Chicken Parma-Leftovers

Take a photo! Take a photo! Quick! Before I start eating...

I'm at home now... No longer Chef-Extraordinaire for a flat of four... But now the unemployed daughter of two fantastic parents who sometimes allow me into their kitchen to cook tea or bake (see Chocolate Chip Cookies) and create general havoc...

The Family and I are soon off to Auckland, Hong Kong and finally India... I imagine that posts will decrease around that time as I'll be busy relaxing... But with any luck photo's and remembered recipes will be available to occupy me and entertain you in the New Year.

As I said... Off to India we go! But before we can leave the fridge, freezer and pantry all need cleared of their perishables and to create room for the house-sitter and his wares. Thus, with a little imagination you have Chicken Parma-Leftovers it came out fairly well, I thought... Using up a tin of tomato sauce, some chicken breasts from the freezer, and a little left  over parmesan... I crumbed the chicken in corn-meal with visions of a cruchy shell giving way to moist, flavourful chicken... Alas the corn-meal didn't live up to my imagination, but the chicken was beautifully tender and moist! I think, that if I had only fried and never baked the chicken, I'd've got the result I was half-heartedly looking for.

Recipe follows the jump.


You'll need...

1/2 onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp olive oil, for sauteing
1 tin pasta sauce or crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup red or white wine
(I threw in a few chopped, ripe tomatoes 'cause we had 'em. Olives'd be neat too!)

2 large chicken breasts, cut in half horizontally
1/4 cup cornmeal

Parmesan cheese to suit.

Method.

Set oven to 180 and grease and oven dish.

Slowly saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil over low heat. When soft turn heat to medium before adding the tomatoes. Bring tomatoes to a boil before adding the wine. Boil a second time before returning the heat to low and allowing to reduce.

Set a skillet on the stove over medium heat to start warming up. Pour the cornmeal onto a plate to crumb the chicken breasts. Fry the crumbed breasts over medium heat until all the outer flesh is white and sealed.

Spread a little of the tomato sauce over the bottom of the greased dish, arrange chicken in a single layer on the dish before pouring over the rest of the sauce and scattering with parmesan.

Bake the chicken for 10-15 minutes until completely cooked and the juices run clear.

I served this dish over pasta with extra tomato sauce and a green salad.

Enjoy!

Check out other, perhaps more legitimate, recipies on Foodista! :)

Chicken Parmigiana