I feel like chicken tonight...

After trying dozens of chicken cutlet recipes over the years, I finally found the winner: Parmesan Crusted Chicken. This chicken is so good I've made it 4 times in the past two weeks.  It's moist, crunchy, lemony, and tastes like a classier version of the the ones typically served in a bucket.   I'm not even a huge fried chicken kind of girl and I'm hooked.  I serve it with healthy mashed potatoes and roasted cauliflower.  Recipe after the jump. 

Recipe:

Servings: 4

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

4 egg whites

4 tsp cornstarch

2 lemons, one for serving, the other's juice and rind (be sure to zest before juicing)

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

1/2 cup panko 

1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (or 1 tsp of dried parsley)

1 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp ground pepper

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

4 tbsp olive oil

4 tbsp unsalted butter

Directions: 

1) Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. 

2) Lightly pound the chicken breasts to an even 1/2 inch thickness. (Or ask your butcher to do the dirty work)

3) Blend the egg whites, cornstarch, and the juice from one lemon with a fork in a wide, shallow dish. Set aside. 

4) Combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, salt, pepper, and zest in a second wide, shallow bowl.

5) Working with one chicken breast at a time, dip in the egg mixture and then in the crumbs. Repeat so that you double dip each breast ending with breadcrumbs. (egg/breadcrumbs/egg/breadcrumbs). 

6) Pat the crumbs on both sides of chicken- it's ok if some crumbs fall off.

7) Set the crusted breasts on a wire rack for 20 to 30 minutes to set crust. (Or if you're making this in advance, cover and refrigerate until ready to cook). Allow the chicken to come to room temperature if possible before baking. 

8) After 20 to 30 minutes, saute the chicken in a mixture of oil and butter in a large, nonstick, ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes per side, or until golden brown and crisp. Use 2 tbsp oil/2 tbsp butter for each batch of 2 chicken breasts. Watch the breasts carefully so that they are perfectly golden brown when you flip them. 

9) After both sides are browned, transfer to a 450 degree oven to finish cooking. Cooking times vary depending on how thin your cutlet is and how well you fried it. I always use a meat thermometer to make sure that the internal temperature is at least 165 degrees. It takes about 8-12 minutes. 

10)  Serve with lemon wedges and enjoy!

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PC: Delish.com

Recipe from Miss Gracie from Food.com