Gluten-Free Chicken Parmesan
This dish is totally easy, but it takes a good amount of time to put together so it’s great for all of us who are stuck in isolation! The twist I’ve put on this recipe comes from the gluten-free “breading” for the chicken - it’s made from ground almonds. The toasted nuttiness of the almonds after the chicken has been fried is absolutely to die for, the fragrance will fill your entire house with an incredibly enticing aroma - guaranteed to make your mouth water!
Ground almonds are a great alternative to cooking with breadcrumbs. I prefer to start with the whole nut so I can choose how course or fine I wish to go, but if you only have access to ground almonds or almond flour that is perfectly fine. Almonds are also a great addition to this dish because they are quite filling, therefore your serving size of meat can be decreased.
Organic meats are of course preferred over non-organic, but sometimes choosing organic is not always budget friendly. The next best option is antibiotic-free. The overuse of antibiotics in our everyday lives have contributed to disastrous consequences. Our gut microbiomes are being constantly bombarded with antibiotics, which not only kill pathogenic bacteria, but also the beneficial ones who call our gut home. Without these good bacteria, the bad ones can flourish due to our poor diets and lifestyle choices. When antibiotics are present in our food, our microbes are under constant bombardment, with no chance to restore themselves. The overuse of antibiotics has also led to so called “superbugs” which are resistant to all forms of antibiotics.
The chicken breasts are lightly pounded into 1/2-inch-thick pieces, then are coated in egg, gluten-free flour and a mixture of ground almonds, spices, and parmesan cheese. I acknowledge that parmesan cheese is a dairy product, and dairy products containing high amounts of lactose such as cow’s milk and fresh cheese are not friendly foods for your gut. However, due to parmesan’s aging process, its lactose content is so close to zero that it is considered negligible!
The type of eggs you use not only in this recipe but in daily life should be chosen with care. Chickens that produce cage eggs are factory farmed, fed a diet that is not varied, supplemented with hormones and antibiotics, and are kept in small confined cages. These eggs are not nearly as nutrient dense as eggs from pasture-raised chickens, which is by far the superior type of egg to consume. Chickens that produce pastured eggs have outdoor access to a grassy area or “pasture”, where they have access to a diet that is varied and natural. The chickens have a higher quality of life, and their eggs are full of the beneficial nutrients we rely on. Pastured eggs have been tested against conventional eggs and are proven to contain significantly higher levels of Vitamin A, Vitamin E, and omega-3 fatty acids. They are also lower in overall cholesterol and saturated fats.
The traditional types of cheese used in Chicken Parmesan are buffalo mozzarella and parmesan, which are the varieties utilized here. Feel free to experiment with different types of cheese such as pecorino and havarti.
When choosing gut-friendly cheese, parmesan, swiss, aged cheddar, brie and camembert are your best bets for cow’s-milk cheese. The long aging process in all these varieties significantly decreases their lactose content. Cheeses like pecorino and buffalo mozzarella (which is used in this recipe) are also great gut-friendly choices because they are traditionally made from sheep milk and water buffalo milk, respectively, and therefore contain negligible amounts of lactose.
The most important aspect of a gut-friendly diet has got to be doing your research. Knowing what you are putting in your body is imperative to healthy living. Find out where your food has come from, what it has been treated with (if anything), what the sugar content is, if preservatives have been added, has it been properly fermented or have shortcuts been taken, how long has it been aged, etc. Knowledge is power!
*serves 6
Tomato Sauce
2 tbsp cold-pressed olive oil
1/2 yellow or white onion, diced finely
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 tbsp dried basil
1/2 tbsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 can San Marzano tomatoes
1 tsp coconut sugar
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp ground back pepper
1/2 tsp sea salt or to taste
2 tbsp grated parmesan
Chicken
3 chicken breasts, halved widthwise
2/3 cup almonds
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
5 tbsp grated parmesan
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 pasture-raised eggs
1/3 cup gluten free flour
2/3 cup cold-pressed, organic coconut oil or unrefined, cold-pressed canola oil
1 cup buffalo mozzarella, cut into cubes
6 tbsp fresh grated parmesan or pecorino
4 leaves fresh basil, sliced thinly
1. Prepare tomato sauce. *If you have another tomato sauce recipe you love and would like to use here, you can certainly swap the recipes.
Heat olive oil over medium heat in a medium-sized saucepan and add onion. Sauté 4-6 minutes, until just about translucent. Add garlic, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes, sauté until garlic is fragrant, 1 minute. Add tomato paste and fry for 2-3 minutes. Empty the can of tomatoes into the pot and gently mash with the back of a spoon or spatula while stirring into the rest of the sauce. The sauce will be a bit chunky but will smooth out with cooking time. Now you can add the coconut sugar, salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Let simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and stir the grated parmesan into the sauce. You can remove the sauce from the heat and set aside.
2. Coat the chicken.
Cut each chicken breast in half widthwise. Using a meat mallet, lightly pound the chicken until it is 1/2 inch thick. I recommend covering the chicken in plastic wrap so raw chicken juices don’t go splattering. Alternatively, you can pound it with a rolling pin if you have no meat mallet. Set aside covered.
Grind the almonds in a food processor until they resemble coarse sand. See the photos above for reference. Mix the ground almonds, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, pepper and grated parmesan together and spread mixture on a plate.
Beat 2 eggs in a bowl until frothy and pour onto a second plate. Be sure the plate you are using has a lip that will keep the egg from spilling over the sides.
Sprinkle the gluten-free flour on a third plate.
Set up a large plate, cutting board or piece of parchment paper beside your 3 plates, big enough to carry all 6 coated pieces of chicken. First, coat a piece of chicken with flour. Second, dip it into the beaten egg. Third, coat it with the almond mixture. Let the coated chicken pieces rest for 10-20 minutes. *I recommend using a fork when transferring the chicken between plates, as the coating mixture will stick to your fingers just as well as it sticks to the chicken!
3. Fry, assemble & bake.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Heat coconut oil in a large cast iron pan (or another heavy-bottomed pan) over medium heat. When the oil is shimmery, fry chicken pieces 2 minutes per side until golden. Use a pan large enough to fit at least 3 chicken pieces at once (if your pan is too small, you will need to clean it or swap pans after a few rounds of frying - there are bits of coating that come off in the oil that will start to burn after awhile).
Once all pieces are fried, place in a baking dish and top with tomato sauce, mozzarella and parmesan.
Bake chicken for 15 - 18 minutes, until cheese on top has browned nicely and the chicken has an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
Top with fresh basil and serve!
