use a boneless chicken breast for our Parmesan Crusted Chicken.
- Egg – Mixed with some water, this will make an egg wash- kind of like how you make a breaded chicken.
- Salt & Pepper
- Garlic – Feel free to use minced garlic from the jar here. In a pinch, you could use garlic powder.
- Shredded Parmesan Cheese – We are using shredded parm here and not grated parmesan cheese. You can either shred parmesan by hand or you can find this pre-shredded parmesan in the can at the grocery store.
- Butter & Olive Oil – We really like pan-frying our crusted chicken in this blend of butter and olive oil. Feel free to try using all butter or all olive oil for pan-frying, or mess around with other oils and see if you like the flavor!
How to Make a Parmesan Crusted Chicken
We love this Parmesan Crusted Chicken recipe because it’s so easy to prep and make! To make some for yourself, here’s all you need to do:
- Butterfly larger chicken breasts in half before pounding out to 1/2″ thickness.
- Dredge or dip chicken cutlets in egg wash dish before coating thoroughly with shredded parmesan.
- Pan-fry breaded chicken in oil and butter over medium-high heat for 3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Plate and serve.
Variations for this Chicken Recipe
- Try mixing something like Italian Seasoning in with the parm to make something like a Parmesan Herb Crusted Chicken.
- You can also add onion powder to the parmesan cheese.
- Not into breasts… try boneless chicken thighs for instead. They need to be pounded flat and cook slighly longer.
FAQs about Parmesan Crusted Chicken
The simple answer is no. Most of the recipes that claim to duplicate this aren’t fried at all. They prepare a mixture of ranch dressing, cheese and other ingredients. They then coat the chicken with the mixture and breadcrumbs and bake it.
This recipe is not ideally suited for an air fryer. I would be concerned about the parmesan cheese sticking to the air fryer basket. If you are inclined to try this, I would recommend that you spray the basket with cooking spray or olive oil before you air fry, You might also want to add a 1/4 cup of panko breadcrumbs to enhance the crunch.
Technically, yes. The chicken will not come out as crispy or flavorful. You will need to use a baking sheet with a wire rack. Preheat oven to 400. Prepare as directed and place on prepared rack. Lightly spray chicken with olive oil or cooking spray. Bake until internal temperature reaches 165.
Our Parmesan Crusted Chicken pairs great with all sorts of different side dishes. We recommend some good green vegetables- we love a bit of broccoli, some green beans, or some peas. With that, we also recommend a tasty starch or carbohydrate- maybe some macaroni or some mashed potatoes? You don’t even have to serve it up a dinner: grab a good sandwich roll, some marinara and cheese, and serve your chicken up like a Chicken Parmesan Sandwich.
Tips for Making the Parmesan Chicken
- Be sure to use shredded Parmesan cheese. Grated Parmesan will NOT work.
- Use butter because it really adds a great flavor to the chicken and allows it to cook so perfectly.
- If your chicken breasts are thick, butterfly them. Butterflying chicken breast is easy: just cut it in half, kind of like a hamburger bun.
- Pounding the chicken reduces cooking time and is they key to perfectly fried chicken.
- When coating in the cheese, give the chicken a firm press before flipping and repeating. This helps the cheesy crust to stick to the chicken.
- When frying chicken, press lightly with a spatula just before flipping.
- If you attempt to peek and flip them too soon, the cheesy coating will not stick to your chicken.
- Top the finished chicken with chopped fresh parsley leaves to dress it up a bit.
Other Delicious Chicken Recipes
- For another tasty crusted chicken recipe, try our Potato Chip Crusted Chicken. These baked chicken cutlets are tenderized and hit with a thick coating of crushed potato chips. A super easy chicken dinner recipe that you can mix and match flavors in- just change the chips!
- If you want something a bit more sweet and spicy, try some Firecracker Chicken- or, as we call it, Red Hot Chicken. Baked chicken strips are basted with a delicious sweet and spicy sauce made from ketchup, sugar, and hot sauce. So simple to make and pretty inexpensive too- this one’s a big family favorite!
- Of course, if you need something warm and comforting, we have to recommend our Chicken Pot Pie Casserole. We keep this recipe simple by using a few choice ready-made ingredients: some canned crescent roll dough, some frozen veggies, and some rotisserie chicken. These ingredients, plus a few others, really help cut down on the prep time and help you get a rich filling meal ready in no time!
Did you make this recipe? If so, be sure to rate with a star rating and drop a comment below.
Parmesan Crusted Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
- 1 Egg
- 1 tbsp Water
- 1 tsp minced Garlic
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
- 2 cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
- 4 tbsp Butter
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
Instructions
- Cut each breast in half and pound to about 1/2″ thick.
- Beat egg and water in a shallow bowl until blended.
- Add garlic, salt and pepper and whisk to blend.
- Place parmesan in another shallow bowl.
- Dip each piece of chicken in egg mixture making sure to coat.
- Allow excess egg to drip off.
- Place in parmesan. Sprinkle more parmesan over top. Gently press, then turn and repeat on other side. Shake off excess. Repeat with remaining chicken.
- Place butter and oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Place chicken and do not move until edges brown (so that cheese sticks to chicken, about 3 minutes).
- Lightly press with spatula then turn over and again do not move until browned.
- Lightly press with spatula and remove to serving plate.
Notes
- Be sure to use shredded Parmesan cheese. Grated Parmesan will NOT work.
- Use butter because it really adds a great flavor to the chicken and allows it to cook so perfectly.
- If your chicken breasts are thick, butterfly them. Butterflying chicken breast is easy: just cut it in half, kind of like a hamburger bun.
- Pounding the chicken reduces cooking time and is they key to perfectly fried chicken.
- When coating in the cheese, give the chicken a firm press before flipping and repeating. This helps the cheesy crust to stick to the chicken.
- When frying chicken, press lightly with a spatula just before flipping.
- If you attempt to peek and flip them too soon, the cheesy coating will not stick to your chicken.
- Top the finished chicken with chopped fresh parsley leaves to dress it up a bit.
I never leave reveiws, although I should. But this is by far the best Parmesan Crusted Chicken I’ve ever made. Follow the instructions before you alter or add something different. And be sure to the 1st time use fresh grated Parmesan Cheese, it is the deal breaker. I made this today along with a ceasar salad, the Tik Tok Feta Cheese, Bowtie Pasta, and tomatoes recipe, with garlic bread. This was a meal meant for a king. Thank you very much for sharing this and this is going in my recipes to keep.
This was an amazing dinner. I paired it with garlic Parmesan rice and snow peas. I loved every cheesy bite of it. I didn’t make any adjustments to the instructions given and I ended up with perfectly golden pieces of chicken. My entire family loved it!
I made this recipe by slicing chicken breast sliced into two filets. From there I put paper towels on top and I hit it with a hand can opener lol I didn’t have anything else to use. It worked really well. After that I used the same ingredients and added panko bread crumbs with the cheese. I had happened to have shaved parm so I put it in a baggie and broke it up some. I followed all other instructions and ingredients. I served it over a small amount of spaghetti and topped with marinara sauce I added some mozzarella on top. Oh my gosh my new best favorite meal ever. Thank you for this recipe my bf is won over along with me. I had to use what was in hand but it is legit lascari’s or authentic restaurant style I’m in heaven thank you. My fav new recipe making it again tonight 😋
Can this be baked in an oven rather than frying?
Yes. Made it the first time tonight. Oven cooked. Olive oil and margarine. 420 degrees. Cooked until it started to brown.
Can you make this chicken ahead and freeze for a later time?
I would love to make this but need to keep up with calories fat etc so could you tell me that please
I made this chicken tonight and it turned out delicious. I did every step exactly like in the recipe and it turned out perfect. No butter burning and the cheese crisped up nice. Will def. make it again👍
I made the recipe today. It is a hit at my house. Thanks for sharing.
The recipe looks great, and I’m trying it out tonight, but I’m sorry to say that your website has way too many adverts and pop-ups. I was interrupted five times whilst trying to read the ‘deeds’. I gave up and went straight to the recipe but, even then, they kept flashing away. Not great for those of us who suffer from epilepsy. Had to screen-shot the recipe and copied it into a Word document. User experience of your site is what will bring people back!!
Let me just say, although I always read them, I never leave reviews on recipes, but this chicken was sooo delicious. I followed the advice of some of the other reviewers and made a few tweaks. I did about 1 1/2 cups of shredded cheese and made up the other half cup with grated Parmesan and then added about a tablespoon of fine Italian breadcrumbs to this mixture. I cooked on medium heat and ended up with perfectly crisp pieces. Definitely going in my recipe inventory.
My oil/butter mixture burnt. I should have read the reviews and cooked on medium heat! Ill have to try again.
Yummy and healthy! The whole family enjoyed it. Easy enough that my girls helped with dinner.
I was looking for a quick chicken dish and this one came up on Pinterest. It was delicious and very easy to make! My family loved it and I will be making it again. Thank you so much for posting!
I found this recipe and tried it with not only breasts but also legs. I have a total of ten people in my family that I feed and they loved it! Thank you so much for the delicious recipe. I have to cook such that I baked it. Thanks again!
Really tasty! I used my air fryer and it worked pretty well, albeit a little messy. They turned out best when I used a rack (sprayed with oil), not the grate on the bottom of the fryer. I tried both, but the bottom rack had more cheese stuck to it. I fried them at 400 degrees for 8 minutes and flipped them half way through. They turned out moist and delicious.
It was quick and easy. It was good but it needed just a little something more so I added a bit of warmed ranch dressing which made it perfect for me and my family. Thanks so much for this recipe, it made it less intimidating to prepare. I’ve loved Parmesan Crusted Chicken in various restaurants for years but never attempted it at home because I thought it was too complicated. Thanks again for making it simple and delicious at home.
Jen, this a wonderful dish… endless sides to accompany it. Thank You.
Made this for dinner this evening. We loved it. I needed to tweak the shredded parmesan cheese, due to a lower salt diet.
I used approx. 3/4C. of shredded parmesan cheese. Then to the cheese, I added, 1/3 C. of AP flour and 1/3 C. of Italian Breadcrumbs.
The pounded down chicken breasts, brown nicely frying just a few minutes on each side. After browning them, I needed to cook them a little longer, to allow the chicken to be cooked all through. I turn down the heat considerably and put a lid on the skillet, sitting it askew, to keep the crust crunchy!! They are super Yummy!
Last night was the second time I made this recipe, since the first time I made it, my family raved about it! I don’t know what was different this time, but the oil/butter mixture in the pan began to burn and filled our house with smoke. I used the combo of olive oil and butter at first, and then switched to a veg oil/butter mixture (since veg oil has a higher smoke point), and after the first batch, it did the same.
I’m not quite sure what went wrong this time… The chicken was really good, like last time, but it had a burnt aftertaste unfortunately. I’ll still continue to make this recipe more in the future, since it’s so good, but I’ll have to see if I have the same issue.
(Cooked over Med/High heat – we have a gas stove – and butterflied/pounded chicken breasts thin, followed everything in the recipe to a T… If anyone can let me know what happened, that would be greatly appreciated!!
Nicole, On different occasions, I have had this happen to me too.
Each time it happened to me, I know that I just let my skillet get too hot! I have been trying on a new way heating of the oil/butter process. I start my skillet on low and then added the oil/butter to my skillet. Once melted, I turned up the heat to just past medium. I have an electric stove. I add my food and S-L-O-W-L-Y turn up my skillet. Once my food begins to brown; I don’t usually turn the burner up any more.
All of our stoves heat differently. Try starting from a medium heat. Hopefully no smoke or overly heated butter or oil! :)
Use the lighter olive oil which states for frying not xtra virgin as it does burn
Yes I heard that somewhere the clearer the olive oil color the higher you can go with the heat.
How would I do this in the air fryer? What temperature for how long?
I’m not the author, but this is what I’m planning. I usually do chicken breasts at 380-390 and for about 12-15 minutes depending on thickness. I usually keep them simple with just a few spices and they come out insanely delicious. Looking forward to trying this. Surely it can’t go wrong! I find nearly everything tastes better in there!
My daughter made me these for Mother’s Day. Delicious! She did them in air fryer for 12 minutes total, flipping after 8. So good!
This is very similar to a dish served at Coopers Hawk restaurant, only they garnish their chicken breast with sautéed halved grape tomatoes, fresh basil, garlic, maybe a splash of olive oil and bit of acid (lemon? vinegar?). I’m going to try that the next time I make Parmesan Crusted Chicken, because there definitely will be a next time! Thanks for an easy and delicious recipe.