Chicken Parmigiana
This is such a great comfort food dish. Chicken Parm is chicken coated in breadcrumbs & parmesan that is traditionally shallow fried and topped with mozzarella cheese and grilled. However, I wanted to make my version slightly healthier so I opted to airfry mine to not use as much oil. I served mine with a homemade tomato sauce and this dish goes perfect with some roasted veg and potatoes.
Ingredients
Serves 4 | ***490 calories per serving
For sauce
1/2 onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
handful fresh basil, roughly chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp tomato pureé
400ml passata
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar (or 1 tsp sugar)
For chicken
4 medium chicken breasts (or 2 large and halved through the centre)
60-80g cornmeal (or breadcrumbs), depending on size of breasts
handful finely grated parmesan cheese
salt & pepper
2 eggs, beated
180g buffalo mozzarella, sliced
fresh basil (optional for garnish)
Method
First prepare your sauce. Add oil to a pan and add the onions and cook for 2-3 mins until beginning to soften.
Add your garlic and basil and cook for a further 2-3 mins, stirring regularly on a low heat as you don’t want to burn your garlic.
Add your tomato pureé and cook for a further minute before adding your balsamic and passata.
Leave to simmer on a low heat for about 20mins until the sauce is nicely thickened and reduced by about 1/3. Stir occasionally to make sure it’s not sticking while you prepare your chicken.
Preheat airfryer to 190 Celcius.
If using medium chicken breasts, lay chicken on sheet of greaseproof paper and another sheet on top. Using a rolling pin (or a wine bottle), hammer the thickest part of the chicken so that the chicken breast is roughly the same thickness all over (This will ensure the chicken cooks evenly).
Prepare 2 bowls, 1 with beaten egg and the other with some salt, pepper, cornmeal (or breadcrumbs) & parmesan. Give the dry ingredients a good stir to make sure everything is evenly dispersed.
Repeat step 2 for all the chicken breasts. If using large breasts that you halved, they may not need to be flattened any more. Dip each piece of chicken in the egg first then into the dry ingredients.
Coat chicken with dry mix on both sides then set on a plate. Repeat until all chicken is coated.
Spray with fry-lite or an oil spray a few times (about 10-15). Place in airfryer for 15-20mins or until golden and crispy (set timer to flip chicken half way through). Be careful not to overfill your airfryer or some chicken will cook quicker than others. I tend to cook mine in 2 batches in an even layer.
Heat your grill to 275 Celcius.
Once chicken is ready, your sauce should be ready too. Add a heaped tbsp of your sauce on top of each piece of chicken, followed by a few slices of the mozzarella (I usually add about 2-3 slices per chicken piece).
Grill for about 5-7 minutes or until cheese is starting to bubble and turn golden. Depending on your grill it may take more or less time so keep an eye on it.
When out of the oven, sprinkle with some fresh basil and enjoy! Best served with some roasted potatoes & veg.
***Calories are a rough guide and will differ based on products used and size of chicken breasts but should be a rough estimate of the calorie content.
