by: House of Kerrs
If there was one dish that comes to mind that I made weekly when I was working 9-5, commuting, doing the after-work daycare pickup & dinner shuffle with little ones crawling up my leg as I smashed a dinner together this is the one – a One-Pan Chicken Parm-atore recipe. It’s not quite a parmigiana dish, nor the classic chicken cacciatore Italians make, but a beautiful, flavourful combination of the two, minus some of the ingredients & steps to keep it super simple. DadChef & I made this for our romancy Anniversary meal earlier this month with some heart-shaped mozzarella to finish it off, and we think your family will really enjoy this one. It is so versatile, pairing nicely with so many sides – roasted potatoes, salad, rice, pasta or sautéed veggies. It’s a tasty one to add to your cold weather weeknight meal rotation, date night or Valentine’s Day meal at home menu!
Ways to Modify the Chicken Parm-atore D’amore Recipe
- We removed the searing step of the chicken, but if you like getting maximum flavour from your meat, sear the chicken breast with a bit of olive oil in a skillet until the sides are brown for about 10 mins & set aside.
- Adding a handful of small, fresh tomatoes to this dish amplifies the flavour, but if you don’t have any, just the canned diced tomatoes will do. Like many traditional Chicken Cacciatore recipes, you could also add mushrooms & sliced red peppers during the step where we saute the onions. We omitted these simply because the kids don’t like a lot of extra in their sauce. A splash of wine is a nice flavour enhancer too!
- We like leaner poultry & use skinless, boneless chicken breast, but this would taste delish with chicken thighs & skin-on chicken as well.
- For our dairy-free readers, you can skip the last step of adding mozzarella.
- We used a small heart-shaped food cutter for the cheese as a fun way to get the kids involved, but it’s a totally unnecessary step & you could simply slice or shred the mozzarella.
- As a large family, this recipe yields enough to serve six adults, and since kids have smaller portions, you’ll have lots of leftovers for another meal. If six chicken breasts is too much for your family, reduce the portion, as well as some of the ingredients. When we were a family of four, for instance, I’d only used 1 can of dice tomatoes.
My Latest Culinary Love – The Braiser
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I will be the first to tell you that a kitchen stocked with all the fancy, expensive cooking tools does not necessarily equate to quality cooking. I learned how to cook from my Dad who used the same simple pans & pots for years until they fell apart & his food was incredible! BUT, if you’re looking for a fabulous addition to your culinary cooking equipment selection, I highly recommend investing in a Braiser. Why? It has the same capacity of a Dutch Oven & Skillet in one. Braisers are great for searing + browning, simmering, sauteeing, roasting, and, of course, a good braising – a combination-cooking method that uses both wet and dry heats: typically, the food is firstsautéedorseared at a high temperature, then finished in a covered pot at a lower temperature while sitting in some (variable) amount of liquid (which may also add flavor). [Source: Wikipedia].
If purchasing a Braiser isn’t in the cooking cards right now, no sweat! We’ve made this dish MANY TIMES in a basic low & deep sauce pan. Instead of finishing with a cheese broil, just add the mozzarella near the end of the cooking time so it melts on top in the sauce pan.
Print Recipe
One-Pan Chicken Parm-atore D'amore Recipe | La Cucina di Kerrs
A beautiful, flavourful combo of Italian classics parmigiana & cacciatore, this one-pan chicken dish goes with all your family's favourite sides and is a great recipe to add to your meal rotation!
Prep Time5 minutes mins
Cook Time40 minutes mins
Course: dinner
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: chicken, easy meals, italian recipe ideas, pasta sauce
Servings: 6 people
Author: House of Kerrs
Equipment
Oven Safe Braiser or large sauce pan
Small, Heart-shaped food cutter
Ingredients
- 2 796 mL cans diced tomatoes *we use Unico*
- 6 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 4 cloves Garlic diced or minced
- 1 medium cooking onion sliced thinly
- 1 handful fresh mini cherry or grape tomatoes cut in halves or quarters
- 1 tbsp freshly chopped or dried basil
- 1 tbsp Italiano seasoning *we used Club House*
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- Salt & Pepper to taste (a few pinches each)
- 6 breasts Skinless, boneless Chicken
- 1 ball fresh or hard ball mozzarella *we used fresh*
- fresh basil leaves for garnish
- 1 handful Kalamata Olives *optional*
Instructions
In a sauce pan, heat oil on medium & add chopped garlic + sliced onion (*cook til’ onion looks clear*).
Add canned diced tomatoes & fresh chopped tomatoes. Add Italian seasoning, garlic powder, basil and a few pinches or shakes each of salt & pepper. Sauté until fresh tomato skins soften & sauce comes to a bubbling simmer. Reduce heat to med-low.
Add chicken breast, spacing evenly around the pan & wiggling it down and under the sauce. Cover & let chicken cook 25 - 30 minutes, stirring the sauce & turning breasts over intermittently so they cook evenly. The sauce will turn a deep red & be thickened when ready.
Turn your oven on to BROIL setting. Place heart-shaped or sliced mozzarella over each chicken breast and add Kalamata olives on top of sauce. Place the Braiser on the middle oven rack, and broil the dish until the cheese bubbles golden (about 5 mins, but could be less depending on your oven, so watch closely) Remove Braiser from oven & let dish set a bit. Garnish with fresh basil leaves & serve with your family's favourite side(s) - sautéed vegetables, salad, rice, pasta or roasted potatoes. Buon appetito! Comment on or rate this recipe below if you try! Or tag us at @House_of_Kerrs #LaCucinadiKerrs on Instagram!
If you’re looking for a nice Valentine’s Day meal to make as a family, this recipe Chicken Parm-atore D’amore recipe would pair nicely with our Caprese Salad D’amore as a starter or one of our pasta recipes!
Caprese Salad D’amore
Pair the Chicken Parm-atore with one of our family pasta recipes!
We hope one of our recipes inspires you to bring a touch of AMORE to your own Cucinas! All of our recipes are made & shared with love, so do share or tag us on social if you try any of them with your family. We appreciate the food share love SO VERY MUCH!
Keep well, eat well & love with all you’ve got,
