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Home » Dinner Recipes » Panko Chicken

Panko Chicken

Published: Jul 30, 2023 · Modified: Aug 7, 2023 by Louisa Clements · This post may contain affiliate links

This post may contain affiliate links

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22 minutes minutes 3 Comments

Meet your new favorite dinner: perfectly crispy baked panko chicken. Parmesan cheese and toasted panko bread crumbs create a superbly crispy crust on chicken breast cutlets. Simply bake them in the oven for juicy, golden perfection. Ready in less than 25 minutes, this will become a staple weeknight dinner.

Sliced panko chicken on a bed of rice with green beans. Garnished with lemon and parsley.

I’m always trying to develop more easy, weeknight recipes since that’s the majority of the cooking that I do these days. This recipe uses a couple quick kitchen shortcuts so that you don’t end up spending a ton of extra time (and make tons of dishes!) breading the chicken.

You’ll find a similar technique is used in my panko cod recipe, another easy weeknight dinner to add to your rotation. For a delicious meal, serve these with baked zucchini slices or a classic house salad.

Jump to:
  • 📋 Ingredients you’ll need
  • 🔪 Step by step instructions
  • ✏️ Substitutions
  • 📖 Variations
  • 🫙 Storage
  • 💭 Cooking tips
  • ❓FAQ
  • Related chicken recipes

📋 Ingredients you’ll need

The ingredients are simple and things you already have in your fridge and pantry. I wanted to keep the ingredients list and the cooking method short and simple, so you’ll notice there isn’t any flour or egg used as a binder, instead, simple mayonnaise helps the bread crumb topping stick to the chicken cutlet.

Ingredients for panko chicken on a cutting board.
  • Chicken cutlets are my go-to for quick-cooking chicken dinners. These are chicken breasts which have been halved and pounded thinly. You can make your own chicken cutlets by slicing a chicken breast in half or, pick them up pre-cut from your local store or butcher.
  • Panko bread crumbs help create that crispy, fried chicken texture from oven baked chicken.
  • To get the bread crumbs extra crispy, you need to toast them ahead of time in olive oil. More on this tip below.
  • To add flavor to the bread crumbs, I add grated Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, oregano and salt.
  • To help the panko adhere to the chicken, you’ll brush it with a mixture of mayonnaise and Dijon mustard. There is no need for egg or flour to help bind in this case.

🔪 Step by step instructions

This recipe couldn’t be easier to make–you’ll never make breaded chicken another way!

Steps for making panko topping for breaded chicken.
  1. Preheat oven to 425F. Grease a baking sheet with a tablespoon of olive oil.
  2. Next, combine the mayonnaise with Dijon mustard. This is what helps the panko adhere to the chicken.
  3. Toast the panko bread crumbs in olive oil over medium-low heat in a small skillet. This will take about 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently, until the bread crumbs are nicely toasted and deep brown. This is a step that you can skip if you’re strapped for time, but since this is oven-baked chicken, the panko will not have a deep brown panko coating so I wouldn’t recommend it.
  4. Combine the panko with grated Parmesan cheese, garlic powder and oregano in a small bowl or plate for dredging.
  5. Season both sides of the chicken cutlets with salt and place on prepared baking sheet.
Steps for breading the chicken cutlets with panko and Parmesan topping.
  1. Spread the mayonnaise and Dijon mixture evenly across one side of each chicken cutlet.
  2. Dredge the prepared chicken cutlet, mayonnaise side down, into the panko mixture. Press down to adhere panko to mayonnaise–only do this on one side of the chicken. Return to baking sheet, panko side up. Repeat with remaining chicken cutlets.
  3. Bake at 425F for 10 minutes or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165F.

✏️ Substitutions

There are a few different substitutions you can use here:

  • Gluten free – instead of panko, you can use corn flakes for a cornflake crispy chicken.
  • Eggless – use vegan mayonnaise for an egg-free alternative.

📖 Variations

This is a simple base recipe that you can change up in a number of different ways to suit your tastes.

  • Spicy chicken – add a dash of your favorite hot sauce to the mayonnaise mixture and add cayenne pepper to the panko and Parmesan topping.
  • Sweet and spicy – Replace the Dijon mustard with honey mustard. Add a little cayenne pepper to the bread crumb topping. Serve with a drizzle of honey or maple syrup.
Closeup of sliced chicken on a bed of rice with green beans.

🫙 Storage

While the chicken will lose its crispy bite if kept in the refrigerator, leftovers (if you have any!) are really great in a fried chicken sandwich. Serve with mayonnaise and colelsaw.

💭 Cooking tips

  1. Toast the bread crumbs! Without pre-toasting the panko, it won’t end up dark brown and crispy–especially because this recipe cooks for only 10 minutes in the oven. You can toast the bread crumbs ahead of time, and keep them on hand in the fridge (or freezer) to use as needed.
  2. Because we’re using chicken cutlets, the chicken only needs the coating on one side for the perfect crispy topping to chicken ratio.

❓FAQ

How do you get panko to stick to chicken?

The trick is to use mayonnaise and a little bit of Dijon and press the mayonnaise-coated chicken into the bread crumbs to help them stick. This means you don’t need eggs or flour in this recipe.

How do you stop chicken from being dry?

Chicken cutlets are super lean which means they don’t have fat to keep them moist and juicy. The mayonnaise adds fat which helps keep them juicy. We’re also cooking the chicken at a high temp for a short period of time which will help avoid it drying out.

Related chicken recipes

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:

  • Closeup of grilled greek chicken with vegetables on a platter.
    The BEST Greek Chicken Marinade
  • Closeup of chicken in a white dish.
    Smoked Chicken Legs
  • Cooked chicken and rice in a pan with parsley on top.
    One Pot Chicken and Rice
  • Closeup of a serving of stew in a white bowl with a blue rim.
    Slow Cooker Chicken Stew
See more chicken →
Closeup of a plate of chicken with rice and green beans.

Panko Chicken

Author: Louisa Clements
4.50 from 4 votes
Meet your new favorite dinner: perfectly crispy baked panko chicken. Parmesan cheese and toasted panko bread crumbs create a superbly crispy crust on chicken breast cutlets. Simply bake them in the oven for juicy, golden perfection. Ready in less than 25 minutes, this will become a staple weeknight dinner.
Pin Print
Prep: 5 minutes minutes
Cook: 17 minutes minutes
Total: 22 minutes minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients

For Panko:

  • ½ cup panko
  • 2 tbsp olive oil, divded
  • 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • ½ tsp oregano

For chicken:

  • 4 chicken cutlets
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425F. Grease a baking sheet with 1 tbsp of olive oil.
  • Season both sides of the chicken cutlets with salt and place on prepared baking sheet.
  • Heat the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium-low heat in a small skillet. Add the panko bread crumbs and toast, stirring frequently until deep brown, about 5-7 minutes.
  • Combine the panko with grated Parmesan cheese, garlic powder and oregano in a small bowl or plate for dredging.
  • Meanwhile, combine the mayonnaise with Dijon mustard in a small bowl and spread evenly across one side of each chicken cutlet.
  • Dredge the prepared chicken cutlets, mayonnaise side down, into the panko mixture. Press down to adhere panko to mayonnaise–only do this on one side of the chicken. Return to baking sheet, panko side up. Repeat with remaining chicken cutlets.
  • Bake at 425F for 10 minutes or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165F.

Notes

  1. Toast the bread crumbs! Without pre-toasting the panko, it won’t end up dark brown and crispy–especially because this recipe cooks for only 10 minutes in the oven. You can toast a big batch of bread crumbs ahead of time, and keep them on hand in the fridge (or freezer) to use as needed.
  2. Because we’re using chicken cutlets, the chicken only needs the coating on one side for the perfect crispy topping to chicken ratio.
Did you try this recipe?Leave a comment + rating and let me know what you think!
Filed Under: Dinner Recipes, easy, Fall, meat, quick recipes, Spring, Winter
Nutrition Facts
Panko Chicken
Amount Per Serving
Calories 346 Calories from Fat 162
% Daily Value*
Fat 18g28%
Saturated Fat 3g19%
Trans Fat 0.03g
Polyunsaturated Fat 5g
Monounsaturated Fat 8g
Cholesterol 114mg38%
Sodium 500mg22%
Potassium 659mg19%
Carbohydrates 6g2%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 1g1%
Protein 38g76%
Vitamin A 82IU2%
Vitamin C 2mg2%
Calcium 50mg5%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Nutrition information is an estimate and is provided for informational purposes only. If you have any specific dietary concerns, please consult with your healthcare practitioner.

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Comments

  1. Shirley Clements

    August 25, 2023 at 3:13 pm

    I love this chicken recipe; it is quick & easy & delicious!

    4 stars

    Reply
  2. Fiori

    August 08, 2023 at 1:06 am

    So easy to make in the oven! Delicious!

    5 stars

    Reply
    • Louisa Clements

      August 13, 2023 at 11:08 am

      So glad you enjoyed!
      Reply

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Hi, I'm Louisa Clements & welcome to Living Lou. I've been creating simple, fresh & flavorful recipes for the modern kitchen for 12 years.
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