C is for Chicken in Pyjamas for The Kids Cook Monday

Chicken Parmigiana/Chicken in Pyjamas.  Chicken Parmigiana is a bit of a mouthful for kids to say so somewhere along the line in our household it became Chicken in Pyjamas and the name has stuck.

Bear and Bee both like crumbed chicken strips and this has been my attempt to get them to eat something more adventurous.  It still has the tender chicken, crunchy breadcrumbs, tomato sauce and gooey cheese - just presented in a different way.  In the interests of time and ease of preparation we use a bottled pasta sauce.  You can certainly use a homemade pasta sauce instead if you have some handy.  This is also a great recipe is you have more than one child helping in the kitchen as there is plenty to do crumbing the chicken fillets.

Chicken in Pyjamas (Chicken Parmigiana)
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Serves 4

Ingredients 
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/4 cup plain flour
1 large egg
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (150g each)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup shredded or sliced mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons tomato pasta sauce

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

2. Place the Parmesan and the breadcrumbs on plate and mix together.

3. Place the flour on a plate and season with salt and pepper.

4. Beat the egg in a shallow bowl with 2 tablespoons water.

 

5. Dip the chicken into the flour, then into the egg mix and then into the breadcrumbs. Place on a clean plate.

6. Heat the oil over moderate heat in a large nonstick frying pan. Cook the chicken for 3 minutes each side.

7. Transfer to a baking tray lined with baking paper or alfoil and spoon the tomato sauce on top and sprinkle with the mozzarella.

8. Bake for 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

To make a healthier version of this recipe you could spray the crumbed chicken fillets with olive oil spray and bake in the oven for 5 minutes before adding the sauce and mozarella. Make sure your fillets are quite thin (5mm) to ensure they cook through.