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Parmesan Chicken Casserole

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Crispy, tender breaded chicken. Deliciously al dente pasta. A decadent, deep red marinara sauce. Melted cheese, perfectly golden brown atop the bed of pasta and chicken. That’s what we’re making today, a fantastic chicken parmesan casserole that’s as easy to make as it is to enjoy.

You can put this chicken casserole together with any leftover chicken you have. Alternatively, you could make it from scratch. There are plenty of options, all equally delicious. A delectable red sauce, plenty of pasta and cheese, and you’ve got a taste of Italy in your own home.

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

You simply need to combine super crispy breaded chicken with pasta, seasoned marinara sauce, baby spinach and loads of hot melted mozzarella and Parmesan cheese to get this awesome recipe underway. It’s a heartwarming, family friendly recipe that will appeal to just about everyone. There’s just something so comforting about carbs, cheese, and sauce!

We’re sure you’ll love this recipe. Here’s why!

  1. You can make it up to two days ahead of time. Everybody knows sauce tastes better the next day!
  2. Got some leftover breaded chicken? Time to use it up!

We encourage you, however, to try this recipe with fresh chicken. Bread it yourself and taste the difference. Our top tip for convenience is to bread a lot (and we mean a lot) of chicken all at once, freezing what you don’t need. Breaded chicken freezes really well!

You'll Need

You’ll need some super simple key ingredients to get this chicken parmesan casserole going. These are:

  • Pasta
  • Marinara sauce
  • Mozzarella cheese, shredded & separated
  • Parmesan cheese, finely grated
  • Baby spinach
  • Boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • Flour
  • Seasoning
  • Eggs
  • Italian breadcrumbs
  • Vegetable oil
  • Butter, unsalted
  • Fresh Parsley, to garnish

Pasta: you can use penne or ziti pasta instead of tortiglioni if you like.

Cheese: For best results, we encourage you to shred a block of low-moisture mozzarella yourself. It tastes much better that way. With your parmesan cheese, too, it’s best to shred it yourself from the block.

Butter: it gives your chicken a beautiful golden color.

How To Make Parmesan Chicken Casserole

  • Your first step is to cook pasta. You’ll want to cook it for one minute less than the package recommends so you have beautiful, authentic, al dente pasta. Be sure to salt your water, too. In Italy, they say your pasta water should be as salty as the sea.
  • In a medium bowl or measuring cup, whisk together marinara sauce, Italian seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
  • Combine the pasta, baby spinach and seasoned marinara sauce.
  • The next step is to prepare the chicken. To do this, you’ll want to slice your chicken to make 4 fillets. Coat it in flour mixture , egg, and breadcrumbs, in that order. Now fry the chicken until golden brown. Allow the chicken to rest for a few minutes so the juices can settle, and slice it.
  • Now to assemble your casserole! Place about half of the pasta/sauce mixture into a 9 x 13 baking dish, and top with half of your chicken and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.
  • Next, you’re going to add the rest of your pasta. Then you’re going to top this with the remaining chicken and cheese. Now you have your beautiful casserole layers!
  • The next step is to bake it in the oven at 375° for 25 minutes, uncovered.

Shortcuts

As with any recipe, there are a few easy shortcuts you can take to make cooking simple and stress-free.

  • You can use frozen chicken tenders if you like. They’re a great way to get this recipe together in a short amount of time. You’ll need to let them sit at room temperature for approximately five minutes, then carefully slice them into smaller strips before adding them to the casserole. You won’t need to adjust the cooking time or temperature for this recipe if you’re using frozen chicken.
  • You could also use leftover rotisserie chicken! This is a great way to use up any chicken leftover from the rotisserie. It also cuts out the time you’d otherwise be taking to bread your chicken.
  • You can add some crunch factor to rotisserie chicken by combining 1 cup of breadcrumbs with ⅓ cup melted butter. Sprinkle this mix over the top of your casserole before baking at 375° F for the last 10 minutes of baking.

Chicken Parmesan Casserole Pro Tips

Want to give this dish an extra touch of homemade love? Try using your own homemade breadcrumbs to bread the chicken!

Bread large quantities of chicken at once and freeze the leftovers. By “large quantities”, we mean seriously large. Double or triple the amount of chicken you’d otherwise use so you have plenty of leftovers.

Master a simple, classic marinara sauce to make this recipe. A great marinara sauce is key to many Italian recipes.

Make-Ahead Method

You can assemble your casserole up to two days before cooking. Of course, you’ll want to refrigerate the dish, so when the time comes to cook it, be sure to let it sit at room temperature for thirty minutes. To cook the casserole you’ve made ahead of time, bake it at 375°F.

Storage

You can easily refrigerate this dish. It retains a lot of moisture thanks to the breadcrumbs, spinach and the marinara sauce. You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.

It freezes really well, too! Pasta, sauce, and breaded chicken will all freeze just fine. The trick with reheating is to defrost the casserole in your fridge the night before you intend to use it.

How to Reheat

If you’re reheating this casserole, we encourage you to gently spoon some extra marinara sauce over the top to prevent the pasta from drying out while baking.

Love Parmesan Chicken? Try these!!!

Baked Chicken Parmesan

Ground Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf

Creamy Garlic Parmesan Chicken

Hellmann's Parmesan Crusted Chicken

Air Fryer Parmesan Crusted Chicken with Mayo

Parmesan Chicken and Tortellini

Creamy Lemon Parmesan Chicken

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If you make this recipe be sure to leave a comment or give this recipe a rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐! I will be happy to hear from you!

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Chicken Parmesan Casserole


★★★★★

5 from 24 reviews

  • Author: chefjar
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x
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Description

A fantastic chicken parmesan casserole! Crispy, tender breaded chicken. Deliciously al dente pasta. A decadent, deep red marinara sauce. Melted cheese, perfectly golden brown atop the bed of pasta and chicken. 


Ingredients

Scale
  • ¾ pound ( 340 grams) tortiglioni, ziti or penne pasta, uncooked
  • 32 ounces ( 1 liter) marinara sauce
  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
  • 3 cups mozzarella cheese,  grated and divided
  • 9 ounces ( 250 grams) baby spinach
  • 2 large boneless and skinless chicken breasts, halved horizontally to make 4 fillets
  • ¾ cup flour
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • ¼ teaspoon red chili flakes
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 ¼ cup Italian breadcrumbs
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
  • Fresh parsley, to garnish

Instructions

  • Cook pasta in a large pot of salted water according to the package instructions. Drain and return to the pot.
  • In a medium bowl or measuring cup, whisk together marinara sauce, Italian seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
  • Toss the pasta with the seasoned sauce, Parmesan cheese, 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and  baby spinach. Set aside.
  • Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Prepare everything for breading the chicken.
  • Bowl 1: In a shallow dish mix together the flour, red chili flakes, salt and pepper.
  • Bowl 2: whisked eggs.
  • Bowl 3: breadcrumbs.
  • Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, then in the whisked eggs, and dip into the breadcrumbs to evenly coat.
  • Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Fry chicken until golden and crispy, about 4-5 minutes each side. You may need to cook it in batches.
  • Place on the cutting board and slice.
  • Preheat your oven to 375°F| 190°C. Lightly grease a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish.
  • Add half of pasta mixture. Top with half of chicken and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.
  • Add the remaining pasta. Top with the remaining chicken and 1 cup o mozzarella cheese.
  • Bake uncovered for 25 minutes. For a crispier top, broil further for 1- 2 minutes.
  • Garnish with fresh parsley.
  • Enjoy!
 

Notes

Storage

Storage : you can easily refrigerate this dish. It retains a lot of moisture thanks to the breadcrumbs, spinach and the marinara sauce. You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.

Freeze: it freezes really well, too! Pasta, sauce, and breaded chicken will all freeze just fine. The trick with reheating is to defrost the casserole in your fridge the night before you intend to use it.

Reheat: if you’re reheating this casserole, we encourage you to gently spoon some extra marinara sauce over the top to prevent the pasta from drying out while baking.

Make ahead

You can assemble your casserole up to two days before cooking. Of course, you’ll want to refrigerate the dish, so when the time comes to cook it, be sure to let it sit at room temperature for thirty minutes. To cook the casserole you’ve made ahead of time, bake it at 375°F.

  • Prep Time: 10 min
  • Cook Time: 35
  • Category: Pasta recipes
  • Cuisine: Italian

Nutrition

  • Calories: 695kcal
  • Sugar: 11g
  • Sodium: 2032mg
  • Fat: 28g
  • Saturated Fat: 16g
  • Carbohydrates: 76g
  • Fiber: 7g
  • Protein: 43g
  • Cholesterol: 122g

Keywords: parmesan chicken casserole, chicken parmesan, chicken breasts

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Laura says

    September 18, 2022 at 11:42 am

    Made it today and it was fantastic! Thanks for sharing!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      September 18, 2022 at 11:44 am

      Hey, Laura! I am glad you enjoyed the recipe!

      Reply
  2. Lisa says

    November 23, 2022 at 11:50 am

    The best chicken I've ever made was this. Even the little ones in my family loved it.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      November 23, 2022 at 12:12 pm

      Hey, Lisa! I am glad you enjoyed this chicken parmesan casserole! And thank you for sharing your experience!

      Reply
  3. Rebecca says

    November 27, 2022 at 12:04 pm

    Absolutely delicious! Even my notoriously picky 5 year old loved it. She even asked for seconds.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      November 28, 2022 at 4:15 am

      Wow! Thank you for your kind feedback, Rebecca!

      Reply
  4. Victor says

    November 30, 2022 at 4:35 pm

    I've never had parmesan chicken casserole before but this makes me want it so bad! I'll have to give it a try!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 01, 2022 at 8:43 am

      Thank you, Victor! It is one of our favorite casserole dishes!

      Reply
  5. Chelsea says

    December 01, 2022 at 10:43 pm

    I'm making this for sure. Keep posting your recipes. Love them and gives us ideas when we get stuck eating the same things.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 03, 2022 at 12:27 pm

      Thank you, Chelsea!

      Reply
  6. Deborah says

    December 02, 2022 at 9:06 pm

    Wow I can smell that deliciousness from here. Must make this!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  7. Gabanna says

    December 05, 2022 at 9:18 pm

    This is hands down the most delicious meal I've ever eaten. So incredibly delicious. Will definitely make again!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 06, 2022 at 5:29 am

      Thanks so much for sharing your experience! I agree, this is one of the most delicious casseroles! Thanks so much for the great review!❤️

      Reply
  8. Giselly says

    December 06, 2022 at 6:28 pm

    Bright delicious flavors and quick! It was a hit in my household.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 07, 2022 at 3:37 am

      That makes me so happy to hear! Thank you!

      Reply
  9. Kathie says

    December 14, 2022 at 11:06 pm

    This has been one of our family favorite casserole recipes since I first made it for one of our son's birthdays! This is one of his favorite dinners. You can't go wrong with this one!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 17, 2022 at 9:23 am

      Thanks so much for the great review!❤️ Glad you liked the recipe!

      Reply
  10. Jason says

    December 15, 2022 at 9:51 pm

    Loved this recipe. I added chopped garlic instead of garlic powder. My wife and I have it a one of our regular dinner meals.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 17, 2022 at 9:17 am

      That makes me so happy to hear Jason, thanks so much for the great comment!😀

      Reply
  11. Kylie says

    December 16, 2022 at 6:49 pm

    Followed the directions exactly as stated and this turned out excellent! Thank you!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 17, 2022 at 9:15 am

      That makes me so happy to hear Kylie, thanks so much for the great comments!😀

      Reply
  12. Alexo says

    December 20, 2022 at 11:40 pm

    This tasted so delicious and really flavorful! Simple to make as well.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 21, 2022 at 7:50 am

      Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!❤️ I am glad you liked the recipe!

      Reply
  13. Rhianne says

    December 21, 2022 at 10:12 pm

    I made it for my family over the weekend and received so much praise!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 22, 2022 at 7:26 am

      Thank you, Rhianne! I am glad you liked this recipe)).

      Reply
  14. Laura Matias says

    December 25, 2022 at 12:24 pm

    One of our favorite chicken recipes! Comes out perfectly every time!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 28, 2022 at 8:11 am

      Thank you Laura!

      Reply
  15. Mariana says

    December 25, 2022 at 7:26 pm

    This is such a great recipe, absolutely loved it. Thank you very much, this will now be in my recipe collection.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 26, 2022 at 7:55 am

      Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!❤️ I am glad you liked the recipe!

      Reply
  16. Chelsea says

    December 26, 2022 at 11:54 pm

    This was a huge hit with my family! Definitely going into my recipe binder.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 28, 2022 at 8:05 am

      Thank you, Chelsea!

      Reply
  17. Alessia says

    December 27, 2022 at 11:59 pm

    This recipe is a really easy way to enjoy a delicious casserole. Everything about it was perfect! Thank you for the extra tips and tricks!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 28, 2022 at 7:56 am

      Thank you, Alessia!

      Reply
  18. Suzanne says

    December 29, 2022 at 12:00 am

    Loved this recipe, both my husband and I had two helpings at dinner. Seasoning was perfect! Thanks for another great recipe!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 29, 2022 at 8:01 am

      Thank you Suzanne!

      Reply
  19. Scarlett says

    December 30, 2022 at 12:02 am

    This casserole recipe is outstanding. My five year old daughter who is a very picky eater had three helpings!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      December 31, 2022 at 8:37 am

      Thank you Scarlett! I am glad you liked the recipe.

      Reply
  20. Holland says

    January 01, 2023 at 2:07 pm

    So easy to make and scrumptious!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      January 08, 2023 at 5:28 pm

      Hey, Holland! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!❤️ I am glad you liked this recipe!

      Reply
  21. Nevena Nikolic says

    January 02, 2023 at 10:38 pm

    Huge success!! Worked out very well. Great comfort food.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      January 05, 2023 at 7:31 am

      Hey, Nevena! I am glad you liked this chicken casserole and thank you for sharing your experience!

      Reply
  22. Francine says

    January 07, 2023 at 6:19 pm

    I tried this recipe last night and it was a major hit at my house!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      January 08, 2023 at 5:13 pm

      Hey, Francine! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!❤️ I am glad you liked this chicken casserole recipe!

      Reply
  23. Eliete says

    January 08, 2023 at 9:19 pm

    Just made this and it was wonderful! The whole family raved this recipe!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      January 10, 2023 at 12:18 pm

      Thank you, Eliete!

      Reply
  24. Audri says

    January 09, 2023 at 11:12 pm

    I made this last weekend for my husband and children. This will now be a steady rotation in our house. Thank you for sharing the recipe!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • chefjar says

      January 10, 2023 at 12:12 pm

      Thank you Audri!

      Reply

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