Quick and Easy Air Fryer Chicken Parm

I really enjoy being in the kitchen (probably because I like to eat) and I have a family who also likes to help and join in the fun. This is one of our favorite air fryer recipes and easy enough for the oldest 2 to make on their own. I was hesitant about buying an air fryer; I simply don’t have the real estate in my kitchen to house a load of gadgets. Each appliance has to earn its keep. When our toaster died, we opted to buy a multi-function air fryer made by InstaPot. It does a little bit of everything, and one of the perks is that none of the baskets or racks is coated in non-stick anything. I am able to run pieces through the dishwasher, or scrub them clean. It’s also a larger capacity, and I can turn off all the annoying beeps. I certainly don’t need any more noise in my life right now. Anyway, while I like being in the kitchen, rarely do I like frying anything. So, the air fryer is a nice substitute on some recipes. And this chicken parm recipe is so good.

Start with boneless, skinless chicken breast. Trim the fat, and then slice into thin cutlets to pound flat. The uniform thickness helps the chicken cook quickly and completely. I slide the chicken into a resealable bag and smack it with a meat mallet.

Round up some bread crumbs (I do a half and half mixture of regular and panko), Parmesan cheese, tomato sauce (or marinara, or spaghetti sauce), Mozzarella cheese, cooking spray and eggs. Now, precious reader, this olive oil spray doesn’t have all of the crazy propellants in it. It is just olive oil, and it won’t ruin your nonstick surfaces like other brands of spray oil!

Scramble the eggs into a shallow dish. Combine the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese in another shallow dish. Preheat your air fryer to 360, and allow your pan to preheat in the oven, this keeps the chicken from sticking as bad. Dunk the chicken in the egg, then dredge through the breadcrumb mixture.

Right before you’re ready to put the chicken in the air fryer, spray with oil on each side. Then place in hot pan, and cook on one side for about 8 minutes. Then, turn your chicken, cover with tomato sauce and add mozzarella. Replace in the air fryer, and cook for another 3 minutes or so.

We serve this with garlic bread, thin spaghetti and usually steamed broccoli. If I have chicken that will be left over, I don’t add the sauce or cheese. I simply finish cooking, then we add the sauce and cheese when we reheat the leftovers.