Chicken parmigiana bake

Method

1. For the tomato sauce, heat the 3 tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat, add the crushed garlic, dried chillies and fennel seeds and, as soon as the seeds begin to sizzle, add the chopped tomatoes
   and dried oregano. Simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring every now and then, until reduced to a thick sauce. Season to taste and keep warm.
2. Meanwhile, make the breaded chicken. Put the chicken pieces on a board between 2 sheets of baking paper and pound with a rolling pin until they’re about 1cm thick. Put the flour, egg and 60g breadcrumbs in 3 separate shallow bowls. Coat each piece of chicken first in the flour, then the egg and finally the breadcrumbs, setting aside on a plate as you go.
3. Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6. Bring a large pan of well-salted water to the boil, add the pasta and cook until it still retains some bite – don’t overcook it as it will cook further in the oven. Drain well and set aside.
4. Meanwhile, for the chicken, heat the 1 tbsp olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the breaded chicken in batches and fry for 2½ minutes on each side or until richly golden and just cooked through, adding more oil if needed. Set aside on kitchen paper to drain.
5. Stir the cooked pasta into the pan of tomato sauce along with the roasted red peppers. Slice the cooked chicken breasts, then stir into the pasta. Spoon half the mixture over the base of the baking dish, scatter over half the mozzarella, then repeat the layers once more.
6. Mix the 25g breadcrumbs with the parmesan, parsley and some salt and pepper. Scatter over the top of the pasta (see Make Ahead), then bake for 25 minutes until crisp, golden and bubbling.