Featured comment
We loved this recipe! It was an easy weeknight dinner and super delicious. Add this to my rotation!
Kristen
The Combination Of My Dreams!
Every time I get bored with dinner, I make crispy chicken. Everyone in our house loves crispy chicken every single time.
And THIS CRISPY CHICKEN! I think it might be the most delicious I’ve ever made. The flavor! It is locked in thanks to the Parmesan and (don’t be mad) the mayo. One bite and I was like, yeah. There it is. That juicy, umami, crispy golden flavor.
I find the mayo coating is actually easiest to work with if you brush it on, and then just spoon the crumbles on top, so everything happens right on the sheet pan. Low lift, high reward!
The combination of the golden crispy chicken, with the creamy, luscious lemony pasta?! Get out. It was glorious. Fresh basil and lemon zest on top? Served with green beans or salad? 10/10!
All family members completely devoured this and went back for seconds on everything. Even my pickiest eater was singing the praises of the chicken. (She’s five and she decided to dip it in soy sauce? I don’t know. Kids are really something.)
Best feeling ever. Hope you guys love it!
How Make This Chicken and Pasta (Video)
Print
Crispy Parmesan Chicken with Creamy Lemon Pasta
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
Crispy golden parmesan chicken atop creamy, luscious, lemony pasta! This combo is everything!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/3 cup mayo
- avocado oil spray
- 8 ounces pasta (I love mafalda for this, about half the box)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 tablespoon flour
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon chicken base
- 1 cup heavy cream
- zest of half of a lemon
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice (half a lemon)
- a handful of fresh basil leaves, cut into fine ribbons
- an easy green salad for serving
Instructions
- Prep the Chicken: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment. Cut each chicken breast into thin, flat pieces (not bite-sized but something that looks like a thin chicken breast). For example: if a one-pound package gives me two chicken breasts, I’m often cutting it into 3-4 thin pieces per breast. Thin chicken is essential! And delicious! Pat the chicken breasts dry if they have a lot of moisture on them.
- Prep Topping: Mix the parmesan, panko, Italian seasoning, paprika, garlic powder, and salt in a bowl.
- Coat the Chicken: Place mayo in a bowl. Brush each chicken piece to coat with a thin layer of mayo. Spoon the panko mixture evenly over each piece of chicken. Press firmly to adhere the crumbs to the chicken, getting it as well-coated as you can. Carefully flip chicken pieces over and repeat on the other side. Finally, spray the top side with avocado oil spray until coated. (You will have some crumbles remaining on the baking sheet – that’s fine.)
- Bake the Chicken: Bake for 13-15 minutes, or until the chicken looks golden. Turn on the broiler; broil for 1-2 minutes. Grab each piece along the sides with tongs, flip, and broil the back side so it gets very golden and crispy all around and reaches an internal temp of 165.
- Make the Lemon Sauce: Melt butter over medium low heat. Add garlic; sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add flour; sauté for another 2-3 minutes. It will bubble and get a bit foamy.
- Finish Sauce: Add cream, water, and Better than Bouillon. Simmer for about 10 minutes until the sauce has thickened and clings to the back of a spoon. Remove the sauce from heat to cool slightly. Stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice.
- Cook the Pasta: Cook pasta according to package directions. When draining, reserve a bit of pasta water. Add the pasta to the sauce and toss to combine. Add reserved pasta water as needed.
- Serve: Slice your crispy chicken into strips. Scoop the hot, saucy pasta into shallow bowls, place the chicken slices on top, and finish with the basil ribbons. Sometimes I like to grab the extra crumbles from the sheet pan and sprinkle them on top, and serve with a lemon wedge. OOOOH BABY!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Boiling, Frying
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: lemon pasta, creamy pasta, pasta dinner, chicken cutlets, crispy chicken
Easy to make and so good. Love the crispy with the creamy pasta!
We love the different textures, too!
I love so many recipes here, but had to swing by and say how great this came together! I love a little extra acid always so opted for a bit more lemon. Thanks for all the amazing recipes and tips!!!
Creamy, lemony perfection! We really enjoyed this recipe! My kids said I made this before and loved it then too …I don’t recall! 😂
Made this tonight and it did not disappoint! The chicken came out so crispy and full of flavor, that mayo trick really works. The lemon pasta was creamy and bright, perfect match with the chicken. This one’s going on repeat in our house!
Heard about this recipe from the little green bean and decided to try it. Will definitely be making again, the chicken is so crispy and the sauce is flavourful, perfect lemon flavor.
SO good! My husband also gave a big thumbs up!! Some of the best chicken I have had too! I substituted mayo for light mayo and it was so tender and juicy but also packed with flavor! I loved that the pasta wasn’t cheesy. Amazing!
Excellent recipe I didn’t have cream so I used whole milk for the lemon sauce. Still came out amazing. I used the broiler method instead of baking came out delicious.
Add 1-2 cups freshly grated Parmesan to the sauce to really make this recipe next level. (And add some salt to taste)
Wow! A big hit for everyone in my family! I doubled the recipe for my family of 6 (including 4 teens), but would triple it for next time so that we can have leftovers or seconds because it was SO good! Our kids were scraping the sauce out of the pan!
This was absolutely delicious! I’m not sure why I’d never made a lemon sauce before but I’ve been missing out. We’ll definitely be adding this to our rotation.
I haven’t made this yet.. Could I cook the chicken in an air fryer? (I’m new to the air fryer craze.). THX!
What other pasta goes well with this dish?
Made this last night for dinner and we all loved it!
This was so good! The sauce came together so quickly, the chicken was perfectly moist and so flavorful. I served it with sautéed green beans and shallots, and both my husband and littles loved it!! Definitely putting this in the rotation.
Yummoooo!!! This one is SO good!
We LOVED this recipe! The chicken was so crispy for just being oven-baked, and the lemon pasta was creamy and summery. Fantastic recipe that I will for sure be making again. Thank you!
Yay, thanks for making it!
Not a mayo lover…could I sub Greek yogurt?
We haven’t tested it that way!
This recipe is so good. I had to force myself not to eat another plate full. The breading on the chicken was probably the best I have ever tasted. I was so determined to make this dish that I had to order the noodles online since I couldn’t find them in any store. They were kind of pricey, so I am not sure if I will use them again even though I loved them. I can see why you prefer them. I know this chicken would be great with anything. I will probably just use angel hair next time. Oh, and I did what you did. I wasn’t about to waste the crusties left on the pan. I spooned them over the top of each dish for that extra little added crunch.
This was delicious! Approved by my 8 and 5 year olds too. My 8 year old used his fork to scrape his remaining sauce directly into his mouth. We’ll definitely make again!
Would have loved to have seen that!
First time commenting on anything. This was amazing! Doubled the creamy lemon sauce because I wanted to use all the pasta. So so good!
Thanks for making the recipe!
We loved this recipe! It was an easy weeknight dinner and super delicious. Add this to my rotation!
Love this recipe! Have made it twice for the family and they devour it. I make my own pan-fried crispy chicken cutlets (pounded thin and breaded, cooked in a little high-quality olive oil) and pair it with your pasta — the crispiness of the chicken with the creamy lemon pasta is divine. (I found imported Malfalda pasta at World Market in their Italy section!) Have you ever tried to freeze this meal? Would love to meal prep it for our college student. Thank you for sharing!
Yum, that sounds so good! We haven’t tested freezing this, sorry.
Made this tonight for dinner and it was easy and fantastic! The chicken was nice and crispy. I added broccoli to the pasta and increased the sauce a bit to account for that. Would definitely make again and next time will have a nice crusty loaf of bread to eat every bite of that sauce!
Love the broccoli addition!
So delicious and easy. I’ve struggled to make crispy chicken in the oven and this was so good. I baked for 15 minutes and it was done, so I skipped the broil and it was still very crispy.
Would you consider adding the measurements into the recipe directions? I usually cook from my phone and scrolling back and forth takes time I don’t have. Thank you in advance!
Noted, thank you!
Absolutely delicious and delightful. Crowd pleaser for sure! Very nice and well balanced flavors. The chicken cooked so juicy, it was a standout for sure.