5 ingredient, 10 minute magic – this ultra crispy PARMESAN CRUSTED CHICKEN is insane! Juicy chicken on the inside, and a crazy, crunchy golden crust on the outside. Made without breadcrumbs, this is an incredible easy healthy chicken recipe.
Serve with silky cauliflower mash and a drizzle of browned butter for the ultimate gluten free, low-carb meal!
Parmesan Crusted Chicken
In case you can’t tell from the photo (really??!), this chicken recipe is all about the parmesan crust.
It’s crunchy, it’s golden, it’s packed with flavour and perfectly seasoned so other than the teeniest tiniest pinch of salt in the egg mixture, you don’t need to add any salt or other seasonings at all.
Also, no mucking around with flour either. I tried it with and without, and for shredded parmesan, it didn’t glue it on any better so I opt to skip it.
Which means this chicken recipe is 100% gluten free and a super low carb meal option.
How to make Parmesan Crusted Chicken
It’s honestly as simple as this:
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cut chicken breasts in half;
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dunk in garlicky egg;
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press on parmesan; and
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pan fry to golden crispy perfection.
Doesn’t that parmesan crust look incredible?? That colour ain’t from Photoshopping, that’s the colour it actually is. For the cynics out there – see? Evidence. Haven’t touched the saturation slider!!
This is a super quick dinner. If this is in your pan for longer than 6 minutes, you’ve overcooked the chicken. Speed is imperative here. High heat and speed! (We like speed for midweek meals, don’t we? 🙂 )
In keeping with the low-carb theme of this recipe, I opted to go for a cauliflower mash rather than my usual potato. And fancied it up with the tiniest drizzle of browned butter – just 1/2 tsp drizzled over the mash makes a world of difference because it’s so fragrant and has such an intense, rich flavour. Honestly, if you aren’t a fan of cauliflower mash, try it with browned butter and I bet you scoff it down like crazy!
Mmmm, just dream of that silky cauliflower puree paired with that crispy Parmesan Crusted Chicken…. it’s the perfect bite.
LOW CARB DINNER OF CHAMPIONS!! – Nagi x
PS In case you were wondering, going low-carb was not a New Years’ Resolution. This is accidentally low-carb. 😂 Sorry to disappoint, to those who were hoping for more low-carb meals. I can try. But I cannot promise….
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WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Crispy Parmesan Crusted Chicken
Ingredients
- 500 g / 1 lb chicken breast (2 pieces) (Note 1)
- 1 egg
- 1 garlic clove , minced (optional)
- Salt and pepper
- 125 g / 4 oz / 1 1/4 cups shredded parmesan (Note 2)
- 2 tbsp butter (or more oil)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Cut each breast in half horizontally to make 4 steaks. If they are much thicker than 1.75 cm / 3/4" thick (at the thickest point), pound a bit.
- Place egg, garlic, pinch of salt and pepper in a bowl. Whisk with fork.
- Place parmesan in a shallow bowl.
- Dredge chicken in egg, then place in parmesan CUT SIDE DOWN (Note 3). Press, then turn. Coat with extra parmesan, press. Shake off excess. Repeat with remaining chicken.
- Melt butter and heat oil in a large skillet over high heat.
- Place chicken in non-stick skillet (or well seasoned cast iron skillet). DO NOT MOVE chicken otherwise the cheese will slide off surface before it adheres! It adheres once it turns crispy.
- Press down lightly with spatula. Lift a corner to take a peek and turn with tongs when it's deep golden brown (3 minutes for me).
- Cook the other side for 3 minutes or until also deep golden brown and crispy (again, do not move until golden). Lightly press down with spatula. Don't cook longer than 6 minutes in total - dries out the chicken.
- Serve immediately! I served mine with lemon slices, Cauliflower Mash and a Fennel Slaw with Yoghurt Dressing (Note 5).
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
This is at my favourite local coffee shop, 2KF in Mona Vale, and that’s Phil the owner. Hands down the best coffee around. The Sydney Morning Herald did a review and said “he makes Campos coffee better than Campos”! I spend a lot of time here. Responding to messages, cooking questions, creating recipe videos, thinking of the next recipe I’m going to make.
And Dozer spends a lot of time smooching with the other patrons, getting scraps and LOTS of cuddles. And occasionally he orders a puppa-cino…. (jokes. Never!)
We all love a schnitzel/snitzel or Parma and this was great just like diving under a wave at the end of a hot day! The only thing we did differently (and I’m not sure if this is necessary but we kinda think chicken breast can go dry and chewy) so we put a decent shake of salt in a bowl, add some cold water and add the sliced chicken breasts for about half an hour in the fridge then pad dry w paper towel and they seem to stay v tender and juicy🚶♂️
Almost like a bring Richard – the perfect way to keep them tender! 👏 N x
I was a little skeptical to try this after I saw some people had a little difficulty with this recipe but I’m so glad I did! I made it with chicken tenderloins and flattened them with my hands first. So fast, easy, and delicious.
I meant to give this 5 stars!
Wahoo, that’s awesome Karlie! N x
Suggestions on how long before you flip the Chicken – Dont want to flip it to soon
Followed the recipe using pre-shredded packaged parm that looked exactly like yours. 14″ Lagostina pan on 8 electric. Turned out perfectly and so tasty! Thank you Nagi for everything you do. Love your website, emails, videos and of course your awesome recipes 🙂
This was really good and I like that it required ingredients I already had. Based on the comments, I did keep the temperature to medium to make sure the Parmesan stayed on and that worked.
Are there instructions for making this in the oven?
Disappointed as I followed to the letter, Parmesan cheese didn’t stick, I finished up with a soggy oily mess not crispy. 😔 only plus was that chicken was tender and tasty
Hi Robyn, sorry you had issues here – can I ask what type of parmesan you used? N x
Perfect Italiano grated parmesan from Woolies
Smashed dinner again tonight, in-laws were eyebrow-raised impressed and you now have two more referrals 😀 Nags x
The breading fell right off despite being pressed into the chicken, and burned onto the pan. Eight minutes and the chicken was still uncooked inside. I checked, and I followed the recipe exactly, don’t know what went wrong.
Hi! Sorry you had issues here, sounds like the heat was a little too high during cooking, try cooking the chicken over a lower heat for slightly longer 🙂 N x
Thank you Nagi! This is a godsend for my keto husband! It turned out perfectly, yes I think the key is don’t be tempted to turn or move it too soon!! It sticks to the chicken eventually – we just have to be patient. LOL.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Karina!!! N x
Made this last night with the cauliflower mash. SOOOO good. I have tried so many of your recipes and you nail it every time. Thank you!
This was absolutely delicious. The chicken has so much flavour. I forgot to buy mozarella cheese, so I just replaced it with more Tasty Cheese. It still tasted good. Thank you for this awesome recipe.
Delicious and low carb 🥳. We loved it! This will become a new quick favorite. THX
I tried this recipe a couple months ago and I moved the chicken too early and ended up with a bunch of melted parmesan that didn’t stick to my chicken. I tried it again tonight and it worked! My advice to others who had this problem is to make sure your pan is good and hot! It needs to be hot enough to get that parmesan nice and crispy quickly. If your chicken is thin enough you shouldn’t have any issues with it not being cooked in time.
So Good!
Can I make this recipe in an air fryer ?
I haven’t tried AD! – N x
Best!! Schnitzel!!! EVER!!!! So easy, so moist! Yet another hit!
Wahoo! Perfect Cat!
I had a very hard time with this sticking. I have a very good non-stick pan & it still was sticking. Chicken did not get done, ended up putting in oven. Very disappointed.
Me too, mine didn’t brown or crust too. Still yummy stuff – chicken breast and melted parmesan, just didn’t have the beautiful brown in Nagi’s video
Another cracker Nagi! I just did this for dinner and it was really lovely. I did a big mixed salad to counter the cheese 🙂
Perfect Mike!! Thanks for the great feedback ❤️
I have several of your meals on rotation at our house. I have 2 dogs, 3 cats, 2 teenagers and a husband and you make cooking enjoyable again! They are simple, easy to prepare and DELICIOUS!!! Thanks Nagi!
Oh Wow! You have your hands full Vanessa!!!!
I tried to make this, my a chicken wouldn’t brown. Had to put in oven to cook. It was on a high flame.