Parmesan Chicken

A week after my husband I were married, we drove from Utah to New York so he could do some summer sales.  As a new wife, I wanted to practice my domestic skills and make food for my hungry and tired husband after a long day knocking doors.  One of the meals I made quite often was Parmesan chicken because it was easy and inexpensive to make, plus it provided leftovers for a couple of days.

Eight years later, I'm still making Parmesan chicken for my family, although I've tweaked the original recipe.  This is one of my husband's favorite meals and my kids love it too.  Simple, inexpensive and most of all, moist and flavorful, I'm sure you'll love it too!

Here's what you'll need:

I always start by prepping the chicken.  I cut off the excess fat and anything else that I wouldn't want to eat.  Then I cut the chicken into large pieces and set it aside.

In a smaller bowl, melt the butter in the microwave.

Next, I combine the Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, onion salt, garlic powder, black pepper and Italian seasoning into a medium bowl.  (Check out my tutorial for making your own breadcrumbs HERE.)

Then, I create an assembly line of sorts: chicken, butter, cheese/bread crumb mix and 9x13 pan.

Dip the chicken in the butter, then move it to the cheese/bread crumb mix to coat it and then place it in the pan, pushing the pieces close together.  I like to use tongs to pick up the chicken and move it around because it keeps my hands cleaner.  I also use a spoon or small spatula to coat the chicken before picking it up and putting it in the pan.

When your pan is about 1/2 to 3/4 full, turn on your oven to 400 degrees.

I usually end up with about the right amount of everything, plus or minus a couple pieces of chicken or a little bit of butter or cheese/bread crumbs mixture.  If you have any chicken left over, you can just put it in with the rest and cook it, or bag it up and freeze it to use later.  If you have left over butter, just drizzle it over the top of the chicken in the pan.  If you have left over bread crumbs, sprinkle them over the chicken in the pan.  No point in letting it go to waste.

Once your oven has preheated, put the chicken in and set the timer for 20 minutes.  You'll know the chicken is done when it's no longer pink inside and the juices run clear.  I usually just cut a couple of pieces in half to check.  If it needs longer, put it in for another 2-3 minutes and then check it again.

Serve with some mashed potatoes, fruit, veggies and a salad.

Store leftovers in a sealed container for up to one week.  (I've made a Parmesan chicken salad by slicing up the cold chicken and putting it on a green salad and it's super yummy!)

Parmesan Chicken
serves 4-6

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c. butter, melted
• 1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 c. bread crumbs
• 1 tsp. onion salt
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. black pepper
• 1 tsp. Italian seasoning (optional)
• 3 lbs chicken breasts

Directions:

1. Clean chicken and cut up into large pieces.
2. Melt butter in microwave.
3. In a medium bowl, mix Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, onion salt, garlic powder, pepper and Italian seasoning.
4. Dip chicken in butter, then transfer to cheese/bread crumb mixture and turn until coated.
5. Place in 9x13 pan, pushing pieces close together.
6. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until cooked through (juices run clear) and top is a light golden brown.
7. Store leftovers in sealed container for up to 1 week.