Gluten-Free Chicken Parmesan
Published
Chicken Parmesan was always one of my favorite comfort meals, so when I went gluten-free, I knew I had to find a way to recreate it without losing any of that crispy, cheesy magic. This gluten-free chicken parmesan gives me all the comfort. It’s pan-fried for that golden crunch, then finished in the oven with marinara and melty mozzarella. It’s surprisingly easy to pull together, whether it’s a busy weeknight or a slow Sunday dinner. If you’ve been missing classic chicken parm since going gluten-free, this recipe brings it back in the best way.
“This is the best chicken parm recipe I have ever made, gluten-free or not! The whole family has been raving about it all evening, definitely recommend getting your chicken as thin as possible for the best result. Thank you so much for sharing!”
– Jill
Easy Gluten-Free Chicken Parmesan Recipes
Since going gluten-free, I’ve made it my mission to bring back all the comfort foods I used to love, starting right in my own kitchen. This gluten-free chicken parmesan is one of those wins. It’s made with simple pantry staples and gets that irresistible crispy coating thanks to a quick pan-fry in olive oil using a mix of seasoned gluten-free breadcrumbs and gluten-free panko. After that, it’s baked to perfection with a generous layer of marinara and plenty of melty mozzarella. It’s cozy, satisfying, and always a hit at my dinner table, and the leftovers are just as good the next day.
Gluten-Free Chicken Parmesan
Ingredients
- 6 skinless, boneless thin-sliced chicken breasts, or skinless, boneless chicken breasts halved to make fillets
- salt and black pepper, to taste
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup gluten-free panko bread crumbs, I like 4C gluten-free panko bread crumbs. I buy it at Walmart
- 1 cup gluten-free bread crumbs, or use 4C gluten-free bread crumbs
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated, For dairy-free: I like Follow Your Heart dairy-free parmesan cheese
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- ½ cup gluten-free flour, I like Pillsbury gluten-free flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch, Substitute for more gluten-free flour
- ½ cup olive oil
- ½ cup gluten-free marina sauce
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese, sliced or shredded, For dairy-free: I like Violife dairy-free mozzarella cheese shreds
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Whisk eggs in a pie pan or shallow bowl and set aside.
- Mix together the gluten-free flour and cornstarch in a pie pan or shallow dish.
- Mix together the gluten-free bread crumbs, gluten-free panko, ½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, and Italian seasoning in a pie pan or shallow bowl.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper and dredge in chicken in the gluten-free flour mixture on both sides.
- Dip the gluten-free flour-coated chicken breast into the whisked eggs. Then dip chicken into the gluten-free breadcrumb mixture to evenly coat on both sides. Repeat for each chicken cutlet.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat until it begins to shimmer. Cook chicken in the hot oil until golden, about 2 minutes per side. The chicken will finish cooking in the oven.
- Transfer the chicken to a greased baking dish. Top each chicken breast with 2 tbsp of the marinara sauce.
- Layer each chicken breast with equal amounts of mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and Parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 15- 20 minutes, until the cheese is browned and bubbly and the chicken breasts and the chicken is completely cooked through. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165°F.
Notes
- You can easily use more or fewer gluten-free panko crumbs and gluten-free bread crumbs—your preference.
- Change the seasonings to change the flavor. You can even make this recipe spicy by adding some cayenne pepper.
- Having some sort of binding agent to hold the gluten-free flour and the gluten-free bread crumbs onto the chicken is key, but that doesn’t mean that you have to use eggs. If you don’t have eggs, you can use heavy cream as a substitute instead.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
How to Make Gluten-Free Chicken Parmesan Step by Step
Gather the Ingredients: Gather all the ingredients together and preheat the oven to 450°F.
Whisk the eggs: Whisk 2 large eggs in a shallow dish or pie pan.
Make the flour mixture: In another shallow dish, combine ½ cup gluten-free flour and ¼ cup cornstarch.
Combine the breadcrumb mixture: In a third shallow dish, mix 1 cup gluten-free panko bread crumbs, 1 cup gluten-free bread crumbs, ½ cup grated Parmesan, ½ tsp garlic powder, ½ tsp onion powder, and 1 tbsp Italian seasoning.
Season and dredge the chicken: Season 6 thin-sliced chicken breasts with salt and black pepper to taste. Then, dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, making sure to coat both sides fully.
Dip in the eggs: Dip the floured chicken into the whisked eggs, making sure it’s fully coated.
Coat with breadcrumbs: Press each piece of egg-coated chicken into the breadcrumb mixture, coating both sides evenly.
Pan fry until golden: Heat a ½ cup of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken for about 2 minutes per side, just until golden brown.
Assemble the baking dish: Transfer the chicken to the prepared baking dish.
Top with sauce and cheese: Spoon 2 tbsp of marinara sauce over each piece of chicken. Then, divide 1 cup of shredded mozzarella, ¼ cup of chopped fresh basil, and ⅓ cup of grated Parmesan evenly over the top of each chicken piece.
Bake the chicken parmesan: Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 15–20 minutes, until the cheese is golden and bubbly and the chicken reaches 165°F inside.
Serve and enjoy: Serve the chicken parmesan with your favorite sides, on top of pasta, or in a sandwich. Enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
There are so many ways I love to serve this gluten-free chicken parmesan, depending on the night. For a classic Italian-style dinner, I’ll pair it with gluten-free pasta or zucchini noodles. My kids go wild for the pasta version. And on special nights, my kids love chicken parm sandwiches served up on toasted gluten-free baguettes with a little garlic butter. If I make extra, I’ll store a few pieces for easy lunches during the week to have over a simple green salad or with some steamed broccoli on the side. I also love making a large batch and keeping them in the freezer to pull out for busier weeks. It’s one of those recipes that works just as well for a cozy weeknight as it does for company.
Storage Instructions
I store any extra chicken parm in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
If I want to freeze it, I do so before adding the sauce and cheese on top. Just let the cooked chicken cool completely, then wrap it tightly and freeze for up to 3 months.
When you’re ready to enjoy leftovers, reheat in the oven at 350°F until warmed through, then top with fresh cheese and bake until melty and bubbly. It tastes just as comforting the second time around.
More Easy Dinner Recipes
- Gluten-Free Black Bean Burger
- Gluten-Free Fried Chicken
- Crustless Pizza
- Gluten-Free Hamburger Helper
- Gluten-Free Meatloaf
Our Gluten-Free Chicken Parmesan recipe was originally published 6/16/23. It was retested, reworked, and republished to be better than ever 9/3/25.
This recipie was fantastic. I didnt have any GF breading crumbs so could only use the planko and it was super yummy. My son’s best friend moved in with us to go to school and he is GF so I have been experimenting in the kitchen with GF meals for him and this one was a hit with the whole table. I wont go back to making it with Gluten. Thank you so much for the recipie ill definitely be trying more of yours.
Thanks Crystal!
Great recipe. To clarify below comment… my kids are grown but don’t eat gluten free. So I’m saying this recipe is for all. Not to worry… all will enjoy it.
My kids are grown and they said it was 5 star. This was a great recipe! Thank you.
Awesome recipe!!
This was so good. My gluten eating husband couldn’t stop raving about it.
This was very tasty and relatively easy: the only thing that takes it from being an easy weeknight dinner in my opinion is the sheer number of dishes you use to make it. It’s a lot! But definitely tastes like it would take more work than it does. Also I would recommend making sure your chicken breasts are fairly uniform in thickness. I didn’t, and my smaller piece was just a little overcooked by the time the bigger ones hit 165°. Thanks for another delicious GF recipe!
Made it today with Schar Gluten Free Breadcrumbs (not an ad) instead of Panko. We’ve tried chicken parm before with Panko crumbs and it never comes out “right” for some reason but these breadcrumbs were perfect with this recipe. I eat regular chicken parm often and this was just as delicious for me and my wife. Thanks!
Would love to make this today, it looks great. I’m confused about the bread crumbs and it’s listed twice – does this mean to add a total of 2 cups? “1 cup of Gluten-free panko bread crumbs: adds the perfect crunch. I like the 4C gluten-free panko bread crumbs. AND
” 1 cup Gluten-bread bread crumbs: fills the need for additional coating on the chicken. I like 4C gluten-free bread crumbs.”
Hi Patricia, Yes panko bread crumbs and regular gf bread crumbs 🙂
I assume one is supposed to mix the panko with the bread crumbs…? It doesn’t really say. But I did not have gf breadcrumbs so I just used gluten-free Panko. I also used a trick I learned somewhere. If there are any light spots when you flip the breasts, you can baste them in hot oil and it does an amazing job of browning those spots. Came out great! Seasoning was terrific. I think the added cornstarch helps the coating stick.
Yes, mix the breadcrumbs together 🙂
Delicious!!! I’ve never made homemade chicken parm before, but this was AMAZING!! I can’t wait to make it again!
options for cornstarch, I can’t tolerate it
Hi Sheila, we recommend using all GF flour in place of the cornstarch!
10 on 10
So good! I was able to get thinly sliced chicken breasts at my grocery store, so this was an easy meal to prepare. I made a simple marinara sauce using crushed tomatoes, minced garlic, onion power, and Italian seasoning, and let that cook down while preparing the chicken. I followed the recipe exactly. The combination of panko, bread crumbs, and corn starch made an amazingly crispy and flavorful crust. I will absolutely make this again!
We are new to eating gluten free since my daughter was just diagnosed with a sensitivity. Our whole family enjoyed this and I will definitely be making it again. I used too much sauce, so the chicken wasn’t crispy anymore, but I was just overzealous. Will use the recommended two tablespoons next time.
Where does the panko get added?
All of the breadcrumbs get mixed in step 4!
same.
shows panko in ingredients list, but didnt see it in the instructions.
twas delicious without.
Hi Steve, see step 4!
This is the best chicken parm recipe I have ever made, gluten-free or not! The whole family has been raving about it all evening, definitely recommend getting your chicken as thin as possible for the best result. Thank you so much for sharing!
I’ve never made chicken parm, let alone gluten free. It tasted just as good as Olive Garden and that’s saying something. So yummy I had to force myself to only eat one breast. Thanks so much for giving this gluten free girl a surprise treat!