Crock Pot Chicken Parmesean
Ingredients
For the Chicken:
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated, divided
- ½ cup mozzarella cheese, grated
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten with ½ cup water
- 1 tbsp. dried basil
- 1 tbsp. dried oregano
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
For the Sauce:
- 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1 8-ounce can plain tomato sauce
- 1 tbsp. tomato paste
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp. dried basil
- Salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the Pasta:
- 8 ounces uncooked penne pasta
- ½ cup water
Instructions
To prepare the chicken:
- In a large bowl, combine the bread crumbs, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese, dried basil, dried oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and freshly ground pepper; stir well to combine all ingredients.
- Place the all-purpose flour in a separate bowl and the eggs in yet another bowl.
- Place the chicken breasts between two pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper.
- Using a meat mallet or a rolling pin, lightly pound the chicken breasts: mainly in the middle and along the thickest side, to an even thickness.
- One by one, bread the pounded chicken breasts by dredging each piece in the flour; shake off excess.
- Next, dip the chicken breast into the eggs, making sure it's completely covered; let excess egg drip off.
- Then place in the bread crumb mixture; ensuring it is fully coated; press lightly to make sure the bread crumbs stick to the chicken; move to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken breasts.
To prepare the sauce:
- Place all the ingredients for the sauce into the crock pot; stir well to fully combine thoroughly.
To cook the chicken Parmesean:
- Place breaded chicken breasts on top of sauce; cover tightly with a lid; turn heat to low and cook for 4 hours.
- After chicken has mostly cooked, remove lid and carefully transfer chicken breasts onto a plate.
- To the crock pot, add the penne pasta and 1/2 cup of water; stir well to combine; cover tightly again and cook for 20 minutes.
- When pasta is nearly cooked, remove lid from crock pot; return the chicken to the slow cooker.
- Evenly distribute the mozzarella cheese and the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese over the chicken breasts.
- Cover tightly with the lid and continue cooking another 20 – 30 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the pasta is completely cooked.