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Chicken Milanese

This Chicken Milanese Recipe has an extra crispy Parmesan breadcrumb topping made in a single skillet and served with lemon and a healthy Arugula salad. Add Parmesan shavings and your favorite pasta for an easy dinner recipe that your family will love!

Serve this with Roasted Asparagus and Buttered Noodles, Creamy Lemon Pasta or Garlic Parmesan Pasta!

Chicken Milanese cut into slices on a plate with lemon wedges, fresh greens, and Parmesan shavings.

Chicken Milanese

Serving something Milanese Style simply means to coat thin slices of meat in a breadcrumb mixture and brown in oil and/or butter.

In my opinion, Chicken Milanese is one of the simplest yet satisfying meals you can prepare.

It’s commonly served with fresh greens, arugula salad in particular, but you can serve it with any side dish you want.

See below for my favorite easy recipes to pair with this meal!

How to Make it

Place your hand over the chicken and use a knife to carefully slice it in half lengthwise to create two thinner slices of equal size. 

A hand over a chicken breast with a knife cutting it in half.

Place saran wrap over the chicken and use a meat tenderizer to pound it evenly thin, until about 1/4 inch.

A hand holding a meat tenderizer and pounding a slice of chicken breast with saran wrap over it.

Pat the chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Bread it in the following order:

1. Dredge it in flour, tap off any excess.

2. Lightly coat it in whisked eggs combined with garlic powder.

3. Coat generously in a Breadcrumb and Parmesan Cheese mixture.

A stack of thin chicken covered in a Parmesan breadcrumb topping.

Heat vegetable oil and butter in a skillet.

Fry the chicken in batches of 1-2, don’t overlap so that the edges can get crispy. Cook until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes per side.

Place on paper towel-lined plates. Let it rest for at least 5 minutes prior to slicing.

A pile of crispy golded breaded chicken on a plate for chicken milanese.

PRO Tips for This Recipe

  • I like to fry this in a combination of butter and oil because the butter helps achieve a rich brown color.
  • Add butter as needed while you fry to control the temperature of the oil. (Decrease heat if needed as well.)
  • Place on paper towels after frying to absorb any excess oil, this makes them crispier.
  • To keep the chicken warm, place it on a wire rack in a 200° oven while you fry the remaining batches.

Storage

  • Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze in airtight Ziploc bags for up to 3 months.
  • This is a GREAT freezer meal to prep ahead of time and freeze in bulk for easy chicken dinners. You can even use it for Chicken Parmesan.

How to Reheat

  • Lightly grease the bottom of a dutch oven and reheat this in a 350° oven, covered. This takes about 20 minutes if it’s cold and about 35 minutes if frozen.
  • You can remove the cover and add another 5 minutes of cooking time to crisp up the top.

Air Fryer Method

Breaded chicken is perfect for the air fryer if you prefer not to fry on the stove top.

  • Once breaded, lightly spray each side of the chicken with olive oil.
  • Preheat air fryer to 390° and cook on on side #1 for 10 minutes. Flip, and cook at 300° on side #2 for 10 minutes.
  • Keep a close eye on it and adjust the temperature as needed, air fryers can vary in terms of heat and temperature.

Slices of crispy breaded chicken Milanese on a plate.

What to Serve with Chicken Milanese

 

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Slices of crispy breaded chicken Milanese on a plate.

Chicken Milanese

5 from 8 ratings
Thin slices of chicken with a crispy Parmesan breading fried in a skillet and served with lemon wedges and arugula salad. It's made even better with Balsamic and shaved Parmesan!

Ingredients

  • 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • Salt/Pepper
  • ½ cup flour
  • 2 eggs, whisked
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 ½ cup Panko breadcrumbs, try my homemade recipe
  • ¾ cup Parmesan, shredded
  • 4 Tablespoons butter
  • 4-6 Tablespoons vegetable oil

For Serving

  • Lemon, cut into wedges
  • Arugula or mixed greens
  • Shaved Parmesan
  • Balsamic Vinegar

Instructions

Slice and Pound the Chicken:

  • Place your hand over the chicken and use a knife to carefully slice it in half lengthwise to create two thinner slices of equal size.
  • Place saran wrap over the chicken and use a meat tenderizer to pound it evenly thin, until about 1/4 inch thick.
  • Pat the chicken dry and season with salt and pepper.

Bread it:

  • Dredge it in flour, tap off any excess.
  • Lightly coat it in the whisked eggs combined with garlic powder.
  • Coat generously in a mix of the Breadcrumbs and shredded Parmesan cheese.

Fry it: (See notes for air fryer method)

  • Heat 2 TBS vegetable oil and 2 TBS butter over medium-high heat in a large skillet.
  • Fry the chicken in batches of 1-2, don't overlap. Leave room around them so that the edges can get crispy. Cook until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes per side.
  • Add additional oil and butter as needed while you fry the remaining chicken. Decrease heat slightly if needed.
  • Place on paper towel-lined plates, the paper towels absorb excess oil which makes them crispier.
  • Let the chicken rest for at least 5 minutes prior to slicing.
  • PRO TIP: Transfer chicken from paper towels to a wire rack in a 200° oven to keep them warm while you fry the remaining batches.
  • Serve with lemon wedges and Arugula salad with Balsamic and shaved Parmesan.

Notes

Air Fryer Method (instead of Stove Top frying)
  • Once breaded, lightly spray each side of the chicken with olive oil.
  • Preheat air fryer to 390° and cook on on side #1 for 10 minutes. Flip, and cook at 300° on side #2 for 10 minutes.
  • Keep a close eye on it and adjust the temperature as needed, air fryers can vary in terms of heat and temperature.

Storage:
Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze in airtight Ziploc bags for up to 3 months.

Reheating:
  • Lightly grease the bottom of a dutch oven and reheat this in a 350° oven, covered. This takes about 20 minutes if it's cold and about 35 minutes if frozen.
  • You can remove the cover and add another 5 minutes of cooking time to crisp up the top.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 440kcal, Carbohydrates: 22g, Protein: 24g, Fat: 28g, Saturated Fat: 18g, Cholesterol: 116mg, Sodium: 608mg, Potassium: 292mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin A: 501IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 261mg, Iron: 2mg
Did you try this recipe?Mention @TheCozyCook on Instagram or tag #thecozycook!

 

This Chicken Milanese has thin slices of juicy chicken covered with a Parmesan breadcrumb mixture and pan fried to crispy perfection. | The Cozy Cook | #chicken #milanese #dinner #maincourse #comfortfood #easyrecipe

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11 comments on “Chicken Milanese”

  1. Have you tried cooking this in the oven?

  2. Great

  3. This was a BIG hit with my family tonight! Thank you!

  4. Made this with the Mac and cheese recipe for my family and parents. They LOVED it and said it a few times, even my hard to please dad!! There were also leftovers 👍🏻

  5. My wife and I were looking for an easy Chicken Milanese recipe with lots of flavor, and this was the perfect one! Super happy we found it. Adding it to our regular cooking rotation. So good! As usual.

  6. Delicious, so easy to make!!

  7. Hi Stephanie, this was the crispiest chicken I’ve ever made, I loved adding Parmesan to the breading! I served this with your Parmesan Garlic Pasta, it was SOO good!

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