Great Chicken Parmesan

For the Cutlets:

1. Place panko and grated parmesan in a shallow baking dish or wide, shallow bowl and season with salt; set aside.
2. Whisk eggs with two-ish teaspoons of water, season with salt, and place in another shallow baking dish or wide, shallow bowl; set aside.
3. Slice chicken breast in half horizontally, so you have two thin pieces. Working with one piece at a time, place one between two sheets of parchment paper (alternatively, use a Ziploc bag or plastic wrap).
4. Using a small, heavy-bottomed skillet, gently but firmly pound the chicken until it’s about half as thin as it was– I believe in a juicy chicken parmesan, so the goal here isn’t/shouldn’t be “as thin as possible,” but thin enough to count as a cutlet, but juicy enough to count as chicken.
5. Season chicken with salt on both sides, then dip into the egg mixture. Using your hands (or tongs, but I prefer hands), pick up the cutlet, letting any excess egg wash run off. Place it directly into the bread crumbs and, like you’re burying something in the sand, cover it with bread crumbs. Firmly press the crumbs into the cutlet so that the entire surface of both sides is covered with a tight layer of crumbs. Shake off any excess crumbs, and set aside, either on a large plate or rimmed baking sheet. Repeat with remaining cutlets.
6. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once oil is shimmering, without overcrowding, add cutlets (no more than two at a time), and, using tongs, press slightly so that it makes contact with the skillet and the oil (for even browning).
7. Cook until golden brown and crispy on one side, about 3 minutes. Carefully flip the cutlets and cook until the other side is just as golden brown, another 2 or 3 minutes. Remove from the skillet and transfer to an unlined rimmed baking sheet; season with salt. Repeat with remaining cutlets.

For the Parmesan:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F/232°C (if you trust your broiler, you can do that, too). Making sure the cutlets are all in one even layer, spoon a bit of sauce over, but do not smother. Think blobs, aiming for large patches of naked, crispy cutlet. Scatter mozzarella in a similar fashion, aiming to cover a bit of the sauce, a bit of the cutlet, but leaving some of both exposed. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with crushed red pepper flakes, if using.
2. Place in the oven and bake until the mozzarella is bubbling and brown, the sauce is thick and almost sticky in places, and the cutlet is browner than ever before, 12–15 minutes (if using a broiler, this might happen sooner…if your oven's heat source is at the bottom, it might take a few minutes longer).
3. Remove from the oven, scatter with basil or parsley, sprinkle with flaky salt and maybe another healthy grind of black pepper. Drizzle with olive oil if it moves you. Serve it as-is, the whole sheet pan on the table (with a kitchen towel underneath, of course) with a large spatula tucked in for scooping.