Here’s a quick and easy 30 minute recipe for classic, authentic Italian Pollo Parmigiano (Chicken Parmesan) with Pasta Pomodoro (tomato pasta), served with fresh steamed broccoli and spinach.
I don’t use egg and flour to make the breadcrumbs stick, just olive oil. This makes the chicken not so heavy and also saves time!
This recipe can serve as many people as you need, using one chicken breast fillet per person.
For reference, I’ll base this on cooking for two people.
Preparation time 15 minutes, cooking time 15 minutes.
Chicken Parmesan with Pasta Pomodoro – what you will need:
Chicken breast fillets x2 – skinless and boneless, butterflied and flattened out to approx. 1/4 inch thickness – see method below.
Breadcrumbs, approx. one slice of bread per person – you can use any type whizzed up into fine crumbs.
Parmesan cheese, approx 50g – finely grated.
Pasta, approx. 250g – you can use any pasta for this, choose your favourite. Here I have used Rigatoni.
Pasata (liquid tomato sauce) 500g carton.
Garlic x1 clove, finely sliced.
Red chilli, finely sliced (use as much as you like!)
Sugar, 1 teaspoon.
Sea salt and black pepper.
Olive Oil.
Vegetables of your choice.
Large non-stick frying pan for the chicken.
Medium saucepan for the pasta.
Small saucepan for the tomato sauce.
Steamer or saucepan for the veg.
Chicken Parmesan with Pasta Pomodoro – what you need to do:
1. Flatten the chicken; using a large chopping board, place the butterflied chicken fillet on top, then a layer of cling film and use a rolling pin to gently bash the chicken to the required thickness. Repeat for all chicken fillets. Season each flattened fillet with a pinch of salt and pepper and coat lightly with olive oil – leave to one side ready for breading later.
2. Get your pasta and vegetables going in separate saucepans with a little salt and a drizzle of olive oil in the pasta. The pasta and veg should take 10-15 minutes, perfect timing for everything else to come together.
3. Get the small saucepan onto a medium heat and add a drizzle of olive oil then the garlic/chilli and once it starts to sizzle, add the Pasata. Be careful not to burn the garlic. Season with salt and pepper, taste and add the sugar if the tomatoes are a little bitter. Stir and cook on low heat until ready to serve.
4. Mix the breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese together on a plate and coat each piece of chicken in the mixture (the olive oil should be enough to make the breadcrumbs stick to the chicken) – leave to one side ready for frying.
5. Get the large frying pan on a high heat and add enough olive oil to fry the flattened chicken on one side – you don’t need to deep fry or completely cover the chicken in oil. Once the oil is hot, add one chicken fillet and cook for 2 minutes on each side until the breadcrumbs are golden. Remove from the oil and place to one side on some kitchen towel and cover with foil to keep warm. Repeat this process for each individual piece of chicken. Use the oven to keep them warm if you are doing lots of chicken.
6. Once the pasta is cooked, drain and put back into the saucepan. Then add the tomato sauce to the pasta and stir thoroughly. Serve the pasta, chicken and vegetables and add some freshly grated parmesan, extra virgin olive oil and black pepper to finish off.
Enjoy with a nice glass of Italian red or white wine!
Please let me know what you think of this recipe and any questions you may have.
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