Chicken Parmesan is one of the dishes at every Italian restaurant in the US. I know why: it's delicious! My low carb keto chicken parmesan recipe is fast, grain free, gluten-free, & and kid-approved!
Chicken Parmesan is one of those dishes on the menu at every Italian restaurant across America. It is a classic and there is a good reason, it's delicious! But... it can be very labor-intensive to make it at home.
I'll never forget one Saturday when we first got married that we invited over some friends for dinner and decided to make chicken parm at the last minute. Not the brightest idea. I was still breading and pan-frying the chicken when the company arrived. And then it needed to bake for 45 minutes. I think we finally ate dinner after 8. Oops!
I promise this baked low carb gluten free chicken parmesan is much easier. It is a perfect easy keto diet dinner and a favorite chicken recipe among my whole family.
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Ingredients
Chicken breasts - If they are very large cut in half into thinner chicken cutlets.
Egg - Egg binds the topping to the chicken.
Grated parmesan cheese - Parmesan replaces the bread crumbs in the traditional recipe.
Dried minced garlic & onion - Feel free to substitute very finely minced fresh garlic and onion or garlic powder and onion powder.
Dried oregano, basil, & parsley - You can substitute an Italian seasoning blend instead of the individual herbs but I prefer to add the ones we like separately.
Freshly ground black pepper & salt - Enhances the other flavors of the chicken.
Marinara sauce - Make your own or check store-bought for added sugar.
Shredded mozzarella - Sliced works too!
Want to try a chicken breaded with ground pork rinds? Try my Keto Breaded Chicken Breast.
How to Make Keto Chicken Parmesan
The lazy way to make chicken parm is to just bread it and then bake it in the oven. Since the coating is flourless you can just bake it without pan-frying it first. That cuts the prep down to about 10 minutes. As much as I enjoy being in the kitchen I also love easy prep meals.
First Step: Dip a chicken breast into the beaten egg mixture. Coat in the parmesan cheese mixture. Place in a greased casserole dish. I normally just drizzle some olive oil in the bottom of my baking dish. Repeat.
Second Step: Bake the chicken at 400 for 30 minutes.
Top Tip💡
This time is for using whole medium-large chicken breasts. If you are making this with thin cutlets or chicken tenderloins only bake for 15 minutes before adding the sauce and cheese. If your chicken breasts are gigantic cut them in half first.
Third Step: After par-cooking the chicken top with marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese.
Fourth Step: Bake for an additional 10-20 minutes until the chicken reaches 160 degrees on a meat thermometer and the cheese is melted.
Expert Tip: Broil for 2-3 minutes, watching constantly, to get a nice golden brown look on the cheese.
Keto Chicken Parm Tips
- Do not overcook the keto parmesan chicken. Please buy a digital meat thermometer if you do not own one. This is the key to enjoying tender and juicy chicken. Only cook it until it is 158-160 degrees and then let it rest.
- Use a delicious marinara sauce. Marinara sauce is not all the same. In a simple dish like this, you can really taste the difference between homemade and store-bought and between cheap store-bought tomato sauce and quality sauce. Watch for added sugar in jarred sauces when buying them for keto recipes. Since you only need a little bit this is a time to splurge on the good stuff.
- If you want to give this a kick mix some red pepper flakes into your pasta sauce before adding it.
Common Questions
Is Chicken Parmesan Keto?
Traditional chicken parmesan is coated with flour, egg, and bread crumbs. It is not keto because of the flour and bread crumbs. But it is very easy to swap out those ingredients for keto friendly parmesan cheese in the breading.
How to make Chicken Parmesan without Bread Crumbs
I simply use a combination of parmesan cheese and herbs instead of traditional bread crumb breading in my keto chicken parmigiana. Coconut flour or almond flour will not give the same result. Crushed pork rinds work a bit better than the low carb flours.
Can I use chicken thighs?
Yes, if you want to. I prefer the milder flavor of boneless skinless chicken breasts in this low carb chicken parmesan recipe but boneless skinless chicken thighs will work fine.
Can I make this in the air fryer?
Sure. Just grease the air fryer basket and add the chicken in a single layer. When it is 80% cooked add the sauce and cheese.
What to serve with Baked Chicken Parmesan
Our favorite side dish for keto chicken parmesan is my homemade caesar salad.
Other great side dish options are roasted green beans, garlic broccoli, balsamic mushrooms, cauliflower rice, or zucchini noodles!
Or for a vegetarian version sub the chicken for cauliflower and try my Cauliflower Parmesan.
I hope your whole family loves this lazy baked keto chicken parmesan!
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Keto Chicken Parmesan
Ingredients
- 2.5 - 3 lb chicken breast
- 1 egg
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- ½ tablespoon dried minced garlic
- ½ tablespoon dried minced onion
- ½ tablespoon dried oregano
- ½ tablespoon dried basil
- ½ tablespoon dried parsley
- ¼ tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- pinch salt
- 1 cup marinara sauce
- 6 oz shredded mozzarella
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400. Line a large baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.
- Beat egg in one small wide bowl. In a second bowl combine the parmesan cheese with all the spices and mix.
- Dip each piece of chicken in the egg and then the cheese, coating both sides. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20-30 min. You want to chicken to be about 145-150 degrees before you add the sauce and the cheese.
- Top each piece with sauce and then shredded mozzarella. Bake for another 5-10 min until the chicken is 160 degrees when checked with a meat thermometer and the cheese is melted and bubbly. You can broil for a minute or two at the end to brown the cheese.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
For more Italian-inspired Keto Dinner Recipes try these:
Originally Published March 7, 2016. Revised and Republished with October 13, 2023.
Ava says
I made this for dinner tonight. Super easy and quick. My husband loved it. Adding it to our menus
lisa says
Excellent and CRISPY! didn't miss the breadcrumbs.
Beth says
Delicious!
Chirs says
HI!
I cannot find the video anywhere for the Chicken Parm but excited to make it tonight non-the-less!!
Taryn says
You can see it here on facebook: https://fb.watch/8afmC2XW52/
If you have ad blocker or turn off pop-ups you might not see it in the blog post.
Ashley Jones says
I made this last night and it is delicious! Just wondering what is considered one serving for the nutritional information? Is that 2 prepared chicken breasts?
CrazyAsk
Taryn says
This has 6 servings so if you started off with 6 chicken breasts and halved those then a serving would be 2 pieces.
Eric says
Made the Keto Chicken Parm tonight. Delicious! Thank you!
Michelle says
Delicious and so so easy. Thanks for a great quick recipe idea. Will definitely make again
Carole M says
This is delicious! The chicken did not brown but with the sauce and cheese you would not notice.
Sue says
Thanks for a quick Keto version of one of my favorite meals. I made according to your recipe and everyone liked it. It will be in the rotation. Last year I started making your Lemon Pound Cake and it remains in the rotation and a favorite of my husbands.
Kimberly Nutter says
Unable to print the recipe.
Taryn says
It is working fine for me in chrome. For some reason, some browsers do not work with my print option.
Brandy daunt says
I made this recipe it was so good but before putting sauce on i broiled chicken in order to brown the breading
Michele says
EXCELLENT! Followed exactly but used 2.5 lbs of breast tenderloins. Almost like chicken tenders. Cooked for 10, topped with the sauce and cheese and cooked for another 10. Perfect. PLUS served with the caesar salad which my suddenly picky 4 year old twins devoured! Thinking next time to omit italian seasonings and use cayenne/chili and then sugar free salsa and pepper jack for a southwest feeling.
THANK YOU FOR SHARING
Sharon says
This is so delicious! I didn’t change anything to the recipe and just used my own homemade marinara sauce on top instead of jarred. My husband said it tasted too good to be healthy 😂 I will definitely be adding this to our weekly menu! I just added a simple salad to the side to make it a meal.
Tina Harrison says
I made this tonight for dinner and my husband liked it and he doesn't like much. Lol. Only thing is I should've omitted the basil. It is too strong.
Craig says
Loved this. I’ve made it several times for my wife and I and each time it’s a hit. Thanks for the recipe.
I’m thinking of doing this for friends coming over for dinner but one of them is vegetarian. Would swapping out the chicken for eggplant work without changing anything else?
Taryn says
Yes, eggplant should work. I normally soak it in salt water first to soften it.
Leona says
It was awesome! Will have this one again.
Thanks
Treasure says
The blog portion states to use a casserole dish, but the recipe portion says a baking sheet with foil? Seeking clarification. Making this now. What will produce better results?
Taryn says
Either is fine, really. If I'm making for company I use a casserole dish for a better presentation. If it's just for my immediate family I'll do a pan with foil for easier clean up.
Donna Murphy says
I try not to cook with tin foil especially if it touches the food and find parchment paper works just as well. cleanup is just as easy and nothing sticks to the paper.
Taryn says
I use parchment most of the time too. I get big rolls at Costco and it is quite a bit cheaper.
Dawn Grissom-Perez says
Delicious & much easier than pan frying, but where are the nutritional facts listed?
Need to know how many carbs per serving.
Taryn says
They are at the bottom of the recipe card. There are 6 servings.
Nutrition for 1 serving
Calories: 442 | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 62g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 209mg | Sodium: 921mg | Potassium: 1036mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 620IU | Vitamin C: 5.8mg | Calcium: 362mg | Iron: 2mg
Adam says
I made the recipe last night and it came out absolutely delicious - full of flavor and juicy! Possibly one of the best chicken parmesan dishes I've ever had. Thanks for the great recipe!
Taryn says
Thank you so much, Adam!
Desirée Harrod says
Can this be frozen and reheated? Thank you
Taryn says
Yes, just make sure to only cook the chicken to exactly 160 degrees. I'd suggest taking it out around 155-158 and letting it rest to come up to 160.
Hayley says
Loved it! Winner, winner... chicken dinner. Thanks for the great recipe!