Juicy, lightly breaded One Pan Skillet Garlic Parmesan Chicken & Asparagus is cooked to perfection and covered in melty parmesan cheese -all in one skillet!
Okay I realize that the words “parmesan chicken” are in the title of this recipe, but it is not to be confused with the chicken in red sauce Italian dish that you might think of. I hear you, “why did you call it parmesan chicken then??” – and I really tried to rearrange the wording of the recipe name just to avoid that but it never sounded…. right. So we’re sticking with garlic parmesan chicken and that’s just the way it’s gonna have to be.
The thing it, it actually kind of is like that sort of parmesan chicken in a couple of ways. The first is that the chicken is lightly breaded. Regular chicken parm usually has a pretty thick breading but today we are very lightly breading our chicken. Why? It doesn’t need a lot of breading, just a bit, and it will save you a whole lot in the calorie department to go with a lighter coating.
Well can I just skip the breading? NO. Alright technically yes, I can’t stop you. But I am pleading with you not to skip it. It really seals the moisture into the chicken so you get the juiciest chicken ever and it also amps the flavor and texture up to another level. You’ll love it and it takes two seconds so just do it friends.
The other similarity this has to good old fashioned chicken parm? The parm of course. Right at the end you’re gonna sprinkle everything in the pan with some shredded parmesan cheese and cook it just long enough to get melty and delicious and it is uhmayyyyyyyzing. And when I say everything in the pan it’s because HELLO! we’ve got asparagus.
Yeah. Asparagus. Cause it’s now officially spring and I am doing ALL the spring eats right now.
Which brings me to the most wonderful part of this dish – it’s a main dish and a side dish all in one. BAM. Two birds with one stone. A whole meal in one skillet. I mean sure, you could go all-out like I did and throw some garlic bread in the oven or maybe whip up a salad, because as discussed yesterday over that mango chipotle chicken salad, I have an addiction you know.
But that’s pretty fantastic right? Main dish and side dish in one fell swoop?? I’m freaking out a little bit over here.
What people are saying about this Skillet Garlic Parmesan Chicken & Asparagus
“DELICIOUS! I made this the other night. It is now one of our brand new favorites! Easy, fast and delicious. What more could you ask for?” – Candy
“This dinner was a tremendous hit with my family. We didn’t have one bite of anything left over. I fixed the chicken and asparagus like the recipe and i made sautéed/ fried yellow squash with onion on the side. And, garlic bread. Wow! For them to be fighting over the last bites is awesome. Does a heart good. <3. Thanks for the hit dinner!” – Candi
“This has been a weekly staple at our house since I found it on Pinterest back in March! I use Panko extra crispy bread crumbs instead of flour and whatever amount of fresh asparagus we have that day. Delish! Thanks so much for the recipe!” – Jan
Skillet Garlic Parmesan Chicken & Asparagus
Ingredients
- 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts - cut in half lengthwise
- ¼ cup flour
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder - divided
- 1 teaspoon salt - divided
- ½ teaspoon black pepper - divided
- 1 pound asparagus
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup shredded parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.
- While butter is melting, whisk together flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Dredge the chicken breasts in the flour mixture, being sure to coat all sides.
- Once butter is melted, add your chicken to the pan in a single layer (you'll probably need to squish them in there, it's perfectly fine if they are touching and squished). Cook for about 2-3 minutes - just long enough to brown the outside of the chicken, then flip the chicken and move all chicken breasts over to one side of the skillet as best you can.
- Add asparagus to the bare part of the pan. Sprinkle with remaining salt, garlic powder, and black pepper. Cook chicken and asparagus until chicken is white through the middle and asparagus is tender.
- Sprinkle chicken and asparagus with the parmesan cheese. All to cook another couple of minutes until the cheese is melty (you can set a pot lid or a piece of aluminum foil over the top of the pan to speed this up!) Garnish with chopped parsley if desired and serve.
So glad I had saved this meal on my Pinterest page. We are trying to eat healthier in the new year and this will be a regular meal. Since there are only two of us I cut the recipe in half. I also substituted fresh broccoli for the asparagus since that’s what I had. Followed the recipe and covered the chicken once I added the broccoli. The shredded Parmesan was a perfect flavor enhancer. This entire meal was prepared n less than 30 minutes.