Parmigiano and Herb Chicken Breast Tenders
This recipe is so versatile: serve these tenders hot or cold. Cold, pair them with pasta salad. Hot, they're good as is with a simple mixed green salad. Or, top the tenders with tomato sauce and cheese, and serve them with a side of spaghetti for an extra tender quick Chicken Parm.
Equipment
- 1 Large Nonstick Skillet or Frying Pan
- 1 Nonstick Baking Sheet
- 3 Shallow Dishes For breading station (e.g., pie tins, wide bowls)
- 1 Aluminum Foil Roll For lining baking sheet
Ingredients
Main
- Olive oil for frying
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast tenders
- Salt and pepper
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs beaten with 1/4 cup water
- 2 cups Italian style bread crumbs
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan
- 6 sprigs or stems fresh thyme leaves stripped and chopped, 2 to 3 tablespoons
- 6 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves finely chopped, 3 tablespoons
- 2 handfuls chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 4 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- Chicken Parmigiano recipe follows
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small white onion finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 14 ounce can chunky style crushed tomatoes
- 1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup chicken broth or stock
- A handful fresh basil leaves torn into small pieces
- Coarse salt
- 1 1/2 cups shredded provolone
- 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 1 pound spaghetti cooked to al dente
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place a nonstick cookie sheet in oven with a tin foil liner.
- Heat 1/2-inch oil in a large nonstick skillet or frying pan over medium to medium high heat.
- Season chicken tenders with salt and pepper. Wash hands. Place flour in a shallow dish. Beat eggs with water in a second dish along side the flour. In a third dish, combine the breading ingredients. Coat chicken in flour, then egg, then bread and cheese mixture. To keep your hands clean, ask for plastic gloves at the butcher counter. To ease your clean up, try using disposable tin pie tins for the flour, egg and bread crumbs.
- Cook chicken until deeply golden on each side, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to cookie sheet in preheated oven and finish off for another 5 minutes cooking time. Cook chicken 5 or 6 tenders at a time in a single layer, adding additional oil if necessary. If the chicken begins to brown too quickly lower heat slightly. Serve chicken hot or cold with green salad or, complete as a Parmigiano.
Notes
For optimal crispness and even cooking, ensure your oil in the skillet is at the correct temperature (medium to medium-high) before adding chicken; too cold will result in greasy tenders, too hot will burn the breading before the chicken cooks through. Do not overcrowd the pan, as this lowers the oil temperature and steams the chicken instead of frying it, leading to a soggy crust. Cook in batches, adding more oil as needed. When breading, use a 'dry hand/wet hand' technique to keep one hand clean for handling dry ingredients and the other for wet, minimizing mess. Finishing the tenders in the oven ensures the chicken is cooked through without over-browning the exterior, yielding a perfectly tender interior and crispy crust. These tenders are incredibly versatile; enjoy them as a standalone protein, with a fresh salad, or transform them into a quick Chicken Parm.