Possibly the most popular pub food in Australia, Chicken Parmigiana or Chicken Parmesan (known locally as chicken parmy) is an evergreen crowd-pleaser. Crumbed chicken breasts, smothered in a rich tomato sauce and plenty of melted cheese - what’s not to like?
Prep Time 15 minutesmins
Cook Time 30 minutesmins
Total Time 45 minutesmins
Serves 4(or 2 if you're hungry!)
Ingredients
for the chicken:
400gchicken breastsca. 200g (7 oz.) each
1tspdried oregano
2Tbspplain flour
1egglightly beaten
75gfresh breadcrumbs
25gParmesan cheesegrated
3Tbspolive oil
sea salt and black pepper
for the sauce:
1Tbspolive oil
2clovesgarlicfinely diced
500mltomato passata (U.S Readers = tomato sauce!)
125mlwhite wine
1tspdried oregano
1tspsea salt
1tspsugar
1bunchfresh basilleaves torn
1ballfresh mozzarelladrained and torn
50gParmesan cheesegrated
black pepper
Scan the QR Code to view the online recipe with detailed instructions, photos, hints, tips and more at daysofjay.com
Instructions
PREPARE: Heat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas 4. Halve the chicken breasts horizontally so you have 4 evenly thick pieces. Season well with salt, pepper and oregano, pressing them onto the chicken.
FLOUR AND CRUMB: Spread the flour over a plate, pour the egg into a shallow bowl, whisk together the breadcrumbs and Parmesan and spread over a second plate. Working with one piece of chicken at a time, toss the chicken in the flour, dip in the beaten egg, then press in the breadcrumb mixture so that both sides are well coated. Repeat with all remaining pieces.
FRY THE CHICKEN: Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, cook the chicken for 2 minutes on each side, then remove to a rack. Rinse and wipe out the frying pan.
MAKE THE SAUCE: To make the sauce, heat the oil in the same frying pan that you used for the chicken. Cook the garlic for 1 minute until just fragrant. Pour in the passata and white wine, then stir through the oregano, salt and sugar. Season well with black pepper, then bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes until thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in half of the basil.
ASSEMBLE AND BAKE: To assemble the dish, spread 4 tablespoons of the sauce over the base of a baking dish large enough to hold the chicken in one layer. Place the chicken on top, pour over the remaining tomato sauce, leaving some crumbed edges visible and top each breast with mozzarella and Parmesan. Drizzle over a little more olive oil, then bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbling.
SERVE AND ENJOY: Divide the chicken between 2-4 warmed plates, sprinkle over the remaining basil leaves and serve immediately with a crisp green salad.
Notes
Tomato passata or passata rustico is pureed, strained tomatoes, often sold in the USA as 'tomato sauce' or tomato puree. Look for a good quality one made from Italian tomatoes for best results.Depending on your appetite (and the size of your chicken breasts!), this recipe can feed 2-4 people, but if there are any leftovers they heat up wonderfully!