Basil and Mozzarella Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients

• 2 skinless chicken breast cutlets, 180 g each and 1.5 cm thick
• 30 g plain flour
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 65 g dry breadcrumbs
• 25 g finely grated Parmesan
• 3 g fine salt, divided
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 45 g olive oil, divided
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 250 g crushed tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 100 g low-moisture mozzarella, grated
• 8 g whole fresh basil leaves

Let’s make it

1. Heat the oven to 425°F / 220°C. Warm 10 g of the olive oil in a saucepan, cook the garlic for 30 seconds, then add the tomatoes, oregano and 1 g salt. Simmer gently for 12 minutes while preparing the chicken.
2. Season the chicken with the remaining 2 g salt and the pepper. Put the flour and egg in separate shallow dishes. In a third dish, combine the breadcrumbs and Parmesan.
3. Coat the chicken in flour, then egg, then the breadcrumb mixture. Discard any remaining breading ingredients that touched raw chicken.
4. Heat the remaining 35 g oil in a wide ovenproof frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry the chicken for 3 minutes per side until the coating is golden, then remove the pan from the heat.
5. Spoon the tomato sauce onto the centers of the cutlets, leaving some crisp edges exposed, and cover the sauce with mozzarella. Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the cheese bubbles and the chicken reaches 165°F / 74°C in the center.
6. Let stand for 3 minutes. Transfer to plates and lay the whole basil leaves over the melted cheese.