Skip the restaurant and make a delicious chicken parm sandwich right in your kitchen! This easy recipe tops crispy breaded chicken breast cutlets with warm marinara, melty mozzarella, and a little fresh basil, all served on toasted ciabatta bread for a perfect sandwich that bursts with Italian flavors.
What Makes This Sandwich So Good
- The textures and flavors in this sandwich are unbelievable, but this recipe is SO simple. This is going to be a go-to meal in your house!
- The breading on the chicken is delicious and crisps up beautifully, giving the cutlets this incredible crunch but keeping them nice and juicy inside.
- If you’re not in the mood for a sandwich, use the chicken from this recipe and serve it with your favorite pasta or even just a Caesar salad.
Key Ingredients
Chicken Breasts – The star of a chicken parm sandwich! You’ll only need two chicken breasts for this recipe, but since they’ll be sliced into cutlets, you’ll get four sandwiches out of them!
Breadcrumbs – A mix of Italian breadcrumbs and Panko breadcrumbs gives this sandwich both taste AND texture! The Panko crisps up beautifully in the oil so the chicken cutlet is nice and crispy. The Italian breadcrumbs give the sandwich a savory flavor that’s perfect with marinara and parmesan.
Marinara – Use your favorite store-bought marinara, or make your own at home!
Crusty Bread – If you ask me, the bread can really make or break a sandwich. Ciabatta is absolutely perfect for a chicken parm sandwich – it’s nice and crispy outside, but super soft inside. If you don’t have ciabatta handy, any crusty bread will work.
Chef’s Tips
- Don’t overcook the chicken. Trust me, you do not want dry chicken on your chicken parm sandwich. No amount of marinara or melty cheese will make up for overcooked meat.
- I highly recommend shredding your own mozzarella cheese. The pre-packaged shredded cheese will totally work, but freshly shredded cheese melts much better, has a nicer flavor, and doesn’t contain any of the anti-clumping agents that are added to the pre-shredded cheeses.
- This is one dish that’s best served fresh. You want the chicken to be nice and crisp, the bread toasty, and the cheese melty, so making them ahead of time just doesn’t work as well. If you’re having any sides with your chicken parm sandwich, make sure they’re ready to go so your sandwich doesn’t have to sit around while the sides finish up.
Be Sure to Try These Delicious Chicken Recipes, Too!
- Chicken Pesto Sandwich
- Instant Pot Chicken and Rice Soup
- Chili’s Southwest Chicken Soup
- Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese
- Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
- Baked Chicken Meatballs
We hope you loved this recipe as much as we did! We’d love for you to give us a star ★ rating below, and follow us on Instagram! For more delicious, healthy recipes, be sure to check out 40 Aprons.
Chicken Parm Sandwich
Equipment
- Oven
- Cutting board
- Sharp knife
- Meat tenderizer
- 3 shallow bowls
- Whisk
- Cast iron skillet (or other large skillet)
- Internal meat thermometer
- Baking sheet
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts 2 chicken breasts, depending on size
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 1 ½ cups Panko breadcrumbs
- ½ tablespoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
- neutral oil for cooking
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 1 cup marinara warmed, divided
- 1 loaf ciabatta bread or 4 ciabatta rolls
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit. Slice chicken breasts in half horizontally, as if cutting a hamburger bun, to create chicken cutlets. Use meat tenderizer to pound chicken cutlets until roughly ½-inch thick.
- Add all-purpose flour to one shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, break eggs and quickly beat to create egg wash. In third shallow bowl, whisk together Italian breadcrumbs, Panko, kosher salt, black pepper, and parmesan.
- In cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, heat roughly ½-inch deep pool of neutral oil.
- One by one, dredge chicken cutlets first in flour, coating both sides of each cutlet evenly. After flour, dip cutlets in egg wash, again coating each side evenly. Hold cutlet over bowl and allow excess egg to drip off, then place cutlet in breadcrumb mixture. Evenly coat both sides with breadcrumbs and shake off any excess.
- When oil is hot, add breaded cutlets to skillet, being careful not to overcrowd pan. Cook chicken 2 to 3 minutes, then flip and cook another 2 to 3 minutes, until chicken reaches internal temperature of 165° Fahrenheit.
- Remove chicken from skillet and set aside. If using ciabatta loaf, divide loaf into 4 slices, then cut slices in half horizontally. If using rolls, cut rolls in half horizontally. Spread bread slices cut-side up on baking sheet and place in oven. Bake 1 to 2 minutes until just toasted.
- Remove bread from oven. Spread ½ cup marinara on cut-side of bottom halves of bread. Place chicken on top, then cover with remaining marinara sauce. Cover marinara with shredded mozzarella and fresh basil, then finish sandwich with top halves of bread.
- Return baking sheet to oven. Bake 2 to 3 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and serve warm.
[…] Chicken Parm Sandwich […]