This past weekend, a couple of my gal pals and I went to dinner at a new Korean restaurant in town called Chae.
The owner of Chae also owns this wonderful coffee shop that we all frequent, so we didn’t think twice about eating at his new place. Both of my friends, Sam and Malisa, had eaten there once before, but I had never tried it.
Boy, was I in for a treat. Everything on the menu at Chae is served “family-style” so you can share food with the whole table. We tried everything from the Galbi tacos, to the kimchi arancini, to the bibimbap. They also had quite the selection of buns on the menu, my favorite being the soft-shelled crab bun.
I even had a Korean drink! A soju spritzer. Soju is a Korean rice-wine liquor, and it is sooooo good. Overall I was highly impressed with this new restaurant! 
On Sunday, while I was still nursing my Korean food-baby, I cooked a few meals for Rob & I to eat for upcoming work week. His favorite out of the bunch? The chicken parmesan casserole.
It’s nothing special—it’s just a casserole made of deconstructed chicken parm. It’s like the lazy man’s version of the classic Italian dish…but Rob sure was impressed. I’ve made many different versions of chicken parmesan before, including this lightened up version, but this casserole may be my new favorite.
I think that this is the best thing to whip together on a weeknight. It took little-to-zero effort to prep & cook, and the ingredient list is extremely short. I bet you probably have all of the ingredients in your kitchen right now!
Chicken Parmesan Casserole
- 1-1.5 lbs. chicken breast tenderloins, cubed
- 1/2 tsp each: salt, pepper, basil, oregano, and garlic powder
- 1 (24 oz) jar of spaghetti sauce
- 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1.5 cups Panko breadcrumbs
- 2 TBS. olive oil
- another 1/2 tsp basil and 1/2 tsp. parsley
- spaghetti noodles, for serving
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a large (11×7″) baking dish, spray it down with cooking spray. Place the cubed chicken breast on the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle salt, pepper, basil, oregano, and garlic powder on top and stir to mix—until chicken is well coated.
- Pour the spaghetti sauce on top of the seasoned chicken. Spread the sauce so that it completely covers the chicken. Add the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses on top of the sauce.
- In a small bowl, combine Panko, olive oil, and basil and parsley. Stir well until Panko is well-coated. Sprinkle Panko mixture on top of the casserole.
- Cover dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake for another 15 minutes or until casserole is bubbling and beginning to brown. Serve over spaghetti noodles OR you can serve on hoagie rolls as a chicken parm sandwich.
I can’t wait to make this casserole again! It’s rare when I find something that is a knock out of the park recipe for Rob, my pickiest eater. What could be better than spaghetti, chicken, cheese, and marinara sauce?! Nobody can say no to that.
Looks yummy!