This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
I absolutely adore a good chicken parm, but there are days that my taste buds want something simpler – just a nice breaded chicken cutlet recipe without drowning in a sea of sauce 🥫and a mountain of cheese 🧀 And that is how these Panko Chicken Cutlets were born. A perfectly seasoned, expertly breaded chicken that is pan fried to golden crispy perfection and the result is addictive, just trust me.
Why You’ll Love These Panko Chicken Cutlets
When you take a bite of this crispy panko chicken cutlet recipe that contrast so well with a juicy and tender center, you will be hooked. While the breaded chicken is great on it’s own, you combine that with the tangy bite of the dijon mustard, subtle sweetness of the honey and the nutty toasted flavor of the parmigiano dressing added to a vibrant and refreshing fennel arugula salad, say no more. You have the perfect meal for a casual weeknight dinner or a special occasion!
How to Prepare Panko Chicken Cutlets
Fennel Arugula Salad
🧀 Add the grated parmigiano to a bowl with the zest of 1 lemon, the juice(leave a little juice for the fennel), honey, dijon, salt and olive oil. Whisk really well. Let it sit for 15-20 minutes to marinate.
🍋 Shave the fennel and squeeze a bit of lemon on it so it doesn’t turn.
🥗 Add the arugula and fennel to a bowl. When ready, massage dressing in, using as much or as little as you want, you’ll probably want it all 😉
Crispy Breaded Chicken Cutlets
🔪 Slice the chicken breasts and cover with plastic wrap. Pound until desired level of thickness (now you have your chicken cutlets. Dry well and set aside.
🥚 Whisk the egg with milk together in a bowl. Using a fine mesh strainer, strain onto a plate.
🍽️ On another plate, mix the panko with the remaining ⅓ cup of parm cheese, add a bit of salt and pepper.
🧂 On a third plate, mix the flour with seasoning salt to taste.
🔥 Preheat a pan on high for 2 minutes. Add plenty of olive oil and lower to medium high.
🍗 Coat the dried chicken well on both sides with the flour, dredge both sides with the egg and lastly, both sides with the panko.
🥘 Fry the chicken breasts on medium high until golden on both sides, about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from the pan.
🍽️ Top with the salad, more parm and black pepper.
♥️ And that is it, subscribe for more!
Substitutions for Panko Chicken Cutlets
- You can use spinach, baby kale or mixed greens can work as a substitute for arugula.
- If you don’t want to use honey, maple syrup or nectar agave will work.
- In place of the Parmigiano Reggianno, a similar cheese option is Asiago, Pecorino Romano. Additionally, for a dairy-free option they have vegan parmesan.
- For this chicken cutlet recipe, if you don’t have olive oil, avocado oil or another type of vegetable oil are fine.
🔥Chef Nadia’s Tips🔥
- To make sure your breaded chicken cutlets are perfectly crispy, dry the chicken with a hair dryer on cool or you can buy a portable fan.
- My favorite stainless steel pan to use, bar none, is all clad!
Similar Recipes
Common Questions
Make sure to use food wrap to cover the top before you pound it out to minimize the splash damage.
Make sure your chicken is very dry before you dip it. You can use a hair dryer on cold or a portable fan to achieve this. Just drying it really well with paper towels will work too. Also make sure you hold your chicken and tap it to remove the excess flour. Moreover, if you would like and example, you can watch my video here. As a result of these simple tricks you will get the crunchy golden crust that will wow everyone!
Hands down, all clad takes the prize. It is my favorite line to use for pan searing!
Panko Chicken Cutlets
Equipment
- 1 Bowl for salad dressing
- 1 cheese grater
- 1 knife
- 1 fine mesh strainer
- 3 plates
- 1 pan for frying
Ingredients
Fennel Salad
- 5 oz container arugula, 1 container
- 1 fennel, shaved
- ⅓ cup parmigiano reggiano, freshly grated, + more for shaving over salad
- 1 lemon, large
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 ½ tsp dijon mustard
- seasoning salt, to taste, or salt and pepper
Crispy Chicken
- 3 large chicken breasts
- ⅓ c flour
- 1 ¼ cup panko
- 2 eggs
- 2 tbsp milk
Instructions
Fennel Arugula Salad
- Add the grated parmigiano to a bowl with the zest of 1 lemon, the juice, honey, dijon, salt and olive oil. Whisk really well. Let it sit for 15-20 minutes to marinate.
- Shave the fennel and squeeze a bit of lemon on it so it doesn’t turn.
- Add the arugula and fennel to a bowl. When ready, massage dressing in, using as much or as little as you want.
Crispy Chicken Cutlets
- Slice the chicken breasts, then pound until desired level of thickness.
- Whisk the egg with milk and strain onto a plate.
- On another plate, mix the panko with the remaining ⅓ cup of parm cheese, add a bit of salt and pepper.
- On a third plate, mix the flour with seasoning salt to taste.
- Preheat a pan on high for 2 minutes. Add plenty of olive oil and lower to medium high.
- Coat the dried chicken well on both sides with the flour, dredge with the egg and coat with the panko.
- Fry the chicken breasts on medium high until golden on both sides, about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from the pan.
- Top with the salad, more parm and black pepper and that is it!
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
My crust always falls off. Do you have any tips?
Sure! Make sure your chicken is very dry before you dip it. You can use a hair dryer on cold or a portable fan. I just added it to my common questions tab and added a video to watch. Let me know how it goes!
Thank you Nadia this recipe was amazing and the salad and the dressing perfect! 👌🏼
I wish I could share my pictures
Hey Steph! That’s a wonderful idea! I just changed it on the website so you should be able to add pictures now! I’m so glad you enjoyed it ☺️