Weeknight Chicken Parmesan
with pasta / broccoli
Breading chicken for classic chicken parmesan is messy and time-consuming, so this shortcut version truly is much more weeknight-friendly. Cook everything in an oven-safe skillet and top it with cheese and panko crust to give it that classic melty / crunchy finish with far fewer steps.
Ingredients
- Cheese, fresh mozzarella - 3 oz, sliced (sub pre-shredded mozzarella)
- Basil - 8 leaves, chiffonade
- Oil, cooking - 2 Tbsp
- Chicken tenders - 1 lb (sub boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced into strips)
- Marinara sauce - 1 cup (use your favorite store-bought)
- Garlic - 2 cloves, chopped
- Cheese, parmesan (opt) - 2 oz, grated (plus extra for serving)
- Panko breadcrumbs - 1/2 cup
- Italian seasoning - 1 tsp
- Oil, olive - 2 Tbsp
- Broccoli florets - 12 oz
- Pasta, any variety - 8 oz
Nutrition Facts
Prep
- Broccoli / Garlic - Prep as directed. Store separately. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Cheese (both types) - Prep as directed. Store separately. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Basil - Chiffonade basil.
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Make
- Turn on the oven’s broiler.
- Bring a large stock pot of salted water to boil.
- While water is heating up, heat a large oven-safe skillet with cooking oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken tenders and sear on both sides until just cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes total. Season chicken on both sides with some salt and pepper as it cooks.
- Move skillet off the heat. Spoon marinara sauce over and around chicken.
- Return to the stockpot of water (which should be boiling by now) and add pasta. Cook pasta according to package directions. About 1 minute before the pasta is finished cooking, add broccoli.
- In a small bowl, stir together garlic, Parmesan cheese, panko, Italian seasoning, and olive oil.
- Top chicken and marinara with mozzarella cheese slices and then with seasoned panko. Transfer skillet to oven and broil until cheese is melted and panko is golden, 4 to 5 minutes. (Note: Watch the skillet closely to prevent burning the panko.)
- Drain pasta and broccoli.
- Serve chicken and sauce over pasta and broccoli with basil on top. Serve some extra sauce on the side if you like a more saucy pasta. Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
Reviews
Ratings
71 reviews
Delicious topping made it feel more special than 'weeknight'. Will definitely make this again (and again).
0 HelpfulDelicious and adding to favorites! Had extra sauce as suggested. All loved it in my house from 1 year old to adults. Will definitely make it again. Might make bit sized chicken chunks next time. My tenders were an odd size for serving. I’d either go larger or smaller.
0 HelpfulWe loved this. I doubled the marinara sauce and used chicken breast (tenders would have been better). Didn't have fresh basil.
0 Helpful