Chicken Parmesan
Serves 4
This is the best version of an old classic that I know. It's a rich dish, and you need little more than a green salad and a bottle of wine to make a meal.
Ingredients #
For the chicken: #
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (carved off of fryer chickens would be best, or the smallest you can find at the store)
- Peanut oil for frying
- 10 oz fresh mozzarella, grated (about 3 1/2 cups)
- 3 oz parmesan cheese, grated (about 3/4 cup)
- Finely chopped chives or finely minced parsley to serve
For the breading: #
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 tbsp salt
- Black pepper
- 4 large eggs
- 2 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
For the sauce: #
- 3-4 slices uncooked thick-cut bacon or same amount of pancetta
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 red fresno or jalapeno chiles, minced
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 28oz can crushed San Marzano tomatoes
- Salt and pepper to taste
- A pinch of white sugar
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme tied together with kitchen twine
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Instructions #
Start by preparing the sauce. Slice the bacon or pancetta into 1/2" pieces and place in a cold medium saucepan. Place over medium heat and add the olive oil. Cook, stirring frequently. Once the meat starts to become crispy, add the minced chiles, pepper flakes, and garlic. Continue cooking over medium heat until the mixture becomes very fragrant and the aromatics are toasted but not too browned.
Use a slotted spoon to remove the solids to a cutting board, leaving as much of the oil in the pan as possible. Reduce the heat to low. On the cutting board, chop the bacon mixture very finely. Return it to the pan.
Increase the heat to medium and add the crushed tomatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and add the pinch of sugar. Add the bundle of thyme. Bring to a simmer. Stir in the parmesan cheese. Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove the thyme bundle, pour the sauce into a bowl and set aside.
While the sauce is simmering, prepare the chicken. Carefully butterfly the chicken breasts and open them up like a book. Place a piece of plastic wrap over the chicken and pound gently with a meat mallet until it is about 1/2" thick. Season with salt and pepper.
Fill a large, deep cast iron skillet or Dutch oven with just over 2" oil for frying. Heat to 350 F. During cooking, adjust heat to maintain this temperature. Place a wire rack over a paper towel-lined baking sheet near the stove.
While the oil is heating, prepare your breading in three separate shallow bowls. In the first, whisk together the flour, salt, and pepper to taste. In the second, beat the eggs with a splash of water. In the third, place the panko crumbs. Place a wire rack over a baking sheet.
Coat each piece of chicken in flour, shaking off excess. Dip into the egg to coat thoroughly, and then coat in panko crumbs, pressing them onto the chicken. Place them gently on the wire rack as they are prepared, and refrigerate them (uncovered) for a few minutes to set.
Cook them one at at time in the hot oil, frying on the first side for 3-5 minutes or until crispy and golden, then flipping and cooking until the other side is equally golden. The internal temperature must be 165 F. Remove to the paper-towel lined rack and cook the remaining chicken pieces.
Combine the grated fresh mozzarella and parmesan cheeses. Preheat the broiler.
Place the crispy chicken pieces on two foil-lined baking sheets. Cover each piece generously with the sauce, and divide the cheese mixture evenly between them, spreading the cheese out to the edges. Broil one baking sheet at a time for 5-8 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted and starting to brown.
Plate the chicken, sprinkling each piece with chives or parsley as desired. Serve immediately.