Published March 1, 2013. From Cook's Illustrated.
Traditional chicken Parmesan is a minefield of potential problems: dry meat, soggy crust, and a chewy blanket of mozzarella. To keep the meat moist, we salted the cutlets for 20 minutes, and to keep the exterior crunchy, we replaced more than half of the starchy (and consequently sog-prone) bread crumbs with grated Parmesan cheese. To keep the cheese topping tender, we mixed the usual shredded mozzarella with creamy fontina, and we placed the mixture directly on the fried cutlet so that it formed a waterproof layer between the crust and the sauce.
Our preferred brands of crushed tomatoes are Tuttorosso and Muir Glen. This recipe makes enough sauce to top the cutlets as well as four servings of pasta. Serve with pasta and a simple green salad.
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