Today marked two milestones for me: I made one of the best dinners of my life, and I set off the fire alarm for the first time in my new apartment.

Sometimes, we have to take the bitter with the sweet.

I was supposed to have my friends (a married couple) over for dinner tonight, but then one got sick. I had all the ingredients to make Chicken Milanese so I decided to forge ahead. It’s been a while since I’ve cooked chicken at home. I’m not a vegetarian, but I’m not a big poultry or meat eater, either, so I was a little apprehensive as to how it would turn out. I’m a good cook, but sometimes cooking with a certain ingredient is like riding a bike when you haven’t been on one for a while. It can be awkward, but you get back into the swing of things quickly.

There are three keys to making really good Chicken Milanese: One, use fresh ingredients. You’re essentially putting a salad on top of fried chicken, so it helps to have the freshest tomatoes, lettuce, and cheese possible. The tomatoes make their own salad dressing, because you toss them with some lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, and a mashed clove of garlic, and let it all sit for a while you work with the chicken.

Two, pound the chicken breasts really, really thin. It had been probably at least half a decade or more since I used a meat mallet, and let me tell you, it was cathartic. If you have any frustration or anguish, take it all out on the chicken. I’m not going to lie to you: I probably took out a little too much frustration because there were chicken shards (is that a thing?) on my shirt, but that’s okay, because the breasts got flattened, which made them easier to bread and fry.

Finally, watch the frying oil carefully because things can change in a hot minute. I ended up having to get out a second pan and heat up a second batch of oil after I set off the fire alarm and was running around my apartment opening every window and blasting the vent fan. Was it a little traumatic? Maybe. Was it worth it? Yes.

All’s well that ends well because after the smoke plumes, slight oil fire, and delay in frying, I was rewarded with perfectly crispy fried chicken on a bed of lettuce, basil, and fresh tomatoes in their dressing. I thought of a line from one of my favorite writers, Virginia Woolf: “One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.” Well, I’ve dined well tonight. I can honestly say I feel better overall, which only proves Virginia’s point.

Here’s a song to get you started on your Chicken Milanese journey.

Chicken Milanese

Ingredients

for the salad:
2 pints assorted cherry tomatoes cut in half
1 clove garlic, smashed
juice from one large lemon
kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
8 oz mixed greens or arugula
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
grated Parmesan cheese for serving

for the chicken:
2 ½ cups panko breadcrumbs
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
3 Tbsp finely minced fresh parsley
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
4 large eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced
vegetable or canola oil for frying

Directions

First, start the salad. Toss the cherry tomatoes with the garlic, lemon juice, salt, black pepper, and olive oil in a large bowl. Set aside until later.

Next, work on the chicken. Thinly slice the chicken breasts. Use a meat mallet and a cutting board to beat the breasts to 1/2 inch thick. Season both sides of each breast with salt and pepper and set aside on a plate.

In a medium shallow bowl, toss the breadcrumbs with the minced garlic, parsley, salt, pepper, and about half the grated Parmesan cheese. In another medium shallow bowl, whisk the eggs with the rest of the grated Parmesan cheese, a little salt and pepper, and a tablespoon of water. Spread out the flour in another medium shallow bowl.

Assemble your chicken station so the plate with the seasoned, flattened chicken breasts are on the left, the bowl with the flour is next to it on the right, the bowl with the egg mixture is to the right of that, and the breadcrumb mixture is on the very end at the far right. Place a baking sheet to the right of the breadcrumbs so you can place your breaded chicken there once it’s done. Use a spatula to flip your chicken in the flour, shaking off any excess. Do the same thing with the egg mixture. Flip the floured, egged chicken into the breadcrumb mixture, making sure you press down on both sides so the breadcrumbs adhere better to the chicken. Place the breaded chicken on the baking sheet.

Once you’re finished breading all the chicken, heat up a generous pour of vegetable or canola oil in a large skillet on medium high heat. I would start with medium heat because you don’t want it too hot. Once the oil is heated, start frying your breasts a couple at a time. Do not crowd the pan. Flip the breast over when one side is golden brown, and cook the other side until it’s the same color. Remove the fried chicken to a wire rack placed on top of a baking sheet, or you can set it on a plate. Repeat until you’ve fried all the chicken.

When you’re ready to serve, remove the mashed garlic from the bowl with the tomatoes. Spoon out some dressing and toss it with the salad leaves and basil. Put the dressed salad greens and tomatoes on a plate, sprinkle on some grated Parm, and nestle in the fried chicken. Enjoy!