Chicken Parmesan
Oh, sweet mystery of life at last I’ve found you. How did I not know about chicken parm? Of course I’ve had it – probably in sandwich form, on my way home from a bar late at night, early in my twenties. But making it at home is the simplest thing and, oh, my God it’s so good.
This recipe comes courtesy of Natalee Caple, an author, friend and fellow Mum. She’s also a Facebooker who regularly posts what she’s cooking for her family. Natalee’s twins, Casey and Imogen, just turned four and her posts of their meals always inspire me. She’ll be our guest blogger this Friday as a matter of fact. But I couldn’t wait on this one – had to make it and post it myself. Natalee made this recently with Romano cheese rather than Parmesan – either are perfect, just go with what you’ve got.
Ingredients
- For the Simple Tomato Sauce:
- 1 28 ounce tin of whole plum tomatoes (Natalee likes Marzanos)
- Good glug of extra virgin olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves roughly chopped
- handful of herbs - basil, oregano, thyme
- a splash of red wine vinegar (not in Natalee's version but I always add it)
- pinch of salt and pepper
- For the Chicken:
- 4 Chicken breasts cut in half.
- 1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs (Natalee made her own wholegrain crumbs, I had some Panko handy)
- Several basil leaves roughly torn
- 1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
- 1 cup milk
Method
For the sauce:
Saute the garlic in the oil for a couple of minutes and then add the tomatoes.
Let them simmer for about 20 minutes while you prepare the chicken and keep breaking them down with the back of a wooden spoon.
Towards the end, add the herbs and season with salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Season your breadcrumbs with some salt and pepper.
Sprinkle them on a plate.
Pour milk into a shallow bowl. Dip each piece of chicken in milk and dredge in the breadcrumbs
Brown the chicken pieces in a medium pan with a bit of oil until brown. Don't worry about cooking the meat through.
As each batch cooks, place the chicken in a large casserole dish.
Cover the chicken in tomato sauce.
Scatter the basil leaves over the sauce.
Cover all with the shredded cheese.
Pop in the oven for ten minutes, then increase the heat to 400 degrees for another ten minutes.
Take out the biggest piece and cut into it to check done-ness. I needed another 5 minutes.
.
Some suggested parings with this excellent dish.
We had ours with green beans and it was a big hit. And the leftover is going to make a wicked sandwich for today’s lunch.
This meal was also Julian’s first taste of meat. I first held a tiny bit to his lips for him to taste. Then Ben gave him a bigger (sauce-less) piece to hold and gnaw for himself. He said something like: Mmmgrrrrah! And chomped the whole thing down even though he doesn’t have a tooth yet. He also liked the green beans.
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We're Ceri and Laura, a couple of magazine-editors-turned-food-bloggers. Also, we're mothers obsessed with delicious, healthy, family food. We're constantly thinking of ways to make your time (and our own!) in the kitchen easier and more productive, but still nostalgic for the days when dinner was cereal eaten over the kitchen sink.
9 Comments
Meredyth Young
July 07, 16:28I propose that you change the name from OMG chicken parm to Mmmgrrrrah! Chicken Parm in honour of Julian's profoundly apt description of his first taste of meat. Seriously Ceri, this is one delicious dish of yum. Thanks for making it for us last night, can I come over for leftovers?
I think that using Panko instead of breadcrumbs results in a softer breading for the chicken which I really liked.
Barbara Yankoski
January 05, 23:34OMG, indeed. This is a bit different than my Chicken Parmesan, but equally delicious. Made it last night and had it with the left overs from the previous day which was the rice, brocolli and cheese casserole. And had left over chicken tonight with the green beans. Yum. Just my husband and I now and we are somewhat bored with our usual fare. I discovered your blog and decided to try your recipes. Wonderful. Will recommend blog to others too. Keep up the good work.
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July 10, 09:02[…] OMG chicken parm […]
Sweet Potato says... batch cook! - Today's Parent
September 20, 15:25[…] to get ahead with more batch cooking? More recipes from Sweet Potato Chronicles: OMG Chicken Parm is as good as the name suggests. It’s terrific over egg noodles but also makes a great sandwich […]
Heidi Pyper
December 31, 16:21I’m making this tonight for the kids. I love this recipe and have made it too many times to count. What kills me are the pictures of E and J here. OMG Kids who grow!
x
Ceri
December 31, 17:12A perfect meal to send out the year! And now I’m all misty looking at these shots, too. I’d forgotten this was Julian’s first taste of meat. Am definitely making this some time this week. Happy New Year, Pypers, we love you!!
Bali Tour
March 13, 03:00Look Delicious 🙂
Thanks for the recipe
nederland
July 11, 08:31Thankfulness to my father who stated to me regarding this blog,
this web site is truly amazing.
Hannah Flack
February 26, 05:38This looks tasty but might I suggest that you swap cage-free organic for pastured organic. From what I know, it seems like a kinder option!