This family favourite North East of England crispy chicken parmo recipe is so easy, made with almond flour. This means our breaded chicken is low carb with a tasty keto cheesy bechamel sauce. You'll love it!
Ever since Bob Mortimer invited millions of us to salivate over his Middlesbrough parmo recipe in Gone Fishing*, this delicious dish has been on my to-do list.
Although, here's the catch: my version isn't a traditional parmo recipe. I love our white béchamel sauce as it's easy with no mixing plain flour or warm milk to make a roux.
Although we use the same methods for breaded chicken breasts, but with almond flour instead. And even if you're not on a low carb, keto diet, this Teeside parmo adaptation won't disappoint.
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🛒 Ingredient Notes
Please see the printable recipe card with exact ingredient quantities and preparation instructions at the bottom of this post.
Chicken breasts - sliced in half lengthways to spread your money further and make them quicker to cook.
Almond flour - for low carb breadcrumbs, or you can use coconut flour. See "Substitutions" for the plain flour version.
Egg - to coat the chicken so the breadcrumbs will stick to it better.
Olive oil - to help bake in the oven for a crispy texture.
Salt and black pepper - for taste.
Creamy Béchamel Sauce
Double cream - for the easy cheese sauce base, or use creme fraiche.
Cream cheese - to help thicken the cheese sauce (low-fat or full fat is fine)
Nutmeg grated - for an optional warming infusion
Mature cheddar - this is an important flavour to melt in the sauce, but also give is its famous golden orange topping!
📋 Instructions
Slice 2 chicken breasts lengthways and flatten each with a meat hammer (tenderizer) or a rolling pin.
Place the beaten egg in one bowl and the almond flour in another. Then dip each breast in the egg, followed by the ground almonds.
Place on a lined baking sheet with parchment paper, drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and bake for around 15-20 minutes on the first side, then flip and repeat.
Meanwhile, make the cheese sauce by adding the cream, cheese, and nutmeg in a small saucepan. Then melt over low heat for 3-4 minutes until you have a smooth sauce.
Now spread a single layer of béchamel sauce on top of the whole thing with an even thickness as possible.
Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top and bake for a final 20-25 minutes or under a hot grill until the cheese is golden brown.
Tips: Top with grated cheeses such as mature cheddar cheese or red Leicester cheese are good ones for this for an authentic takeaway food taste!
👩🍳 Substitutions
As you can see, this almond flour fried chicken is oven-baked for a keto diet, but let's discuss other ways you can swap ingredients, depending on your needs!
- Plain breadcrumbs - you can coat the chicken in plain flour, and egg, then panko breadcrumbs
- Gluten Free - use home-milled oat flour if desired, use gluten-free flour or break up gluten-free slices of bread in a food processor
- Vegetarian - swap for meatless plant-based chicken breasts for the base of the dish
⚖️ Variations
There's lots of other ways you can spice up this chicken parmo recipe:
- Spicy - add chili pepper flakes while cooking the cheese sauce
- Deluxe - add garlic powder, a bay leaf and 15g of butter to the sauce, Or make a Teesside Parmesan by topping it with grated parmesan cheese or shavings!
- Tangy - add a splash of Worcestershire sauce on top of the cheese before baking or grilling
- Italian - add pizza sauce or tomato sauce for chicken parmigiana or crispy chicken parmesan - or use slices of mozzarella and enjoy with red wine!
- Kid friendly - serve with fries and ketchup
If you like breaded chicken, these KFC style chicken nuggets might be right up your street!
🔪 Equipment
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- Chopping board
- Chopping knife
- measuring cups
- Cheese grater
- Salt and pepper grinder
- baking tray
- Baking dish
- baking paper
- 2 separate bowls or plates*
*Preferably a wide bowl for surface area to make it easy to coat each chicken breast!
❄️ Storage
Storing - we prefer eating chicken parmo fresh, but it can be stored in an airtight container refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Freezing - cool to room temperature and again, store in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months.
Reheating - If you want to eat the next day, defrost in the fridge if required and bake in a hot oven at medium high heat until piping hot.
💡Pro Tips
To make each slice of chicken parmo more aesthetic when serving, bake in separate baking dishes, each on pieces of parchment paper.
If pan frying in beef dripping to reduce the total time of cooking (see our FAQs), we recommend blotting each chicken breast with kitchen paper.
🍟 Serving Suggestions
On the side of the chicken parmo, it is usually served in parts of Teesside with homemade chips and a leafy green salad. But it also tastes amazing with a sweet and tangy red cabbage.
As for condiments, any northerners like us would tell you that we love our sauces, so lashings of tomato sauce, barbecue sauce and garlic sauce would be a personal preference!
❓ FAQ
Some say the origin of parmo chicken is Middlesbrough, Teesside in the 1930s. So much so, it's often called Teesside Parmo.
Others say it was created by Nicos Harris, an American chef who came to Middlesbrough during the Second World War.
He opened his own restaurant in 1958 on Linthorpe Road called The American Grill. And it's been a family tradition for many ever since, making its way to many food takeaway menus further afield.
I've never tried pan-frying chicken with almond flour.
However, I believe it would the same as my Polish breaded pork chops by frying in a shallow pan in beef dripping for 3-5 minutes on each side over medium heat with enough vegetable oil.
Sadly, deep frying almond breadcrumbs would fall off. However, you can use a deep fat fryer by coating all of the chicken with ½ cup of coconut flour.
➕ More Chicken Recipes
Looking for more chicken recipe ideas? Why not try these:
🍽️Pairing
From cheesy dips to tangy salad dressings, here are a few recipes that go great on the side!
📖 Recipe
Chicken Parmo Recipe
Equipment
- 2 bowls or plates
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts sliced in half lengthways (*Approx 300g/10oz)
- ⅔ cup almond flour
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
Keto Béchamel Sauce
- ⅔ cup double cream (156g)
- ⅔ cup cream cheese (113g)
- ⅛ teaspoon Nutmeg Ground of freshly grated
- ¾ cup Cheese mature cheddar, grated (90g)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven at 200 c fan /220 conventional/ Gas mark 7 / 425F.
- Line a baking tray with baing paper.
- Slice two chicken breasts lengthways.
- Flatten and spread out with a meat tenderizer until approx 5-8mm thick then season with salt and pepper.
- Place the whisked egg in a large bowl or plate and thw almond flour in another.
- Dip each piece of chicken in the egg, then roll it in the almond flour and place on the baking tray.
- Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the chicken breasts and bake for 15-20 minutes until golden.
- Flip the chicken breasts and drizzle the last tablespoon of olive oil and bake for a final 15 minutes.
Keto Béchamel Sauce
- In a saucepan, add the double cream, cream cheese nutmeg, and 2 tablespoon of the grated cheese, then heat while stirring until melted. This should take 3-4 minutes.
- Spoon on top of each chicken breast.
- Sprinkle the remaining grated cheese on top and bake in the oven for another 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.Grill method: alternatively, you can pop under a grill on high heat until golden brown and bubbling.
Disclaimer
*This is an unofficial page and has no affiliation or endorsement from Slimming World. Slimming World's website can be found at https://www.slimmingworld.co.uk/. Any syn values are personal estimates and not verified by Slimming World.
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