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.
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I love this idea! This would be a great way to add protein to a dish like eggplant Parmesan!
I’ve been checking out this recipe for months and have been wanting to make it. It was a huge success and my husband loved it! he had 2 helpings! I swapped out the regular flour for gluten free flour and it became a perfect way to eat baked chicken for me with my gluten sensitivities! 😀
This was my first attempt at cooking Quinoa….my chicken didn’t look like yours…it wasn’t as crisp but family loved it! Will definately make again…think I need to get use to cooking Quinoa, mine was a little mushy when it was cooked.
Does the quinoa need to be cooked?
Becky, please refer to the second step of the recipe:
In a large saucepan of 1 1/2 cups water, cook quinoa according to package instructions. Stir in Italian seasoning.
I usually don’t like food blogs, but I keep stumbling across your recipes! Everything I’ve tried has come out great, so I’ll make these tonight! Thank you!
I made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious. Great recipe!! Thanks for sharing.
Finally something new. This crisp quinoa crust looks sooo delicious. Great alternative for a great recipe.
I had a hard time getting the quinoa to stick to the chicken. Any suggestions?
It is important that the chicken is well-coated in the eggs. That’s pretty much your “glue” for the quinoa!
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Great idea!
I actually cooked it my in the cast iron skillet with some evoo. I pounded the chicken out real thin too.
I just baked it for a minutes at the end to melt the cheese.
This popped up on my pinterest feed and I’m so glad it did! I love crumbed chicken and finding a recipe that makes it healthier makes me so excited! And I love that you bake it rather than shallow or deep fry it. I’ll be making this for my husband in the very near future.
I’m planning on giving this a try, but had a question about cooking the quinoa. Your recipe says use 1 1/5 c water with the 1 c quinoa, but also says to follow package instructions (which say 2 c water for 1 c quinoa). Which way will work better? Does less water facilitate the crispy texture better?
Thanks! Can’t wait to try it!
I prefer to use less water for a recipe like this to get that nice crisp crust for the chicken.
What a great alternative! Love any chance I get to put a healthy spin on an already delicious dish. Thanks for sharing!
Made this for dinner last night…it was great!
Three words … you’re a genius!
What an amazing substitute for breadcrumbs … so bummed I didn’t think of it myself!
Can’t wait to make this recipe!
This looks sooooooooooo good!!! Definitely trying soon 🙂 I’m glad you were out of breadcrumbs, lol.
What a great substitute for breadcrumbs! I wouldn’t have thought of it myself!
We had this for dinner last night. It was delicious. It was also very filling. Thanks!
I asked my husband to scroll through my “recipe box” on Pinterest to find something he wanted for me to make. He blew past quinoa stir fry, buffalo quinoa balls, etc., and said THIS is a real recipe. (He didn’t notice the QUINOA). I can’t wait to try…my little secret!
Tried this with Kirkland Pacific Cod and it turned out SO GOOD!