Freestyle Roasted Chicken Parm

Think this recipe would have been better with skinless chicken breasts instead of thighs. Thigh skins were simply too fatty when mixed with the mozzarella. Everyone ended up peeling off the skin, and then having to place the melted cheese on top of the thighs—quite messy.

These non-recipe recipes are a bit terrifying for a newish cook like me, but this was great. My only improvisation/suggestion: added oregano, garlic, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to the tomatoes. I ended up being rather proud of the sauce as a result.

Never buy cheap meat, especially from place like costco. Animals should not be industrialized and tortured. Buy local. If you cannot afford it, buy small amounts. Industry fatm is no 1 cause of climate change and its immoral

Boneless chicken thighs with their skin intact are not easy to find, at least in the suburban supermarkets I patronize (e.g., Stop and Shop). If using boneless, skinless thighs, I'd recommend spooning some of the tomato sauce on each one before topping with the cheese, and then returning them to the oven briefly to melt and slightly brown the cheese.

For me, the best bite of a chicken parm is the gooey cheese combined with the crunchy breading on the chicken. Instead of putting the mozzarella on the chicken, I toasted some some sliced Levain (any good sourdough would work), rubbed it with a garlic clove, sprinkled with shredded mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, then broiled till just bubbly. Also used a jar of a favorite marinara sauce this time. So juicy crispy chicken, savory sauce and crunchy, cheesy bread. Lots of good bites!

What does thawed in freezer mean?

Costco’s frozen, boneless, skinless chicken breasts thawed in baking dish overnight in freezer. In evening while preheating oven to 450, pour organic marinara sauce, organic garlic and top with shredded organic kale. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, after cutting chicken to serving portions (2-3), transfer to plates. Sprinkle with Parmesan

Hysterical that the above comments are telling creative folks to follow the recipe - it's a no recipe recipe people - improvisation is good! :) Anyone try veal?

My hubby and I are foodies and cooks. He is also a trial lawyer-don't hold it against him, he is super cool. But he came home tonight after a long day in court and transit, and I had whipped this up with a nice green salad, and he just said, "This is one of the most satisfying meals I have had in some time-thank you!" Uh, yeah, you're welcome! I had made a mushroom marinara last night, and pulled some chicken out of the freezer and all else we had on hand. Make this for people you love.

Chicken thighs are laughably easy to bone. Turn it skin-side down, give the structure a good look, and you will see where to take your knife. When you put it on the pan, tuck the meat under the skin to make it look like it has no bone, or spread it out so it will cook faster.

If you do meal prep, there's really no reason to spend the money on store-bought marinara sauce. Twenty minutes and you can have your own homemade marinara sauce. Just follow the NYT's Classic Marinara Sauce recipe. Sooo . much better! https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015987-classic-marinara-sauce

I baked the thighs on a parchment lined baking sheet. Then I took all the rendered fat and juice from the baking pan and whizzed it with an immersion blender into the tomato sauce. Also not noted in the instructions but clear from the photograph is to use fresh mozzarella. Delicious. I will definitely be adding this to the family dinner repertoire.

It was very easy to throw a half stick of butter and half an onion and some salt into the canned tomatoes a la Marcella Hazan for a delicious quick sauce to go with the chicken thighs. Since they did take 45 min and not 30 the sauce was finished when the chicken was done.

Here's a tip about chicky thighs. I needed to cook up a bunch for seniors, many of whom prefer boneless meats they can cut up easily. So, after checking with the meat department at Publix, I picked out 12 good-sized thighs from the case and requested that the bones be removed. About 15 minutes later, I went home with skin-on boneless thighs that cooked up nicely on the sheet pan, and then easily cut them to produce 24 servings for a potluck dinner. The butcher is your friend.

This was the bomb. Thank you Mr. Sifton.