How To Give Chicken Parmesan The Creamiest Bite Ever

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it." How many times have you heard this saying? Probably a lot, considering the seemingly endless parade of upgrades, re-vampings, and reinventions that come upon us in a deluge. Why are all the fast food joints turning gray? Why are all the four-way stops being replaced by roundabouts? The world is a scary, ever-changing place filled with upgrades and renovations that end up feeling neither new nor better than the previous iteration. So, we say this with care and consideration: Change up your chicken Parmesan recipe.

The basics of chicken Parm are pretty simple. At its core, the dish consists of flattened, fried chicken cutlets topped with tomato sauce and mozzarella that is then broiled to bubbling, melty perfection. This is wonderful, of course, and delicious. But what if you replaced the mozzarella with something fresh and new, such as burrata? For those unfamiliar, burrata is a fresh cheese made with a mozzarella casing and a creamy filling. Burrata works great on many dishes, from pizza to pasta and, yes, even chicken Parmesan. By topping your chicken Parm with burrata, you add a slightly fresher taste to the American-Italian comfort food classic. To swap your mozeralla for burrata, keep it fresh and creamy; scoop out portions of the burrata on top of your completed dish and skip the broiler. This helps maintain the fresh cheese's texture.

Adding burrata to your chicken Parmesan is a great and simple way to perk it up. If you don't have any burrata on hand, don't fret; there are several ways you can substitute out burrata to achieve a similarly creamy taste. For starters, you can always add the irresistibly creamy stracciatella to your chicken Parm. Stracciatella is the creamy filling that comes inside a ball of burrata. You can find stracciatella in many grocery stores. If you can't seem to find it at your local shop, you can always make a batch using only shredded mozzarella, cream, and some salt to taste. Stir until combined and let sit in the fridge for a few hours. The result is a delicious, fresh-tasting cheese that makes the perfect topper for your chicken Parm.

If you're in the mood for something simpler, or simply more widely available, you can also use cottage cheese as a chicken Parmesan topper. While cottage cheese isn't as rich or smooth as burrata or stracciatella, it has a similar texture and fresh taste that makes it a great swap. Plus, cottage cheese is a protein-packed option for those looking to trim up their chicken Parmesan recipe. If you're torn between these three mozzarella swaps, why not try your hand at each and see which one you prefer? You might just find your next go-to recipe.

Adding burrata to your chicken Parm is a great way to lighten it up. You can, if you wish, simply swap out mozzarella for burrata in your recipe and call it a day. But why not see this cheesy swap as a way to turn your Parm into something completely new? We're not saying you should abandon the classic iteration of the dish, but sometimes it's nice to try something different.

Start by swapping out your marinara for fresh cooked tomatoes. Simply sauté sliced cherry or grape tomatoes in a pan with olive oil, onion, salt, basil, and seasonings of your choice until they turn perfectly jammy. The taste of sautéed tomatoes brings out a similarly tangy base as marinara while keeping a fresh tomato taste that canned tomatoes simply can't match. If you want to add a bit of color, you can also use heirloom tomatoes. You can also pair your tomatoes with other veggies, such as fresh corn, or even some spaghetti squash for the base. If you want to add a green taste, add some fresh pesto to the dish made with flavor-infused olive oil for even more of a boost. Pesto further complements both your burrata and fresh tomatoes.