Parmesan Garlic Chicken with Zucchini
Golden parmesan-garlic chicken with sautéed zucchini, a quick, high-protein, very-low-carb keto dinner from one skillet.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
Chicken breast seared and then finished with parmesan so it melts onto the surface into a thin savory crust, with the zucchini cooked in the same pan afterward so it picks up everything the chicken left behind. Two components, one skillet, about twenty minutes. This one is for anyone who cooks chicken breast more often than they would choose to, because the parmesan is doing more work than it appears to: on a cut this dry it brings the fat and the salt that keep the meat from tasting like an obligation.
Add the parmesan in the last minute of cooking rather than at the start. Given any longer it goes straight past melted into scorched, and burnt parmesan is bitter the whole way through with no way to scrape it off a chicken breast. One minute under a lid, or one minute of the pan's own heat with the burner off, is all it needs. Grate it yourself if you have the block, since the pre-grated kind is dusted with starch to keep it loose in the bag and that starch is what makes it sit on the meat in a pale layer instead of melting into it.
Chicken and parmesan together make a very high protein plate, and the zucchini is what keeps it from sitting heavy, since it cooks down soft and takes on the garlic without adding much weight of its own. The parmesan is also carrying most of the salt in the dish, so taste before you reach for the shaker at the table. If you want it to stretch further, a second zucchini costs almost nothing and the pan will hold it. For the same fast-skillet approach without any meat in it, there is our Crispy Tofu and Sesame Bok Choy Bowl.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
- 4 medium zucchini, sliced
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- black pepper
- chopped parsley
Instructions
- Cook chicken: Season the chicken with the sea salt and a few grinds of black pepper, then sear it in 2 tbsp olive oil over medium-high, 5–6 minutes per side, until 165°F. Sprinkle with parmesan in the last minute so it melts. Rest, then slice.
- Rest the chicken before slicing: Take the chicken out of the pan and leave it five minutes before you slice it. Cutting straight away pushes the juices out onto the board, and those five minutes are what lets them settle back into the meat. Leave the pan on the heat with everything the chicken left behind in it, because that browned residue is the seasoning for the zucchini.
- Sauté zucchini: Add the remaining oil and the garlic to the pan for 30 seconds, then the zucchini; sauté 4–5 minutes until tender.
- Give the zucchini room and leave it alone: Spread the zucchini in a single layer and resist stirring for the first two minutes. Zucchini is mostly water, and a crowded pan that is constantly moved steams it into something gray and slack, while a hot pan and a little patience give you slices with browned faces that still have a bite in the middle.
- Serve: Plate the zucchini, top with the sliced chicken, and finish with parsley and a little extra parmesan.
Variations
- Dairy-free: the parmesan is the only dairy here, so leave it out and finish with toasted almond meal and a little lemon zest, which gives you the savory crunch without the cheese.
- Add more vegetables: mushrooms and bell pepper brown well in the same pan. Cook them before the zucchini goes in, since zucchini releases water that stops everything browning.
- Make it spicy: add red pepper flakes to the pan with the garlic so the heat carries through the oil and coats the zucchini as it cooks.
- Use thighs instead: boneless skinless thighs are more forgiving in a hot pan and stay juicy even if you leave them a minute longer than you meant to.
- Change the finish: a squeeze of lemon and a handful of torn basil in place of the parsley turns this brighter and more summery.
Storage & Leftovers
Three to four days, and the chicken breast is the limiting part, as it always is. A second heating dries it out, so slice it thick rather than thin when you put it away: thick slices hold their moisture in the box and survive the trip back up to warm.
Reheat it in a skillet over medium with a lid on, and turn the heat off for the last minute so the chicken comes up to warm without cooking further. The parmesan crust softens and will not come back crisp, so if that is the part you care about, eat the chicken cold and reheat only the zucchini.
It portions well, though the zucchini goes on releasing water for a day, so use separate compartments if your container has them. If it does not, put the zucchini in first and lay the chicken on top, so the meat is not sitting in liquid by Wednesday.
Notes & Tips
- Let the chicken rest: give it a few minutes off the heat before slicing so the juices stay in the meat instead of running onto the board.
- Cook them separately: brown the chicken first and set it aside, then cook the zucchini in the same pan. Together they give off too much water to brown.
- Slice the zucchini thick: coins about a quarter inch thick hold their shape, while thin slices collapse into the pan before they ever get any color.
- Add the parmesan at the end: a full minute over direct heat and it goes from melted to scorched, so sprinkle it on as you pull the chicken.
- Pound thick breasts: if one end of the breast is much thicker than the other, flatten it a little so the whole piece finishes at the same time.
- Make it ahead: cook the chicken in advance and refrigerate it whole, then slice and warm it briefly while the zucchini cooks so it does not dry out.
Nutrition & Mindful Eating
- Chicken, zucchini and parmesan share one pan and it shows. The chicken leaves browned bits behind, the zucchini softens in them and picks up all that flavor, and the parmesan melts over the top and ties the two together.
- Chicken breast is mild and close-grained, which is why it takes on garlic and cheese so readily, and it carries dense protein along with the B vitamins that keep a plate this simple eating like a full dinner.
- Zucchini goes tender and slightly sweet in the pan once its water has cooked off, and most of its fiber sits in the skin, so leave it on and you get potassium and vitamin C along with the texture.
- Parmesan is aged long and hard, so a little grated over the top brings a salty, savory depth that spreads across the whole skillet, and it is a concentrated source of calcium.
- Garlic goes in after the chicken has taken color, late enough that it perfumes the oil rather than scorching in it, and the olive oil carrying it is what makes the zucchini glossy rather than watery.
- As you eat, catch the browned edge on the chicken and the way the parmesan has gone nutty where it met the hot pan, and give the first few bites your full attention before you decide how much more you want.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this keto?
Yes, it's high in protein and very low in carbohydrate, which fits a ketogenic diet well.
Can I bake the chicken instead?
Yes, bake at 400°F for about 20 minutes, topping with parmesan near the end.
How long does it keep?
Three to four days. Reheat it gently in a skillet with a lid on, or eat the chicken cold and warm only the zucchini, which is honestly the better of the two results.
Can I make it ahead?
Yes, with one adjustment: take the chicken off the heat a minute earlier than you would for dinner tonight. It gets a second cooking when you reheat it, and a breast that was perfect on Sunday is dry by Tuesday if you did not leave it that room.