Grilled Chicken Parmesan with Smoked Mozzarella

For the record, Uncle T does not recognize a "grilling season".  The only thing that will keep me from the grill is a thunderstorm.  Aside from that, if I want to cook something on the grill or in the smoker it will happen.  However, once the weather turns nice in the Spring the frequency of my outdoor cooking does increase.  Hey, better to heat the outside than the inside.

I've done a smoked Chicken Parmesan before where I did fry the chicken then assembled the chicken, sauce, and cheese before putting it in the smoker.  That recipe can be found HERE.

I decided to do everything but the pasta on the grill this time.  It helps that I had marinara sauce leftover in the fridge.  The only cooking that was done inside was boiling the noodles.  The smoked mozzarella cheese was a block that I'd cold smoked this past Fall and has been vacuum sealed in the garage refrigerator since.  The dish was topped with chiffonade basil from my herb garden.

Grilled Chicken Parmesan

1 boneless skinless chicken breast per person
marinara sauce
shredded smoked mozzarella cheese
grated Parmesan cheese
salt
pepper
Italian seasoning
olive oil
fresh basil

Pound the chicken breasts until they are a uniform thickness.  Lay them on a tray and season with the salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Place the chicken on a med-hot grill and cook until an IT of 165F is reached.  Turn partway through so you have nice grill marks.  Remove the chicken from the grill and place in a rimmed pan.  Top with marinara sauce then cover with shredded smoked mozzarella cheese.  Place the pan in the grill and close the lid and leave until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese has melted.

When the chicken is turned and almost done, get the water for your pasta boiling.  Cook according to package directions.  Yes, Uncle T uses dried pasta sometimes.  Once the pasta is cooked to your satisfaction drain it well.

Place portions of the pasta on the plates and top with a chicken breast.  Divide the marinara sauce that ran off the chicken between each plate by pouring it over the pasta.  Top with grated Parmesan cheese.  Chiffonade some fresh basil and sprinkle over the chicken.  I added the grated Parmesan after the picture because I thought it looked better plus I had some mixed into my marinara sauce.

Grilled Chicken Parmesan over thin Spaghetti

This is a tasty and filling supper by itself though some fresh crusty bread would go wonderfully with it.  Though we normally drink Cabernet Sauvignon this was accompanied by a surprisingly nice Syrah we found at Wal-Mart of all places.  As usual, drink what you like rather than what "they" say you're supposed to drink with a dish.

While my marinara sauce was made using tomatoes canned out of last years garden by the good wife and good quality jar sauce will work.  Smoked mozzarella can be found at several stores like Trader Joe's and Wegman's plus others I found online.  I do my own because we like a bit more pronounced smoke flavor with ours.

I didn't time it but I think this was done in about 30 minutes including the time to pound out the chicken breasts.  So it's an excellent relatively quick meal for anytime.

Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Uncle T