Grilled Chicken Parm Cheese
Chicken Parm Grilled Cheese
a;lkdsfkdsfkadslkjf;jldkfjf!!! That’s the only way I can think of to express my excitement about this sandwich through words over the Internet. This Chicken Parm grilled cheese idea had been floating around in my head for a long time but I never gave it a shot. I thought critically about the construction of it. The bread has got to be right, I used a good Italian bread. The cheese should be a good quality fresh mozz, although I have a hunch that the dried mozz would melt quicker (give it a shot and let me know). The chicken cutlet MUST be pounded out thin. When we talk about grilled cheese, its all about proportions. You can’t have a thick breaded chicken breast in there, it just doesn’t work like that, its not a grilled cheese. The tomato sauce needs to be simple and fresh. There are four ingredients in mine. I start with thinly sliced garlic and basil stems that cook in olive oil to flavor the oil. Then I pour in a can of whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes, some salt and I cook it for about 30 minutes and then blend it smooth. At the end, check for salt, tomatoes NEED salt and depending on the acidity, one can may need more salt than another so you must taste it. Its fool-proof! But the kicker in this sandwich is the fresh basil leaves. It really brings home the Italian flavors. This sandwich makes me proud. PLEASE try this recipe, its amazing, you will cry tears of joy, just DO IT (and email me a pic of it because its basically food porn…and I love that! thefoodfreak@gmail.com)
Ingredients:
1 Homemade breaded organic chicken breast, pounded thinly. Try to create a piece of chicken that will fit the shape of the bread that you use.
1/2 Cup (4-5 slices) Mozzarella cheese
4-5 Fresh basil leaves
2 Slices of a Italian Bread
Fresh Tomato Sauce
Mayo, instead of butter for spreading on the outside of the bread.
_________________________________________________
Thinly slice up the mozz.
Take your cooked chicken cutlet and dip it in hot tomato sauce. The reason I highlight hot is because mozzarella can be difficult to fully melt. By having the sauce hot, it helps cook the grilled cheese from the inside out, helping to speed up the process.
To assemble the sandwich, place about 2 slices of mozzarella on each side of the bread along with 2-3 basil leaves. Then lay the hot tomato sauce covered chicken cutlet on one side and close up the sandwich.
Evenly spread the mayo all over the outside surface of the bread.
It’s best to use a cast iron pan if you have one, if not, a good non-stick works fine. You don’t want the heat too hot but you don’t want it too low either. You have to find a happy medium. Don’t melt butter the pan, the mayo browns the bread really nicely. You could use a butter/mayo mix as well, that’s probably the best. Some grilled cheese places will say they have a “special” spread that crisps the bread up real nice…yea, that’s just mayo and butter.
Cook it until the bread it nicely golden brown and then carefully flip it. Cook the same way on the other side. If the cheese isn’t fully melted but both sides are browned keep flipping the sandwich to keep it on the heat but preventing it from getting burnt.
Once the cheese is melted, cut the sandwich in half and revel in the absolute beauty of this beast.
a;lkdsfkdsfkadslkjf;jldkfjf!!! That’s the only way I can think of to express my excitement about this sandwich through words over the Internet. This Chicken Parm grilled cheese idea had been floating around in my head for a long time but I never gave it a shot. I thought critically about the construction of it. The bread has got to be right, I used a good Italian bread. The cheese should be a good quality fresh mozz, although I have a hunch that the dried mozz would melt quicker (give it a shot and let me know). The chicken cutlet MUST be pounded out thin. When we talk about grilled cheese, its all about proportions. You can’t have a thick breaded chicken breast in there, it just doesn’t work like that, its not a grilled cheese. The tomato sauce needs to be simple and fresh. There are four ingredients in mine. I start with thinly sliced garlic and basil stems that cook in olive oil to flavor the oil. Then I pour in a can of whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes, some salt and I cook it for about 30 minutes and then blend it smooth. At the end, check for salt, tomatoes NEED salt and depending on the acidity, one can may need more salt than another so you must taste it. Its fool-proof! But the kicker in this sandwich is the fresh basil leaves. It really brings home the Italian flavors. This sandwich makes me proud. PLEASE try this recipe, its amazing, you will cry tears of joy, just DO IT (and email me a pic of it because its basically food porn…and I love that! thefoodfreak@gmail.com)
Ingredients:
1 Homemade breaded organic chicken breast, pounded thinly. Try to create a piece of chicken that will fit the shape of the bread that you use.
1/2 Cup (4-5 slices) Mozzarella cheese
4-5 Fresh basil leaves
2 Slices of a Italian Bread
Fresh Tomato Sauce
Mayo, instead of butter for spreading on the outside of the bread.
_________________________________________________
Thinly slice up the mozz.
Take your cooked chicken cutlet and dip it in hot tomato sauce. The reason I highlight hot is because mozzarella can be difficult to fully melt. By having the sauce hot, it helps cook the grilled cheese from the inside out, helping to speed up the process.
To assemble the sandwich, place about 2 slices of mozzarella on each side of the bread along with 2-3 basil leaves. Then lay the hot tomato sauce covered chicken cutlet on one side and close up the sandwich.
Evenly spread the mayo all over the outside surface of the bread.
It’s best to use a cast iron pan if you have one, if not, a good non-stick works fine. You don’t want the heat too hot but you don’t want it too low either. You have to find a happy medium. Don’t melt butter the pan, the mayo browns the bread really nicely. You could use a butter/mayo mix as well, that’s probably the best. Some grilled cheese places will say they have a “special” spread that crisps the bread up real nice…yea, that’s just mayo and butter.
Cook it until the bread it nicely golden brown and then carefully flip it. Cook the same way on the other side. If the cheese isn’t fully melted but both sides are browned keep flipping the sandwich to keep it on the heat but preventing it from getting burnt.
Once the cheese is melted, cut the sandwich in half and revel in the absolute beauty of this beast.