This keto chicken parmesan recipe stands out for its incredible crispiness, offering a comforting and satisfying alternative to traditional versions. If you're a fan of crispy classics, you'll also appreciate keto fried chicken, baked chicken wings, and keto french fries.
The Secret: Pork Rinds
Many keto recipes feature pork rinds, and for good reason. After numerous comparisons and taste tests, it's clear that pork rinds provide an unparalleled crispiness to chicken parmesan. Even if you're not a fan of pork rinds on their own, using them as a panko replacement might pleasantly surprise you. This keto chicken parmesan with pork rinds is as crispy and cheesy as traditional chicken parmesan.
Why Pork Rinds?
The reason this recipe doesn’t use almond flour is that keto flour alternatives don’t fry and crisp up like traditional flour. This can lead to a soggy breading that doesn't stick well. Pork rinds, on the other hand, offer a fried flavor and texture without the need for actual frying.
Ingredients
- 2 Chicken Breasts (skinless + boneless) or 4 chicken breast halves
- 1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
- 2 Eggs
- 1 Cups Pork Rinds, crushed (see notes below)
- 3/4 Cup Parmesan, grated
- 1 cup spaghetti sauce
- 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
- 1/2 cup shredded provolone cheese
Marinara sauce - most products contain added sugar, so read labels carefully or make your own. Trader Joe’s has a few sugar-free options, as well as the Simple Truth tomato sauce from Krogers.
Air Fryer Directions
- Cut the chicken breasts into fillets if needed and lightly season with salt and pepper.
- Prepare two bowls. One with the beaten egg and the other with a mixture of the crushed pork rinds, ½ cup grated parmesan, parsley, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
- Dip the chicken fillets into the egg wash and transfer them to the pork rind mixture. Press the fillets to coat with a fork. Remove the excess and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.
- Place the breaded chicken side by side into the Air Fryer basket not touching each other (you may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your air fryer), spray with a little oil and cook for 10 minutes at 380ºF (193℃).
- Flip the fillets over and spread the fillets with the tomato sauce. Sprinkle the fresh parmesan on top, and cook for 5 more minutes.
- Remove from the air fryer basket, sprinkle chopped parsley and serve.
Oven Directions
- Preheat Oven to 425°F (220℃) and Grease or oil a baking sheet.
- Repeat steps 1,2 and 3 from the above air fryer directions.
- Place coated fillets on a greased baking sheet and bake for 18 to 22 minutes or until chicken is done in the center.
- Remove from oven, flip fillets over, and pour over each fillet the marinara or tomato sauce.
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat an oven to 450 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Chicken: Slice chicken breasts (2) in half lengthwise. Place 1 at a time in a large resealable bag (or between 2 sheets of saran wrap) on a level surface. Use the smooth side of a meat mallet to pound chicken until each breast is 1/2" thick. Sprinkle with salt (1 teaspoon) and pepper (1/2 teaspoon).
- Breading: Place crushed pork rinds (1 cup) in a large shallow bowl, and combine with 1/2 cup parmesan. In a second large shallow bowl, beat eggs (2). Dip each breast into the eggs, then the pork rinds/parmesan. Press the breading into the surface so it adheres. Place chicken on the prepared baking sheet.
- Cover the chicken with even amounts of spaghetti sauce (1 cup), shredded mozzarella (1/4 cup), and shredded provolone cheese (1/2 cup). Finish with the remaining 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese.
- Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes - you'll know they're done once the chicken's internal temp reaches 165 F.
Crushing the Pork Rinds
Do this in a large resealable bag with a rolling pin.
Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers
Tips for the Perfect Keto Chicken Parmesan
- Chicken Breast: Slice thick breasts in half to reduce the amount of thinning with a mallet needed. You can buy chicken already sliced thin or buy the standard chicken breasts and slice them yourself. If chicken breasts are thick, slice lengthwise. You want a thin breast or tenderloin. You can also pound them thin.
- Pork Rinds: Pork rinds are the secret to low carb bread crumbs. They give you a fried flavor and texture without having to fry! Consider grabbing some pork panko on Amazon. To crush the pork rinds, we find it works best to pulverize them in a food processor or blender, so that you have nice, fine crumbs.
- Eggs: Eggs help the pork rinds/parmesan stick to the surface.
- Parmesan: Quality parmesan goes a long way. We use the powdery Parmesan cheese here as it works best as a breading.
- Marinara Sauce: Most products contain added sugar, so read labels carefully or make your own. Tomato sauce can be high in carbs so use just a little bit on the chicken and make sure to check labels. Go for the good stuff! We love Rao’s Marinara which has no sugar added and is super tasty!
- Breading: First, we’re going to need to coat our chicken in the crunchy coating. Traditionally, chicken Parmesan is coated in bread crumbs, but you’re going to love my hack: Pork rinds! They add the perfect amount of crunch, zero carbs, and the perfect flavor! To keep the breading from sticking to your hands, keep one hand for the wet ingredients (egg wash) and one hand for the dry ingredients (breading).
- Coat: Crush the pork rinds and mix them with a bit of the powdery Parmesan cheese and seasoning. Dip your chicken in some beaten egg and then dip the chicken in the pork rinds. Make sure you really press the pork rinds into the chicken so the crust adheres to the meat.
- Bake: Pop the crushed pork rind breaded chicken breasts onto a greased cookie sheet and bake the chicken for about 20 minutes.
- Sauce: Remove the baked Parmesan chicken from the oven and spoon your favorite marinara sauce over the top of each piece of chicken.
- Cheese: Sprinkle some freshly grated mozzarella over the top and pop the dish back in the oven for another 5 minutes. By then the cheese will be perfectly melted over the marinara sauce and the chicken should be nice and crispy!
Variations and Substitutions
- Cheese: You can use any hard aged cheese instead of Parmesan if you want to change the flavor - something like a Pecorino Romano would work well! However, I wouldn’t substitute it for something like cheddar or mozzarella as those cheese will simply make a goo-ey mess as part of the breading.
- Pork Rinds: Yes! You can use strict Parmesan cheese or substitute it with almond flour. You won’t get the same level of crispiness and texture of traditional chicken Parmesan, but it will be good!
Serving Suggestions
You can serve this with a side of zoodles or our Instant Pot spaghetti squash, if you like the pasta vibes. You can pair this recipe with cauliflower mash, steamed veggies, zucchini noodles, or even a salad.
Storing and Reheating
You can keep this low carb chicken Parmesan in the refrigerator for about 4 days. To reheat, we find it crisps up best in an air fryer. Reheat leftover low carb chicken parmesan in the oven or toaster oven to re-crisp slightly, as the pork rinds will soften in the fridge. Warm sauce on the side and drizzle over the top before serving. Crisp up the gluten free chicken parmesan again by tossing it in the oven at 350 degrees covered with aluminum foil and heat till it is warmed through.
Is this gluten free?
It is! Since we’re using crushed pork rinds for the breading, there is no gluten to be found in this recipe. Enjoy without worry! Skipping the bread crumbs makes this gluten free chicken parmesan as well! Yes, you can enjoy chicken parm on a low-carb, keto, and even a gluten-free diet. This is how.
Can I freeze?
Yes! Just place in an airtight container and store in the freezer for up to three months. Thaw in the fridge before you plan to eat it the night before.
A Keto-Friendly Twist on a Classic
Converting a traditional recipe to a Keto-friendly recipe takes a few adjustments and this recipe is a great example of how to do it. This was inspired by Keto Sour Cream Parmesan Chicken recipe on this site. Keeping carbs in mind, we opted for a lower sugar spaghetti sauce and served everything over zoodles.
Read also: Keto Calorie Counting: A Detailed Guide
Origins of Chicken Parmesan
Chicken Parmesan is Italian-American. The traditional dish is eggplant Parmesan, but when Italian immigrants arrived in the USA, chicken was cheap and plentiful. As a result, the immigrants substituted the eggplant of their traditional recipe with this cheap source of protein in the new world!
Sauce First or Cheese First?
Some folks like to place the mozzarella first with the sauce on top to prevent the breading from becoming soggy. Although, with a low-carb breading, this is less of an issue than with traditional breadcrumbs.
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