 Red sauce chicken parm
Chicken parmesan is probably the most popular Italian American dish outside the pasta realm. It is a staple of traditional “red sauce” Italian restaurants and it is safe to say that it is the most commonly ordered dish among Italian Americans and those who are not Italian Americans. The recipe is usually based on a breaded chicken cutlet that has been fried then robed in a dense red sauce, covered in an excess of thick mozzarella and baked in the oven.
Folks seem to like the dense sauce and the strings of melted mozzarella: but not me. In the following recipe I take a look at the history of this dish and suggest a way to make it much lighter and more distinguished in taste.
The curious thing about chicken parmesan is that there is no parmesan cheese in the dish. Yes, you can certainly sprinkle some parmesan cheese on your platter but it is not part of the recipe. A little research suggests an answer.  Image from Artfullly Walls
Some
references suggest that the word “parmesan” derives from the Arab word for
eggplant “al-badinjan.” Since
the eggplant came to Italy with the Arab conquest in the 9th century
the explanation is very plausible.
بَاذِنْجَان  "Persiane"
Other sources suggest that the word parmesan derives from the Sicilian word “palmigiana,” “slatted shutters” and suggests the layered slices of the eggplant.
This explanation is all the more plausible when you note that many recipes in Italian are not called “melanzane alla parmigiana” (eggplant parmesan) but “parmigiana di melanzane,” (parmesaned eggplant.)
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The first printed version of the dish appears in Vincenzo Corrado’s “Il Cuoco Gallante,” Naples, 1786. But this version does not use tomatoes, but only butter and spices.
The version we know today is first in print by Ippolito de Calvalcante’s ,”Cucina teorico-pratica”, Naples, 1837. The exact origin and meaning of the name of this dish is lost in history. What can be established however, is that the original dish is based on eggplant. (Curiously, Greek moussaka, also made from eggplant seems to be the cousin to this dish.)  See our page on Moussaka
(Curiously, Greek moussaka, also made from eggplant seems to be the cousin to this dish.)
When it comes to chicken parmesan, most Italian American versions do not include the eggplant while in nearly all Italian recipes the eggplant is a given. (By the way, when it comes to veal parmesan, you will be hard pressed to find it on Google.it.)
The version I present here is an attempt to lighten the traditional Italian American chicken parmesan and to reintroduce the original use of eggplant. For the tomato sauce, use fresh crushed tomatoes for a good canned variety of whole tomatoes such as Cento’s San Marzano. Crush them yourself by hand. Sautee them in oil and garlic for no more than fifteen minutes. Use them sparingly on chicken. The idea is to get away from that pool of red sauce that smothers everything and turns the bread crumb crust to mush. For the cheese, try to use fresh mozzarella. It doesn’t have to be the expensive imported kind. Just avoid commercial mozzarella which is very gummy. |
What you need
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Equipment
Sauce pan or wok for the tomato sauce Fry pan for the chicken and the eggplant Sharp knife Baking sheet Parchment paper Tongues Fork Cutting board |
Ingredients
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Getting started
Tomatoes
Crush the tomatoes Simmer the tomatoes in olive oil and garlic for about 10 minutes, no more. Salt and pepper to taste. 
Pounding
Cover the breasts in plastic wrap and flatten them with a pounder by striking with a motion moving towards the outer edge of the breast. This is a very important step that helps even cooking. |
Chicken
In the meantime, butterfly the chicken breasts by slicing them open from the edge. You can either use the full breast, or cut the butterfly in half at the seam for smaller pieces. 
Breading
Beat together the egg and 1/4 cup milk. Dip the breasts First - flour Second - egg and milk mixture Third - bread crumbs |
Frying
Set the skillet over the largest burner but set it at low. Too hot oil will burn the bread crumbs. Fry until golden brown: about five minutes per side. Set the breasts aside. |
Eggplant
While the chicken is frying cut the eggplant into very thin slices. ( A mandolin would be good for this.) |
Frying the eggplant
Fry the eggplant until golden on each side. |
Assembly
Set the cutlets on a tray lined with parchment. Lay out the eggplant slices so that they overlap slightly. Top with several tablespoons of the tomatoes. Add dabs of the fresh mozarella. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. (Note: in this lighter version, the chicken is not in a pool of tomato sauce.) |
Garnish with fresh basil and grated parmesan or pecorino romano