Easy Crispy Breaded Baked Chicken Cutlets (No Egg)

These crispy baked chicken cutlets are the healthier alternative of fried chicken cutlets, with no egg, and no deep frying. They are coated with homemade Italian breadcrumbs to create a crispy crust while keeping the meat tender and juicy. The breadcrumbs are mixed with Parmesan cheese, fresh garlic, and fresh basil to add a distinctive taste to an otherwise bland crust. These oven-baked chicken cutlets can be served with a simple salad and some healthy baked potato wedges. This perfect weeknight dinner is ready in only 30 minutes.

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• Ingredients
• Instructions
• How to serve them
• Top tips
• Substitutions
• Variation
• Storage
• Recipes you might also like
• 📋Easy Crispy Breaded Baked Chicken Cutlets (No Egg)

You are familiar with the Veal Milanese, a breaded and deep-fried cutlet that can be made with any meat, beef, chicken, pork or even eggplants for a vegetarian option.

It is delicious but not the healthiest meal as it is deep-fried.

A lighter and healthier alternative is breaded baked cutlets in Italy called the Palermitana Cutlet.

There is no flour, egg, frying butter, or oil, and it can be made with any meat you like.

The meat is simply coated with olive oil and homemade Italian breadcrumbs and baked in the oven.

The chicken breast cutlets are marinated in olive oil, binding the breadcrumbs to the meat, creating a nice crispy crust.

While plain breadcrumbs can be very boring and bland, in this recipe, the breadcrumbs mixture is flavored with fresh garlic, Parmesan cheese, and fresh basil or parsley.

Those healthy breaded chicken cutlets are full of flavors, and a simple green salad seasoned with extra virgin olive oil is all you need to complete this easy and light weeknight dinner.

For more Italian breaded and baked recipe you can read the articles: Italian chicken nuggets, fried olive Ascolane, Eggplant or Veal Milanese, stuffed calamari, spiedini, and meat braciole without sauce.

Ingredients

This is an easy chicken recipe as it doesn't use flour or egg mixture.

The ingredients you need are very simple:

• Chicken breast: you will need deboned and skinless chicken breasts. Large chicken breasts are difficult to cook evenly as one side is larger than the other. I, therefore, cut them into thin-sliced chicken breasts. This also speeds up the cooking time as the thin breast will cook much faster and you will not need a meat thermometer.

• Breadcrumbs: always use stale bread, never store-bought or panko bread crumbs, as they are too dry and flavorless. Stale bread still has some moisture which makes the coating crispy but with texture and flavor
• Fresh Italian seasoning: in Italy, we do not have already prepared Italian seasoning. Using fresh ingredients instead of garlic powder or prepared spices makes a big difference. For these breadcrumbs, you will need fresh garlic clove, fresh basil and freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Extra virgin olive oil for coating
• Salt and black pepper

See the recipe card for measurements.

I always use seasoned Italian breadcrumb mixture in many of my recipes, which is why I usually prepare a large amount and keep it in the freezer.

They don’t need to be defrosted ahead of time.

If you want to know more about it, read the article: Grated Parmesan and Breadcrumbs. also check out the article: Once a Month Freezer Meal Prep to find out what else I keep in my freezer.

I always keep the stale bread aside, and when I have time, I prepare and freeze the breadcrumbs.

Instructions

Prepare the breadcrumbs

1. Blend with an electric blender a cup of shredded breadcrumbs with basil or parsley leaves and a garlic clove
2. Add the grated parmesan to the breadcrumbs
3. Stir with a fork to remove all the lumps

Hint: place some of the breadcrumbs into a shallow dish to coat the chicken. Do not put them all as leftover breadcrumbs that have been in contact with raw meat cannot be stored and reused.

Making the chicken cutlets

1. With a sharp knife, cut the chicken into thin chicken cutlets over a cutting board
2. Season with salt, pepper and olive oil. Once they are well seasoned, the oil will help the breadcrumbs to stick to the chicken.
3. Coat the chicken in the breadcrumbs on both sides.

Hint: if you have leftover breadcrumbs, you cannot reuse it as they have been in contact with raw chicken. To avoid throwing away breadcrumbs, place a small amount of breadcrumbs each time.

4. Lay the breaded cutlets on a single layer over parchment paper in an oven pan.
5. Cook 5 minutes on each side at 355 F - 180 C, till the edge of the chicken become white, then turn and bake until golden brown.
6. Serve them warm

Hint: you do not need any non-stick cooking spray, as the breadcrumbs and the parchment paper will keep the crispy chicken cutlets from sticking to the pan

How to serve them

These baked chicken cutlets are so full of flavors that you can serve them with a side salad seasoned with extra virgin olive oil and salt.

However, if you want to recreate a lighter version of chicken nuggets and chips, I would suggest making microwave baked potato chips, soft inside and crisp on the outside, just like the fried ones.

The secret is to microwave the potatoes before you put them in the oven and use the oven just to crisp them up.

It will take a fraction of the regular baking time.

Other side dishes you can serve with baked chicken cutlets are Tomato pesto pasta, pasta with green pesto alla Genovese, pasta with pistachio pesto, grilled zucchini, peppers and egglants, easy tabbouleh recipe.

Top tips

• It is better to prepare the breadcrumbs ahead of time to absorb the basil, garlic, and Parmesan flavors. I always have a frozen bag in my freezer.
• Always cut into thin chicken breasts, no thicker than ¼ inch - 5 millimeters. They need to cook thoroughly in a short time; otherwise, the breadcrumbs will burn, and the meat will remain raw.
• Place some of the breadcrumbs into a shallow dish to coat the chicken. Do not put them all as leftover breadcrumbs that have been in contact with raw meat cannot be stored and reused.
• The breadcrumbs will create a nice crust that keeps the chicken moist.

Substitutions

I use chicken breast in this recipe, but you can also use chicken thighs, turkey, beef, or pork cutlets.

You can also use the same recipe for tuna or swordfish steaks. Check this article for the best swordfish cut to use: Swordfish Meat: buying fresh and cooking choices

It is a very easy recipe to prepare!

Variation

• Vegan: You can also try a vegan version of this Palermitana cutlet using eggplants, cauliflower, mushrooms (porcini are the best), or zucchini.
• For a buffet or children's party you can make the Sicilian beef braciole instead. Small bites of braciole baked without tomato sauce. Easy to eat in one bite while standing.

Storage

If you have any leftover chicken cutlets, you can store them in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days

If you are not using already frozen breadcrumbs, these chicken cutlets can be frozen once breaded and before they are cooked.

They can be packaged into portions by separating them with aluminum foil and placed into a plastic bag.

It is a handy prepared meat to keep in the freezer for a busy day dinner

You can defrost them in the morning, and they will be ready to bake for a quick, easy, and delicious dinner.

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