The dish, also known as "chicken parm", originated in the northeast United States from Italian immigrants, and became a popular staple in restaurants serving Italian-American cuisine by the 1950s.

It was most likely a collision of a northern Italian veal cotoletta with the cheese and tomato sauce of a southern Italian eggplant melanzane parmigiana. The first written chicken parmigiana recipes appear in the New York Herald and the New York Times in 1953 and 1962 respectively.

Chicken parmesan (also known as chicken parmigiana) is an Italian-American dish that consists of thin breaded chicken cutlets that are typically fried, then baked with marinara, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese!

Brace yourself for this one - they're the same dish! Chicken Parmesan and chicken Parmigiana are just different names for the same exact recipe. And, with a name like “chicken Parmigiana”, you might assume that this recipe is Italian. While it has roots in Italy (in a way), chicken Parmesan is all-American.

Layer each chicken breast with equal amounts of mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and provolone cheese. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan over top and drizzle each with 1/2 teaspoon olive oil. Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is browned and bubbly and chicken breasts are no longer pink in the center, 15 to 20 minutes.

And while no one knows who invented it, it's widely accepted that it came to be in the restaurants of Italian immigrants on the east coast. Broadsheet traces one of the first chicken parm recipes to 1944 Maryland, where it was (and still is) served over a bed of spaghetti.

The first record of Parmigiano-Reggiano is from 1254. Legend has it, that around 900 years ago, Benedictine monks, living in the Parma-Reggio region of Italy, created this cheese when they needed to find a way to extend the shelf-life of the large quantity of milk they were producing.

Variations and offshoots aside, chicken parmigiana as you know it always contains the same batch of basic ingredients: Chicken breast, often butterflied, breadcrumbs, Italian seasonings, Neapolitan tomato sauce, and mozzarella cheese.

Parmesan (Italian: Parmigiano Reggiano; Italian pronunciation: [parmiˈdʒaːno redˈdʒaːno]) is an Italian hard, granular cheese produced from cows' milk and aged at least 12 months. Parmesan cheese. Other names. Parmigiano Reggiano.

Layer each chicken breast with equal amounts of mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and provolone cheese. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan over top and drizzle each with 1/2 teaspoon olive oil. Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is browned and bubbly and chicken breasts are no longer pink in the center, 15 to 20 minutes.

Among cheese aficionados, Parmesan is literally synonymous with Parmigiano Reggiano, a cheese that, by both European Union and United States laws, can be produced only in the neighboring historical regions of Parma and Reggio in Italy's Emilia-Romagna.

So why isn't Parmesan cheese vegetarian? Great question. In this case, it has to do with the use of something called rennet, which is pretty crucial to the Parmesano-Reggiano production process. Rennet is usually taken from the fourth stomach of a relatively young grazing animal like calves, goats, or lambs.

Despite being a staple of Italian-American cuisine, “chicken parmesan” is nowhere to be found in Italy. Instead, Italians nosh on parmigiana – eggplant layered with tomato sauce and cheese.

Italy Legend has it, that around 900 years ago, Benedictine monks, living in the Parma-Reggio region of Italy, created this cheese when they needed to find a way to extend the shelf-life of the large quantity of milk they were producing.