Fat Free Chicken Parmesan Recipe

This easy and healthy chicken parmesan is sure to please. We’ve simplified the process of making baked chicken parmesan by turning this into a skillet meal so there’s no need to preheat the oven or pull out a baking sheet.

Our take on this Italian-inspired, weeknight-perfect version of chicken parmigiana is made in a skillet in under 30 minutes and features high-quality ingredients like lean chicken breast, fresh mozzarella and parmesan cheeses plus store-bought marinara sauce for a delicious and mouthwatering shortcut.

Traditional chicken parmesan relies on beaten egg and a seasoned breadcrumb mixture to get a crispy coating. We’ve lightened up this recipe by swapping the breading for a light dusting of flour and pan-frying in less oil than most other recipes call for. Don’t worry, you won’t miss that heavily breaded chicken and we’ve kept this one just cheesy enough to feel decadent without being heavy or excessively high in calories. 

Healthier Chicken Parmesan Recipe — Eat This Not That

Looking for more Italian-inspired skillet meals? Try this Easy Skillet Rigatoni recipe. It comes together all in one pan in just 30 minutes.

Our take on this Italian-inspired, weeknight-perfect version of chicken parmigiana is made in a skillet in under 30 minutes and features a pantry staple that our team swears by and that we always have on hand. Primal Kitchen Tomato Basil Marinara Sauce starts with a rich base of tomato sauce made from California-grown tomatoes, avocado oil, and fresh basil. It’s made without any added sugars and because it’s so flavorful on its own, there’s no need to add extra Italian seasoning or oregano which keeps the ingredient list short.

No need to preheat oven, this recipe is made all in one-skillet. It’s a meal that can be made from start to finish in less than 30 minutes. Here’s how to make the best chicken parmesan in a skillet:

Minute Healthy Chicken Parmesan Recipe

For serving size and the complete directions and ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card below. All of our recipes include the nutrition analysis, listing calories (kcals), protein, carbohydrates/carb, fiber, sugar, sodium, cholesterol, and more per serving.

We suggest pairing this easy entree with cooked whole wheat or gluten-free pasta, oven-roasted spaghetti squash, or steamed or roasted veggies such as broccoli, green beans, zucchini, asparagus.

Yes, you can use boneless skinless chicken thighs in place of the chicken breasts. This will increase the total fat content of the dish but will not change the cooking time. See recipe card notes for nutritional information if using chicken thighs.

The Best Chicken Parmigiana (family Recipe)

We know that the air fryer does a great job of making crispy chicken but the magic in this recipe is that it’s made in the skillet. Part of the magic here is that the cooked chicken is simmered in the marinara sauce while the cheese melts in the covered skillet therefore, we do not recommend using the air fryer for this recipe.

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Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan

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Jessica is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist living in Boulder, CO with her husband and two daughters. She's been described as a 'real food evangelist' and loves sharing her knowledge with others to help them break free of the diet mentality and find their own food freedom. In her spare time, she enjoys CrossFit, telemark skiing, mountain biking, and camping out under the stars.

Gluten Free Chicken Parmesan

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Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan Recipe

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.Made this last night and it was so delicious! And definitely quick to put together! I could definitely see this becoming a go-to weeknight meal 🙂

What do we want from chicken parmesan? Great question. We need it to be super cheesy and deliciously saucy with crispy golden brown bits peeking through to really bring the whole thing home.

Turn that into a relatively wholesome little veg-party with a bed of fresh zucchini noodles and have the whole thing come together in about 20ish minutes? Okay, you HAVE OUR ATTENTION.

Keto Chicken Parmesan Recipe

As you know, in general, real noodles have our hearts but this is just a really lovely, really fresh way to health up one of our favorites and we are here for it. It also has a pretty darn short ingredient list and is, like, Monday-night easy to put together, so that’s the type of thing we can always get behind.

As promised, this is a relatively short ingredient list. We rely on store-bought sauce and though we did spiralize our own zoodles (ugh, equal parts fun and terrible to say!), you can sometimes find those pre-packaged as well!

Getting that chicken golden-crisp is the most involved process here, but even that is pretty quick and easy. The rest is just kinda thrown together and piled up, especially if you got your hands on some ready-made zucchini noodles. Here we go:

Chicken Parmesan Sandwich

After you have achieved maximum bubbly cheese goodness, serve the chicken and sauce over the raw zucchini noodles (they’ll soften but keep a nice crunch), and shower with Parmesan and parsley.

It’s already like you’re getting a nice little salad with those raw zucchini noodles but you could certainly also include this simple green salad [link] or maybe you want a hunk of no-knead bread [link] to swoop through any missed saucy cheesy bits. You are eating zoodles here so if you’d like a little extra carb-partner, she’s a good one.

And if you are worried about being too veg-forward, fear not. You are still getting that crispy chicken and bubbly cheese and delicious sauce which is the prize we’re all here for, but if you are absolutely not willing to part ways with pasta for this one (trust us, we get it), you could certainly toss the chicken on top of some spaghetti and that would still be simple and amazing.

Stuffed Chicken Parmesan Recipe

PS. Big love to my bestie, Ang, for sending me a snap of recent chicken parm creation and inspiring this easy, healthy Chicken Parmesan into a blog post! Friends who love food are the best kind of friends.

Before baking, if you have a lot of stray crumbs in the pan, I would suggest removing the chicken, draining out the excess oil and breadcrumbs, and then returning the chicken to the clean pan to avoid a burnt breadcrumb situation in the oven.

If you really want the chicken to stay crispy, heat the sauce separately and add it over everything at the end. The chicken loses a little crispy exterior as it bakes in the sauce – I didn’t mind it, but just something to think about if you want the crispy chicken.

Healthy Chicken Parmesan (30 Minute Meal)

I leave the zucchini noodles raw because otherwise, I felt like they got too soggy and watery. When you add the warm chicken and sauce, the noodles will soften but keep just enough crunch to still be appetizing.

I’m Lindsay and I ♡ FOOD. I used to be a teacher, and now making food and writing about it online is my full-time job. I love talking with people about food, and I'm so glad you're here.

I'm a former 4th grade teacher, now full time blogger. My husband Bjork and I live in Minnesota. Favorite things include my camera, lake days, and dark chocolate.

Easy Chicken Parmesan Recipe

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