Quinoa Chicken Parmesan
With an amazingly crisp quinoa crust, you’ll never guess that this is actually so healthy and packed with tons of protein!
I had a random craving for chicken parmesan the other night so I set out to the kitchen to whip up my favorite baked chicken parmesan recipe. But I quickly realized that I was out of breadcrumbs, so I took a risk and tried out a quinoa crust instead – and boy, was I in for a treat.
I was definitely a bit skeptical about the use of quinoa but it worked out so well. With a simple flour-egg-quinoa prep, the quinoa is baked to a wonderful crispness right in the oven. And when you slather on that melted mozzarella and marinara sauce, you’ll completely forget that this is actually completely healthy and nutritious!
Quinoa Chicken Parmesan
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut crosswise in half
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup marinara sauce, homemade or storebought
- ¼ cup basil leaves, chiffonade
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or coat with nonstick spray.
- In a large saucepan of 1 1/2 cups water, cook quinoa according to package instructions. Stir in Italian seasoning.
- Season chicken with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Working in batches, dredge chicken in flour, dip into eggs, then dredge in quinoa mixture, pressing to coat.
- Place chicken onto the prepared baking sheet. Place into oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. Top with cheeses and marinara. Place into oven and bake until cheeses have melted, about 5 more minutes.
- Serve immediately, garnished with basil, if desired.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
I made this a few nights ago and it was amazing! Mine didn’t crisp up within the baking time and I didn’t want to risk overcooking the chicken because let’s be real, overcooked chicken is one of the worst things! So the baking time is fine as it won’t overcook the chicken but I broiled my chicken on a baking sheet with parchment paper for about 2-5 minutes on each side keeping my eye on it so it wouldn’t burn! and after i turned off the oven and put the cheeses on the chicken and put it back in the oven so the cheese would melt!
Note* when i put the chicken on the baking sheet little bits of quinoa got loose and I didn’t think much of it till it started burning and set off the fire alarm :/ so keep that in mind!
Hi there, this looks wonderful and actually fairly easy. But I was wondering if I could use cornstarch instead of flour for the dredge, as there is someone in my family that is gluten free?
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment.
I made this dish tonight was totally amazing and will make it again my family totally loved it thanks for sharing.
Super delicious! Just like every other recipe I’ve tried from this food genius! Loved it! Turned out perfect and the husband loved it as well. Also was very easy and quick!
Hi Chungah!
Thanks for another amazing recipe!!! I was really impressed with how this turned out. I love all of your recipes. Keep up the great work 🙂
Hi. Im looking at your nutritional value for calories and it only says 2 chicken breasts. Do you know how large the chicken was which equaled out to the calorie count? Thx
The nutritional information is based on 5-6 ounces per chicken breast.
This looks amazing! It has already made me hungry! How do you create so many amazing recipes!!
Wow! That looks GOOD! Trying this soon.
I am making this now, it’s in the oven as we speak. I put the chicken on a cooling rack on the baking sheet, as someone mentioned in the comments. I also had waaaayyyy too much quinoa, but luckily I separated some of it before I got started. The 1st thing I would mention about this recipe is that you should make your quinoa ahead of time & let it cool completely! I didn’t think of that before I started, and my quinoa was super hot & difficult to work with. My quinoa mixture was super gummy & sticky. My hands were a mess, but I made it work. 😉 I hope it tastes better than it looks raw! LOL
What can I sub flour with please?
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot advise an appropriate substitute that will not alter the overall taste/texture of the dish. Using a substitution may also result in a mediocre outcome but if substitutions must be made, please use your best judgment.
Thanks for the recipe! I made it yesterday and loved it!! Linked it to my blog today!!
http://growin-a-me.blogspot.com/2015/03/so-much-for-easier.html
I saw the recipe and I really wanted to try it. Mine chicken did not turn out anything like yours. And the crust was really hard. I have never cooked quinoa before so maybe that is why it didn’t turn out right, or maybe I didn’t use the right type of quinoa. Mine wasn’t golden brown either.
Any tips?
Stephanie, perhaps you didn’t use enough quinoa in the coating? Or perhaps your quinoa could’ve been super dry to begin with?
Okay did I miss where the parmesan is added?..
Yes, the Parmesan is added with the marinara.
Place chicken onto the prepared baking sheet. Place into oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. Top with cheeses and marinara. Place into oven and bake until cheeses have melted, about 5 more minutes.
I had way, way too much quinoa. I used less than half to coat the chicken.. Threw out the leftovers that touched raw chicken. I set some aside thinking I had too much right away. I used about a pound and a half of chicken. It was ok but not that crispy. Thought I followed the recipe.
Renee, it seems that you used too much quinoa to coat the chicken, which may have resulted in a less-than-crisp crust. Also, the recipe calls for 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut crosswise in half, which is equivalent to 4 chicken pieces to coat. Regardless of weight (as some chicken breasts can be over a pound), how many chicken pieces did you use?
I used 2 large chicken breasts which I cut in 1/2 and one small. Next time I think I would cook 1/2 cup of quinoa. One cup of raw quinoa exploded to about 3 cups of cooked. I’m sure I used too much, but I was trying to use it up!
I’ve been adding cooked quinoa to my oatmeal to boost my protien; so I’m pleased to find this creative use and plan to try it soon. Thanks!
I’m planning on making this for dinner tonight. Would you recommend flipping the chicken over in the oven halfway through the cooking time or can it stay on one side the whole time in the oven? Thank you!
Nope, there is no need to flip the chicken over unless you really want to! 🙂
Can you substitute the flour for any other kind to make it gluten free? I want to make this for my grandma but she has celiac disease!
Yes, there are many gluten-free flours available.
I found this on Pinterest & made it for dinner tonight. It was outstanding! Now, I’m off to peek at the rest of your recipes! 🙂
Why is the chicken in all your pictures in a pan when it says to cook it in an oven? Why must you turn this website of recipes into a website of lies?
Chris, this pan here is used for photographic purposes. It isn’t even a real pan that can be cooked on the stovetop! But thanks for checking if I’m lying or not.
Hey does anyone have any tips how to make the quinoa crust more crispy. When I made it the crust was a tad mushy.
When cooking the quinoa, you can try using less liquid so that it’s a bit on the dry side. That will help obtain a more crisp crust.
Thank you so much!!