Mains
Italian
ItalianChicken Parmigiana
Breaded chicken under a tomato sauce and melted cheese, from a quick budget bake to a chef-level version with homemade sauce, fresh mozzarella and aged Parmesan.
Nut-free
Ultimate version
Brined chicken, slow San Marzano sugo, fior di latte and aged Parmigiano.
Per serving£8.25
Total cost£16.50
Time1 hr 20 min
Ingredients for 2
- Chicken
- 2 corn-fed chicken breasts , brined 1 hour
- 120 g panko breadcrumbs
- 50 g Parmigiano Reggiano , finely grated
- 1 egg , beaten
- 3 tbsp 00 flour
- Sugo
- 400 g San Marzano tomatoes , hand-crushed
- 3 cloves garlic , sliced
- 1 handful fresh basil
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Topping
- 1 fior di latte mozzarella , 125g, torn and drained
- 30 g Parmigiano Reggiano , shaved, to finish
- 100 ml light olive oil , for frying
- sea salt and black pepper , to taste
Method
- Make the sugo: gently colour the garlic in olive oil, add the crushed San Marzano tomatoes and simmer 30 minutes, finishing with torn basil and seasoning.
- Pat the brined chicken dry, butterfly and flatten between sheets of cling film to an even 1cm.
- Set up flour, beaten egg and a panko-Parmigiano crumb, then coat the chicken, pressing the crumb on firmly.
- Shallow-fry in the light olive oil until deeply golden and crisp, then drain.
- Spoon sugo onto each cutlet, top with drained fior di latte and shaved Parmigiano.
- Finish under a hot grill or in a 220C oven for 8-10 minutes until blistered, then rest and serve with extra basil.
Equipment
The three ways, side by side
Budget
Shop breadcrumbed chicken, jarred sauce and grated mozzarella.
Better
Panko-crumbed chicken, a quick garlic tomato sauce and real mozzarella.
Ultimate
Brined chicken, slow San Marzano sugo, fior di latte and aged Parmigiano.
