Chicken parmesan is always a crowd pleasing meal, but coating and pan-frying chicken cutlets is a bit messy and cumbersome to make. So tonight, I am rethinking this classic dish and making a deconstructed chicken parmesan.
This one pot Italian favorite has all the flavors of a traditional chicken parm, and all it takes is some mad layering skills.
1st layer: Olive oil and garlic. In the bottom of a casserole dish, I put about 2 tablespoons of olive oil and then toss my fresh sliced garlic in.
2nd layer: Chicken breasts. To get the chicken cooking even faster and more evenly, I cube the chicken into large chunks. This also makes serving the dinner to the kids a whole lot easier.
3rd layer: Seasoning. Sprinkle some salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes on top of the chicken.
4th layer: Sauce. I use one jar of my favorite Rao’s marinara.
5th layer: Basil. Chop up some fresh basil leaves. I like a lot, but this is a personal preference.
6th layer: Cheese. I get a fresh chunk of mozzarella cheese and grate it. I toss about half the cheese on top followed by a good sprinkling of fresh parmesan cheese.
7th layer: Croutons. I don’t have a crouton brand that I reach for, but for this dish, I recommend finding some that are large in size. Crush and break up some of the croutons in the bag so you get a variety of texture in each bite. Then scatter them over the top.
8th layer: More cheese! Finish the dish off with another layer of cheesy goodness.
Pop this in the oven, uncovered for 50-60 minutes (it depends on how large your chicken chunks are so adjust cooking accordingly).
Finally, I add another sprinkling of fresh cut basil because this dish deserves some garnish!
The croutons have turned into this crunchy, flavorful baked topping that perfectly mimics a traditional breaded and fried chicken cutlet…and I don’t even have to clean any splattered grease on my stovetop. 
This is so tasty served right over a bed of pasta. This time, I am using giant fusilli pasta just because it is fun. 
The cheese is melted to perfection! How could this not bring you comfort food joy?
Go ahead and try this…simplify your weeknight meal prep too with this quick and easy dinner that is flavorful and requiring only one dish.
Do you have an all-in-one way of rethinking a classic dish? Please share!
