Recipe Background
Oven-Fried Parmesan Chicken is easy to make and delivers a satisfying, crunchy bite.
Back when I was just starting out, my first apartment was a tiny shoebox with a kitchen that would make a galley blush. It was a chilly Saturday when my college friends came over for our tradition—watching B-list movies and eating more food than we should have. I had promised them something special that day, a step up from our usual takeout. With a couple of eggs always in my fridge and a canister of fine breadcrumbs my grandmother swore by, inspiration struck in the form of Oven-Fried Parmesan Chicken. My pantry was never without a wedge of parmesan and oregano, dried but still fragrant, and it all came together in that cramped little kitchen.
As the aroma of paprika and butter filled the air, I swear even the pizza place downstairs was jealous. One of the tricks I learned was to let the chicken pieces rest after you take them out of the oven. This little patience game ensures the juices settle, allowing for clean, proud slices. My ancient oven wasn't perfect, but nothing was flipped or fussed over during baking, which made the outer layer of crispy wonder even more glorious. Sharing that meal under the flickering TV lights was like a badge of adulthood. The fresh oregano garnish was admittedly more for flair than flavor, but I could never resist a touch of green.
It's in those modest milestones that I learned the joys of creating something delicious from simplicity. The crunchy, cheesy exteriors paired with juicy, tender meat told my friends, and my younger self, that sometimes, all you need is a can-do spirit and a little oregano.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs beaten
- 1/4 cup fat-free milk
- 3/4 cup parmesan cheese grated
- 3/4 cup fine breadcrumbs
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 5 pounds chicken pieces such as breast halves, thighs, or drumsticks, bone-in and skin-on
- 1/4 cup butter or margarine melted
- fresh oregano to taste, snipped
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Grease two large, shallow baking dishes.
- In a medium bowl, add the beaten eggs and the milk and whisk to combine.
- In a second, shallow dish, add the parmesan cheese, the breadcrumbs, the dried oregano, the paprika, and the black pepper and stir to combine.
- Individually dip each of the chicken pieces into the egg-milk mixture, then coat them with the breadcrumb mixture.
- Place the coated chicken pieces in the prepared shallow dishes, ensuring they do not touch.
- Drizzle the chicken pieces with the melted butter.
- Bake the chicken pieces until they reach an internal temperature of 170 degrees F for the breasts and 180 degrees F for the thighs and the drumsticks. Do not flip the chicken pieces while baking.
- Serve the chicken pieces garnished with the fresh oregano.
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