Gluten Free Chicken Parm

One thing Indian and Italian families seem to have in common is the tradition of eating your way through family visits. Meals tend to be long, frequent and excessive, and after awhile you forget what it feels like to be "hungry." My brother-in-law, Manek flew down frown New York with his girlfriend this weekend, so we acted accordingly.

Manek's favorite Italian dish is Chicken Parmesan, so we make it at home every time he visits. These days, however, he's following a gluten and dairy free diet, so we had to get creative. I don't remember my family making Chicken Parmesan growing up, so I learned from Mario Batali. This time, we made a few adjustments, the most obvious one being serving it with polenta instead of pasta. We also only coated the chicken in bread crumbs and not flour - something I would change next time.

Regardless, it turned out pretty awesome.

Gluten and Dairy-Free Chicken Parmesan

3 cups Christopher Sauce, pureed until smooth in a blender or food processor

5 chicken breasts

3 cups gluten-free bread crumbs*

2 eggs
6+ tbs olive oil

1 cup goat mozzarella, shredded

1 cup pecorino romano, shredded

1 handful fresh parsley, chopped

*Note: we made our own by removing the crust from a corn-based bread, toasting the pieces, quartering them, and grinding it in a food processor

1.  Cut each chicken breast in half, then cover each side with wax paper and flatten with a meat pounder until each fillet is about 1/3" thick. 

2. beat the eggs in a bowl until they are well mixed (like scrambled). Line up four bowls/plates - one for the chicken, one for the egg, one for the bread crumbs, and one for the coated fillets. Drag each side of the fillets in the egg, then dip in the bread crumbs and set aside.

*Note: many recipes call for the chicken to be dipped in both flour and bread crumbs. If you'd like to do this, dip the fillets in egg, then flour, then egg again, then the bread crumbs. 

3. Coat the bottom of a frying pan with olive oil and spread 1 cup of Christopher Sauce on the bottom of a baking dish. When the oil's hot, fry each side of the fillets until brown (about 2 minutes per side), then transfer to the baking dish. Fry the fillets in batches and add additional oil as needed. 

*Note: The chicken will not be cooked through when it's removed from the pan. 

4. When all the chicken pieces are in the baking dish, top the fillets with the remaining 2 cups of Christopher Sauce, then scatter the mozzarella and pecorino romano cheeses over the top. 

5. Bake the chicken in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. 

Simple Polenta* (naturally gluten-free and almost dairy-free)

Salt

1/5 cups corn meal

3 tbs butter, cut into large chunks

Ground black pepper

1. In a sauce pan (the recipe calls for a 4-quart), boil 6 cups of water, then add 1/5 tsp salt.

2. Pour the cornmeal into the water very slowly while stirring the water, so that the water never stops boiling.

3. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting and cover. Stir the polenta every five minutes for 10 seconds, making sure nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pan. 

4. When the polenta is done, it will look, feel and taste soft and smooth (not raw and course, as it appears in the beginning). This usually takes about 30 minutes. Stir in the butter, season with salt and pepper, and serve.

*Note: This recipe comes from Italian Classics, by Cook's Illustrated