Chicken Milanese is a super simple but elegant and really addictive meal. Chicken breasts are cut thinly and breaded in a tasty mix of Italian bread crumbs, panko and parmesan lightly and pan fried in olive oil and butter. This results in a light and crispy and delicious chicken breast which contrasts wonderfully with the cool salad and bright, acidic dressing.
The salad is composed of arugula and red onion, some grated parm, and a simple lemon and olive oil dressing. This recipe is fast and easy to make with very few ingredients and it came together in 30-40 minutes. You can buy precut thin sliced chicken breasts to make it easier, if you don’t want to have to cut the meat yourself. I like the mix of Italian bread crumbs and panko here, as panko gives great crunch to fried items. I could eat this multiple times a week and be happy. So good!
Chicken Milanese
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut in half horizontally to make 6 thin cut pieces
- 1/2 cup flour
- salt and pepper
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp water
- 3/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 3/4 cup panko
- 1/4 cup grated parm
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 4 tbsp butter more as needed
- 4 tbsp olive oil more as needed
For the salad:
- 4-6 cups arugula
- 1/2 red onion thinly sliced
- 1/3 cup shredded parmesan
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- lemon wedges for serving
Instructions
- Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, and a little salt and pepper for the dressing. In a bowl, toss the arugula, parm and red onion and set aside.
- Using a sharp knife, cut the chicken breast horizontally to make 2 thin cutlets out of each breast. Trim any needed areas. I prefer to lightly pound these out too which makes the chicken more tender to eat.
- Set up a plate with the flour, and shallow bowl with the eggs whisked with the water, another shallow bowl with the bread crumbs, panko and parm mixed. Sprinkle the cut chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Heat 2 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium heat until fully melted. Dip each piece of chicken into the flour, then into the egg, then into the bread crumbs, pressing on the bread crumbs to get a good coat. Coat all the chicken and place a few peices in the hot pan. Set the others on a plate until you finish the first batch.
- Fry the chicken over medium (turn to medium low if it starts getting too brown too quickly) until deep golden and crispy on one side, then flip and brown the other side. The chicken should be thin so it will cook quickly. Check for doneness, and place cooked chicken on a sheet pan in a 200 degree oven to stay warm while you cook the rest.
- Add more butter/oil to the pan and repeat. Once all the chicken is cooked, place on the plate and toss the salad with the dressing then put a big heap of salad on top of the chicken and serve.