Chicken Parmesan Smash Tacos

Chicken Parm Smash Tacos are viral for a reason!

Chicken Parm Smash Tacos might be my new favorite way to do taco night 🤌 Crispy, cheesy, a little fresh on top, and honestly way easier than it looks. There are two kinds of nights in my house… the ones where I have a plan, and the ones where 5:00 hits and I realize I absolutely do not.

This recipe was born on one of those second kind of nights. I had ground chicken thawed, tortillas on the counter, and zero motivation to make anything complicated. I was this close to just calling it and doing something boring, but then I remembered the smash taco trend and figured, how hard could it be?

So I mixed up the chicken, pressed it onto a tortilla, and kind of held my breath while I flipped it into the skillet hoping it wouldn’t fall apart. It didn’t. In fact, it got perfectly golden and crispy, and that’s when I knew we were onto something.

I added marinara and mozzarella because, let’s be honest, if you can turn something into a version of chicken parmesan, you probably should. Threw it in the oven, tossed together a quick handful of arugula with lemon, and called it done.

These are so simple! Just top with your favorite marinara sauce.

And then everyone got real quiet… which, if you know, you know. That’s the universal sign that dinner actually hit.

Now it’s one of those meals I keep in my back pocket for busy nights when I still want something that feels a little fun and not like I just threw dinner together at the last minute. Funny how those end up being the recipes you make over and over again.

I would order these at a restaurant!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground chicken

• 1 tsp Italian seasoning

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/4 tsp black pepper

• 6 small flour tortillas

• 1 cup breadcrumbs

• 2–3 tbsp olive oil

• 1 cup marinara sauce

• 6–8 oz fresh mozzarella, sliced or torn

• 2 cups arugula

• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

• Juice of 1/2 lemon
  

Instructions:

1. In a bowl, mix ground chicken with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.

2. Spread a thin, even layer of the chicken mixture onto one side of each tortilla.

3. Press the chicken side into breadcrumbs to coat.

4. Heat olive oil in a skillet or on a griddle over medium heat. Cook tortillas chicken side down until golden and cooked through, then flip to toast the tortilla side.

5. Top with marinara and fresh mozzarella. Transfer to the oven and bake until the cheese is melted.

6. Toss arugula with chopped basil, lemon juice, olive oil, and a pinch of salt.

7. Top each taco with the arugula mixture and serve immediately.
   

Y’all… this is good eatin. Let me know if you make it!

-Lacey