Chicken Parmesan¶
Introduction and source notes¶
The general idea, mainly following Basics with Babish (recipe), with ideas from Not Another Cooking Show and Babish's Ultimate Chicken Parm as variations. Quantities are rough, for about 4 servings.
Ingredients¶
- Sauce
-
- ¼ onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2–3 tbsp tomato paste
- pinch of chili flakes
- 1 can (800 g) whole San Marzano tomatoes
- dried oregano
- a few basil stems
- splash of water
- salt, pepper
- Chicken
-
- 4 chicken breasts
- salt, pepper
- flour, seasoned with garlic powder, dried oregano and dried basil
- 4 eggs, beaten with a little flour
- panko
- grated parmesan (the pre-grated stuff is fine here)
- neutral oil for frying (Babish uses peanut oil)
- Topping
-
- fresh basil leaves
- fresh mozzarella, sliced
- freshly grated parmesan
- Pasta
-
- 500 g spaghetti or linguine
- 2 tbsp butter
- parmesan, chopped basil
Directions¶
Sauce¶
- Sweat a little chopped onion, add garlic, then a good squeeze of tomato paste and a pinch of chili flakes.
- Add a can of whole San Marzano tomatoes, crush them, add dried oregano, a few basil stems and a splash of water.
- Simmer at a bare bubble for about 45′. Season with salt and pepper (no sugar needed), fish out the basil stems.
Chicken¶
- Butterfly the chicken breasts and pound them thin between plastic wrap (thin = fast and even frying). Season with salt and pepper.
- Breading station:
- flour, seasoned with garlic powder, dried oregano and dried basil
- eggs beaten with a little flour (sticks better)
- panko mixed with grated parmesan
- Flour → egg → panko. For extra crunch, dip once more in egg and panko. Let rest in the crumbs until frying.
- Fry at about 175 °C until deep golden, about 5′. Drain on paper towels.
Finish¶
- Chicken on a wire rack: fresh basil leaves, then plenty of sliced fresh mozzarella and freshly grated parmesan (the cheese protects the basil).
- Under the broiler for a few minutes until bubbly.
- Meanwhile, finish spaghetti in some of the sauce with a splash of pasta water; off the heat, stir in butter, parmesan and chopped basil.
- Plate the pasta, chicken on top, and spoon the sauce over the cheese, not underneath. That keeps the crust crisp, even for leftovers.
Recipe card¶
The same recipe in Michael Chu's tabular notation (Cooking for Engineers): ingredients on the left, every cell to their right is a step for everything it spans. Read from left to right.
| ¼ onion, chopped | sweat 3′ | add, sauté 30″ | add, sauté 1′ | crush, simmer at a bare bubble 45′ | season, fish out basil stems | finish pasta in part of the sauce with a splash of pasta water | off the heat, stir in | plate pasta, chicken on top, spoon remaining sauce over the cheese |
| 4 cloves garlic, minced | ||||||||
| 2–3 tbsp tomato paste | ||||||||
| pinch of chili flakes | ||||||||
| 1 can whole San Marzano tomatoes | ||||||||
| dried oregano | ||||||||
| a few basil stems | ||||||||
| splash of water | ||||||||
| salt, pepper | ||||||||
| 500 g spaghetti | boil until 1′ shy of al dente | |||||||
| 2 tbsp butter | ||||||||
| parmesan, chopped basil | ||||||||
| 4 chicken breasts | butterfly, pound thin | season | bread: flour → egg → panko (twice for extra crunch), rest in the crumbs | fry at 175 °C ~5′, drain | top with basil, then the cheese | broil a few minutes until bubbly | ||
| salt, pepper | ||||||||
| flour | whisk | |||||||
| garlic powder, dried oregano, dried basil | ||||||||
| 4 eggs | beat | |||||||
| a little flour | ||||||||
| panko | mix | |||||||
| grated parmesan | ||||||||
| oil for frying | ||||||||
| fresh basil leaves | ||||||||
| fresh mozzarella, sliced | ||||||||
| freshly grated parmesan | ||||||||
Variations¶
- NACS-style sauce: smooth and pure. Pass San Marzanos through a food mill; warm sliced garlic and basil in cold olive oil, slowly, then add the tomatoes and reduce quickly in a wide pan. No onion, no paste.
- NACS cheese blend: low-moisture mozzarella (melts and stretches) plus a little fresh mozzarella and parmesan.
- NACS one big cutlet: pound one butterflied breast into a single large, thin cutlet; mixing Italian breadcrumbs with panko works well.
- Babish "Ultimate":
- Marinate the chicken in eggs, buttermilk and Italian hot sauce (30′ to overnight); this also replaces the separate egg step.
- Breading: flour, cornstarch, Italian breadcrumbs, panko and crushed corn flakes.
- Sauce: tomato purée with onion, garlic, anchovy paste and chopped Calabrian chilies, reduced until thick.
- Assemble: béchamel (with nutmeg and parmesan) → tomato sauce → basil → mozzarella, then broil.