Chicken
$1.71per plate
Prep
15 min
Chicken · Chicken Parmesan
Chicken Parmesan
Chicken parmesan is the plate that makes a Tuesday feel like a night out, and it comes together from a pound and a half of chicken and a jar of sauce for about $2.51 a serving. You pound the breasts thin, bread them crisp, fry them just to golden, then blanket them with marinara and mozzarella and let the oven melt it all together. Served over a pot of pasta, it stretches four cutlets into a full dinner for four that costs less than a single restaurant order.
$2.51per plate
Estimated recipe total
$10.04 · serves 4
Cook
30 min
Total
45 min
Serves
4
1 How to make it
1
Pound and set up a breading station
Heat the oven to 425 F and put a pot of salted water on for the pasta. Pound the chicken breasts to an even half inch so they cook fast and stay tender. Set out three shallow bowls: flour in the first, the beaten egg in the second, and the breadcrumbs mixed with the parmesan and Italian herbs, salt, and pepper in the third.
2
Bread the cutlets
Dredge each cutlet in flour, dip it in the egg, then press it into the breadcrumb and parmesan mix so it sticks on both sides. Set the breaded cutlets on a plate while you heat the oil.
3
Fry to golden
Heat the oil in an oven-safe skillet over medium-high and fry the cutlets 2 to 3 minutes per side, just until the crust is deep golden. They do not need to cook through here; the oven finishes them. Fry in two batches if the pan is crowded.
4
Sauce, cheese, and bake
Spoon marinara over each cutlet, top with the shredded mozzarella, and slide the skillet into the oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbling and the chicken reaches 165 F. Boil the pasta while it bakes, then serve the chicken over the pasta with the extra sauce.
2 Cheaper ingredient swaps
- Bake the cutlets instead of frying. To skip the frying oil, spray the breaded cutlets and bake them on a rack at 425 F for about 15 minutes before saucing. The crust is a little less crisp but the plate is lighter and cheaper.
- Panko for regular breadcrumbs. Panko gives a crunchier, more restaurant-style crust and swaps in one for one. Use whatever style of breadcrumb is already in the pantry.
- Provolone for mozzarella. A few slices of provolone melt just as well and lean the flavor a little sharper. Any melting cheese in the fridge works on top.
- Serve over zucchini or a salad instead of pasta. Skip the pasta and lay the chicken over sauteed zucchini ribbons or a green salad to cut the carbs and shave the cost by a few cents a plate.
3 Budget tips
- One jar of marinara sauces the whole pan. Buy the store brand, since a couple dollars of jarred sauce does the same job as one that costs twice as much once it is over crispy chicken and cheese.
- Chicken breast is cheapest in the family pack. Pound and bread what you need tonight and freeze the rest raw, or freeze extra breaded cutlets to bake straight from frozen later.
- Serving the chicken over a pot of cheap pasta is what stretches a pound and a half of chicken across four full plates without adding much cost.
4 Storage, freezing & reheating
Fridge
Refrigerate leftover chicken parmesan in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Keep the pasta separate if you can, so the crust does not go soft sitting in sauce.
Freezer
Freeze cooked chicken parmesan for up to 3 months, or freeze the breaded raw cutlets flat in a bag and bake them straight from frozen when you want a fast dinner.
Reheating
Reheat in a 375 F oven for about 12 minutes so the crust crisps back up and the cheese remelts. The microwave works in a pinch but leaves the breading soft.
5 Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
560
Protein
46g
Fat
18g
Carbs
52g
Estimates per serving with pasta, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not a substitute for medical advice.
6 Frequently asked questions
Why fry the chicken if it goes in the oven anyway?
Frying sets a crisp, golden crust that a purely baked cutlet never quite gets. The quick fry is only to color the crust; the oven finishes cooking the chicken through under the sauce and cheese. If you would rather skip the oil, bake the breaded cutlets first, then sauce and melt.
How do I keep the breading from getting soggy?
Only sauce the top of each cutlet rather than drowning it, and add the cheese right over the sauce so the crust edges stay exposed and crisp. Baking on the skillet at a hot 425 F also keeps the bottom from steaming.
Can I make chicken parmesan ahead of time?
Yes. Bread and fry the cutlets earlier in the day, then sauce, cheese, and bake just before dinner. Breaded raw cutlets also freeze well, so you can keep a batch ready to fry and bake later.
How is the price per plate figured?
About $10.04 for the chicken, breading, a jar of marinara, mozzarella, and a box of pasta, split across four servings, which comes to roughly $2.51 each. The chicken is the biggest cost, so buying it in a family pack or on sale moves the number the most.
Helpful Tools for This Recipe
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- 9x13 baking dish. A 9x13 dish is the standard size for casseroles and baked pasta, so one dish feeds the whole table. Best for casseroles, baked pasta, stuffed peppers, and baked oatmeal.
- Mixing bowls set. A set of nesting bowls handles prep, mixing, and marinades without dirtying every dish in the house. Best for mixing meatball and patty mixtures, tossing ingredients, and holding prepped components.
- Measuring cups and spoons set. A basic set of measuring cups and spoons keeps amounts consistent, which keeps budget recipes reliable. Best for rice, liquids, and any recipe where the ratio matters.
- Instant-read meat thermometer. An instant-read thermometer takes the guesswork out of doneness, so lean or cheap cuts stay juicy instead of overcooking. Best for chicken, pork, and meatloaf, where a few degrees decides juicy or dry.
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