Join us!  Sign in   

Chicken Milanese - Breaded Chicken Cutlets

Recipes »  Main Dish  »  Poultry - Chicken

Chicken Milanese (literally, chicken in the style of Milan) is a chicken breast that has been butterflied and lightly flattened out, dipped in beaten egg, then into a breadcrumb-Parmesan mixture and fried in butter. This superb dish is super-easy to make and packed with flavor. The breading is so light and so melt in your mouth good, the meat is moist and tender. It's one of my favorite quick meals for a weeknight. These crispy cutlets not only make an exceptional main dish for dinner, but are equally delightful in a sandwich. I often serve these over pasta, drizzling Alfredo sauce over everything. My father likes them topped with fried eggs and covered with Hollandaise sauce and cheddar cheese...the possibilities for this versatile dish are endless.

"This recipe is SO EASY, and it's fast! I just tried it for the first time tonight, but was able to skip the first few steps because I bought skinless, boneless chicken cutlets. It took about 20 minutes to prepare and cook, and it was absolutely delicious! My Dad was very fond of northern Italian cooking, and I wish he were still here to sample this great chicken dish because I know he would love it. My ten-year-old daughter cleaned her plate. I will definitely make this again." - mallmarie

Yield: 4 Servings Ready in 45 minutes

Cuisine: ItalianMain Ingredient: Chicken

(4.8, 70) 96% would make again (reviews)

Favorite 4,014 people favorited
Try Soon2,637 people trying soon

  Let BigOven make a grocery list for you.  Join us today - it's free.

Verified by stevemur

Servings          
Original recipe makes 4 Servings
1 cupUnbleached all-purpose flour
2 largeEggs
1 tablespoonVegetable oil
2 cupsPanko, fresh, or dried bread crumbs; (*see note)
1/2 cupParmesan or pecorino cheese; (or a combination of both), freshly grated
2 tablespoonsFresh Italian parsley; finely minced (or, 1/2 tsp. dried Italian herbs)
Salt and fresh ground black pepper
4 Chicken breasts; butterflied and lightly pounded
6 tablespoonsUnsalted butter
2 tablespoonsOlive oil
1 eachLemon; sliced into wedges
4 eachFresh parsley sprigs; (for garnish)
-- Lemon-Butter Sauce (optional) --
3 tablespoonsUnsalted butter
3 tablespoonsLemon juice; fresh squeezed

Chicken Milanese - Breaded Chicken Cutlets Preparation

Spread flour in shallow baking dish. Beat eggs with 1 tablespoon oil in second shallow baking dish. Mix bread crumbs, cheese and minced parsley in third shallow baking dish. Season each with salt and pepper.

Prepare chicken breast: Remove tenderloins (reserving for another use) and trim away any cartilage or visible fat. Place breast on cutting board with tip facing you and thinner side opposite your cutting hand. Hold breast firmly with palm of your free hand on top. Holding a knife parallel to board, carefully slice into thickest part of breast, drawing knife almost but not all the way through breast (take care to keep breast attached on one side). Open breast like a book, set between two sheets of heavy plastic wrap that have been lightly spritzed with water and gently pound to an even thickness, about 1/4- to 3/8-inch, with a meat mallet or rolling pin.

Season cutlets on both sides with salt and pepper, pressing seasonings into meat with your fingers. Bread cutlets one at a time. Dredge cutlets in flour, coating both sides and shaking off the excess. Then, using tongs, dip both sides of cutlets in egg mixture, letting excess drip back into baking dish to ensure very thin coating. Finally, dip both sides of cutlet in bread crumbs, pressing crumbs with fingers to form an even, cohesive coating. Place cutlets in single layer on wire rack set over baking sheet, allow coating to dry for about 5 minutes. (The recipe can be done ahead to this point; cover cutlets loosely with wax paper and refrigerate for up to one hour, or freeze for up to 1 month.)

Preheat two large nonstick saute pans over high heat, add 3 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon of oil to each pan. Heat until butter is melted and sizzling. Place 2 cutlets in each pan and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 2-1/2 minutes. Flip over, reduce heat to medium, and continue cooking until golden brown and chicken is cooked through, 2-1/2 to 3 minutes longer. Drain on rack set over a baking sheet, then transfer to a warm serving platter. Serve with lemon wedges and garnish with parsley sprigs.

For Lemon-Butter Sauce: Melt butter in pan, when foaming subsides, add lemon juice, swirlling to combine, and pour over cutlets, if desired.

* Note: If you choose to make your own bread crumbs:

- - 1 cup fresh bread crumbs - requires 3 slices bread - -

- - 1 cup fine dry bread crumbs - requires 4 slices bread - -

Use stale (but not moldy) bread, or bake bread slices in a slow oven (200 degrees F) until slightly dry (for fresh bread crumbs) or very dry (for dry bread crumbs), and allow to cool. Process the slices in a food processor, using a steel blade to make coarse crumbs, or a grating blade to make fine crumbs. Season with salt, herbs, garlic powder, onion powder, and/or lemon zest, if desired.

Panko (Japanese) bread crumbs have a coarser texture than ordinary bread crumbs, they make for a much lighter and crunchier coating for deep-fried foods. Fresh coarse bread crumbs make for a coating that is a little heavier and has less crunch than a panko coating. Dry fine bread crumbs make for a coating that is even more dense and doesn't stay crisp as long a panko coating.

Notes

Though Parmesan is the traditional cheese to use in this dish, you can substitute Pecorino Romano cheese for a stronger, more tangy flavor. The cheese is quite susceptible to burning, so be sure to keep a very close eye on the cutlets as they cook.

Pre-breaded Chicken Milanese freezes quite well; consider making a double batch, one for now, one for a quick meal later in the week or on a busy night when you don't have much time. To freeze and have ready-to-fry Chicken Milanese; place breaded cutlets onto baking sheets covered with wax paper or parchment paper and place in the freezer until firm. Then, place frozen cutlets in a plastic bag and keep frozen (up to 1 month) until ready to fry.

Link to another BigOven recipe

Add a link to another recipe! What would you serve with this?

I recommend pairing it (i.e., SIMULTANEOUSLY) with this recipe

Rice pilaf is a nice accompaniment for this recipe. - stevemur stevemur

Add photo of this recipe...
  • photo by Sorcery1979 Sorcery1979

  • Delicious Crust and Moist Chicken photo by BlizzardCooks BlizzardCooks

  • Chicken Milanese over spicy corn topped with Vodka sauce photo by rpm5101 rpm5101

  • This was a great and simple recipe. I paired it with the Classic Rice Pilaf and instead of using bay leaves, I used lime leaves and added a tablespoon of double concentrate tomato paste to the chicken broth. This was served with a side of sauted onions, mushroons and zucchini photo by claudegbeaudoin claudegbeaudoin

  • photo by PBE2695 PBE2695

  • Serving dish ready for the table. photo by KCinAZ KCinAZ

  • Plated and ready to dig in. Served with side salad in an attempt to balance the calories. photo by KCinAZ KCinAZ

  • photo by sgrishka sgrishka

  • photo by sgrishka sgrishka

  • Calories Per Serving: 1067
    Want detailed nutrition information, including line-by-line nutrition insights?  Try BigOven Pro for Free for 14 days!
    Ads keep BigOven free. Remove ads with BigOven Pro
    Date My private notes
    Add notes with BigOven Pro!
    Ads keep BigOven free. Remove ads anywhere you log in with BigOven Pro

    Chicken Milanese - Breaded Chicken Cutlets Reviews

    Give it a rating Would you make it again?   [please sign in to add your comment]
    Loved this recipe!
    1 months, 2 weeks, 5 days, 16 hours, 10 minutes ago
    Loved this recipe. I did add tomato sauce and mozzarella and baked for a few minutes. Side of pasta and I had chicken parm.
    2 months, 2 weeks, 2 days, 17 hours, 49 minutes ago
    My family's recipe is very similar! You can use thin sliced beef (not sure of cut). Add tomato sauce and mozzarella on top for a quick Parmesan version. Or simply dribble lemon juice on top when serving
    2 months, 2 weeks, 3 days, 23 hours, 32 minutes ago
    2 months, 4 weeks, 22 hours, 35 minutes ago
    This is the first time that I have made a breaded anything where the breading was still there when I finished frying the meat. The Chicken Milanese was wonderful. It was tender and juicy yet the coating was crispy fine. I only made 1/2 recipe for two. The only change I made was olive oil and just a touch of butter. Hubby said it was very tasty. We will definetely make again. Thanks for the recipe.
    3 months, 6 days, 13 hours, 27 minutes ago
    This is a great recipe for breaded chicken cutlets! We used panko bread crumbs and pecorino ramano cheese. The chicken was moist , flavorful, and perfect with the butter/lemon sauce. The leftovers went to the grandsons today as 'chicken nuggets'. What a beautiful, simple and versatile dish! Thank you!!
    3 months, 3 weeks, 1 days, 12 hours, 3 minutes ago
    Excellent recipe. It has also become my standard for breading cutlets for other recipes.
    3 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 22 hours, 51 minutes ago
    4 months, 1 days, 20 hours, 19 minutes ago
    My family loved it!!-Next time I'll add more par median but it was delicious!!
    4 months, 1 weeks, 6 days, 14 hours, 48 minutes ago
    5 months, 2 weeks, 4 days, 14 hours, 17 minutes ago
    Easy, flavorful. Not 5 stars but it was good.
    5 months, 2 weeks, 4 days, 14 hours, 55 minutes ago
    Made this last night..i loved it
    5 months, 2 weeks, 6 days, 1 hours, 32 minutes ago
    6 months, 2 weeks, 1 days, 20 hours, 26 minutes ago
    Everyone loves this chicken dish!
    6 months, 2 weeks, 3 days, 16 hours, 29 minutes ago
    Excellent!! Hubby & I give this 2 thumbs up. Flavorful, super easy and few ingredients. I'll be making this one again and again.
    7 months, 6 days, 1 hours, 36 minutes ago
    7 months, 1 weeks, 6 days, 9 hours, 24 minutes ago
    This was easy and very tasty. I'll definitely make it a favorite
    7 months, 2 weeks, 1 days, 19 hours, 10 minutes ago
    The directions are spot-on. I've made this for years, but sgrishka has it down!
    7 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 25 minutes ago
    Wonderful. Made this with Panko bread crumbs. Fried egg with package Hollandaise with the juice of one lemon added, The only thing wrong with it is I overcooked the egg. But this was great will be making this again real soon. Thanks
    8 months, 1 weeks, 2 days, 1 hours, 58 minutes ago
    9 months, 1 weeks, 12 minutes ago

    Tags

    1. chicken cutlet
    2. unsalted butter
    3. chicken breast
    4. Italian
    5. Chicken
    6. Main Dish
    7. Lemon juice
    8. Lemon
    9. olive oil
    10. parsley
    11. cheese
    12. Pecorino
    13. Parmesan
    14. vegetable oil
    15. eggs
    16. AP flour
    17. Easy
    18. Advance
    19. Fry
    20. Quick
    21. Dinner
    22. Spring
    23. Comforting

    Blogger? Grab a link to this recipe


    Link type:     

    Want a link to this recipe? Just copy the text below and paste it into your blog:


    here's how it will appear in your blog:

    ×

    Share
    Recipe added by



    Hi there! Please sign in first.

    BigOven needs to know who you are in order to keep your recipes, grocery list and menu plan, and sync it with your smartphone or tablet.

    Not yet a BigOven member? Join us, save time and money!

    ×

    Ready? Let's get cooking.