Chicken Piccata is a quick dinner comprised of a crispy pan seared chicken breast with a Lemon Butter Caper Sauce. This chicken has a bright, lemony sauce that’s just on the right side of tangy. It’s incredibly easy and amazingly tasty!
Chicken Piccata
I realise it sounds totally obnoxious to call this a “better” Chicken Piccata. I should clarify and say that this is a better one to me. This dish is a wildly popular Italian-American classic that I’ve tried making over the years following other recipes. I’ve just never been impressed with the results though, leaving me feeling that I’m somehow missing out on the enjoyment of this dish. I always found the lemon sauce mouth-puckeringly sour to the point of wincing. I also felt it just didn’t have enough interesting flavour in it to carry a somewhat bland chicken.
So many recipes also called for an insane amount of butter and oil. Sometimes up to half a cup! What the … ??
My butt cannot afford that much fat for what’s supposed to a quick, midweek meal!
So this is my version of Chicken Piccata. The sauce is not as sour – I dial it in to just the right amount of lemon tang. I use less fat than most recipes too, and reduce the white wine through cooking to add complexity in the sauce. And as for the chicken? Add a dusting of parmesan. It makes it so much tastier!
What goes in (my) Chicken Piccata
So here’s what you need:
Chicken breast – 2 breasts will serve 3 to 4 people once we cut each piece into 3 and pound into thin steaks. You could also use thigh fillets (skinless boneless) or tenderloins;
Lemon – You need a fresh lemon here. Kind of defeats the purpose if you try to make this with bottled lemon juice!
White wine – Use any dry white wine that’s not too woody, too sweet or fruity. Chardonnay is particularly great because it adds a good amount of flavour.
The wine doesn’t make the sauce taste winey at all because we reduce it right down to cook the alcohol out and just leave behind the concentrated flavour that adds depth to the sauce.
Don’t use an expensive wine. The flavour and aroma that you pay for is largely lost during cooking. It’s pretty well documented these days by notable food authorities (such as New York Times Cooking) that you do not need to use expensive wines for cooking.
Substitution: If you can’t consume alcohol, use low sodium chicken stock/broth;
Capers – Use capers in brine, drained. The capers in salt (ie no liquid) are a little too salty to use here;
Butter – For cooking and also for the sauce;
Olive oil – For cooking the chicken; and
Flour & parmesan – For dusting the chicken. Don’t skip this. It gives the chicken a crust that the sauce clings to. Without it, the sauce just slips off the chicken. (PS The additional of parmesan here is a trick that makes this Chicken Piccata a standout!).
How to make Chicken Piccata
Chicken Piccata is a straight forward, pretty quick recipe:
Pound chicken so they cook evenly;
Dust with flour > pan sear until golden; and
Make sauce in same pan (takes 3 maybe 4 minutes).
Cut and pound chicken – Cut each chicken breast into 3 pieces. Then pound each piece until it is 1/2cm / 0.2″ thick. I use a meat mallet and place the chicken between baking/parchment paper, cling wrap or what is called “Go-Between” which is a freezer film used to keep food from sticking together in the freezer. It’s basically like freezer bags in roll form.
If using tenderloin, there is no need to cut, just pound each piece. If using thigh fillets, halve then pound;
Dust chicken – Drizzle chicken with oil, then coat with the flour and parmesan. Press the chicken into the mixture to make it stick. Shake off excess well.
See comment under the Ingredients above for why a flour-parmesan coating is essential here!
Pan fry chicken in butter and oil until golden, amount 3 minutes. Turn, then cook the other side for 1 minute until golden (I know that sounds odd, 3 minutes then 1 minute, but the 2nd side really does cook much faster than the 1st side!). Once cooked, remove from the pan;
Clean skillet – The skillet will be a bit dirty which will tarnish what is supposed to be a clean, clear sauce. So before we proceed, it’s best to clean the skillet. Pour out the excess fat from the pan, then give it a quick wipe with a paper towel. No need to be meticulous here;
Reduce wine – To make the sauce, add the white wine and simmer rapidly to reduce by half. In this step, the alcohol will cook out so you won’t have any boozy flavour in the sauce. Then add lemon and bring to a simmer;
Swirl in butter – Turn down heat to low, then add cubes of butter and swirl it to make it melt. This makes the butter emulsify with the wine and lemon juice to form a glossy, clear, slightly thickened sauce. The sauce would not thicken as well and it would split if you let the butter bubble and melt over high heat;
Capers & parsley – To finish the sauce, add in capers and parsley; and
Serve! Then serve the chicken pieces with the Lemon Butter Sauce. You’ll notice that there is not a ton of sauce. You don’t need loads, the sauce has enough flavour. From a practical perspective, the flour-parmesan crust of the chicken gets soaked with the sauce, and that’s all you need really, to enjoy this dish. (And regular readers know I’m a Sauce Girl!).
Serve this with your starchy side of choice and a side salad to get some greens on your plate. Choose from:
Some suggestions for you:
Enjoy! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Chicken Piccata (Lemon Chicken with Capers)
Ingredients
- 450g / 16oz chicken breast (2 large pieces), skinless boneless (Note 1)
- 4 tbsp flour (sub cornflour/cornstarch for GF)
- 2 1/2 tbsp parmesan , finely grated (Note 2)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 2 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp / 15g unsalted butter
Lemon Sauce:
- 2 tbsp / 30g unsalted butter , cut into 1.5cm / 1/2″ cubes
- 2/3 cup dry white wine (Note 3)
- 2 tbsp lemon juice , fresh
- 3 tbsp capers in brine , drained (Note 4)
- 1 1/2 tsp parsley , finely chopped, plus more for garnish
Instructions
Crispy Parmesan Chicken:
- Cut each breast into 3 pieces. Then place between 2 pieces of cling wrap or paper and pound to 1/2 cm / 0.2″ thickness.
- Drizzle chicken with 1/2 tbsp olive oil and spread with your fingers on both sides.
- Mix flour, parmesan, salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Coat chicken, pressing to adhere, then shaking off excess.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Then add butter and let it melt.
- Place 3 pieces of chicken in the skillet. Cook 3 – 4 minutes until golden, then turn and cook the other side for 1 minute. Remove onto plate, repeat with remaining chicken.
Chicken Piccata Sauce:
- Pour out and discard excess fat in skillet, then give it a quick wipe with paper towels (no need to clean thoroughly).
- Still on medium high heat, add wine. Let it simmer rapidly until it reduces by half – around 3 minutes.
- Add lemon and simmer 1 minute.
- Reduce heat to low. Add cubed butter and swirl pan to make it melt but not go foamy. Sauce should be glossy, translucent and slightly thickened.
- Stir in capers and parsley. Serve chicken with Sauce, sprinkled with extra parsley if desired!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
When life gives you lemons …
Life of Dozer
He’s so stinky, I should put him in for dry cleaning too!
easy and delicious- we served it with a rice pilaf- YUM
Perfect JJ!!! N x
I’ve made other piccata recipes in the past and this one looks like a winner. I agree with everything here (especially the parmesan) EXCEPT for the part about cleaning the pan. This recipe involves a pan sauce. Part of the process of making a pan sauce is deglazing the pan to incorporate all the fond, or caramelized bits of pure flavor from frying the chicken. Don’t skip this step, fond is pure flavor 🙂
Totally agree, Paul!
Hi Paul, we are just removing the excess fat & flour in this step – leaving it in will make a gritty sauce that’s not pleasant. N x
Simply amazing!!!! I made a bit more sauce.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it La Tonya! N x
I made chicken piccata for dinner tonight and my husband and I both loved it! Also did the roasted broccoli! Thanks for the recipes. They are always delicious. Love getting email recipes every day. Keeps me motivated to try new things.
That’s great to hear Gill, I’m so glad you loved it and got to try something new!! N x
Can’t wait to try. Your recipes are keepers. Julia Child always recommended using dry white vermouth in recipes calling for white wine. It’s the only white wine I ever use.
You can definitely use that if you prefer James! N x
Hello Nagi;
I wanted to let you know that I made the chicken piccata and we absolutely loved it.
Thank you for sharing all your wonderful recipes. ❤️
I’m so glad it was a hit Evelyn, that’s great to hear!!! N x
This was fantastic!!! I was making dinner in a hurry so I used chicken tenderloins, white cooking wine, and lemon juice. My family loved it! Thanks for the idea! I was in a rut!
Perfect Janice!! N x
We tried this last night for dinner and it was delicious.
Easy too make as well.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Peta, thanks for letting me know! ❤️ N x
I absolutely love this recipe. The chicken was super tender and the sauce was most excellent. I don’t know what I may have done wrong but my chicken pieces were blonde in color…not a trace of browning. Heat was set to med-hi. What’s your secret?
Hi Arline, you may of just needed a slightly higher heat to get he golden colour 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi!
I have no white wine on hand but i have sherry and also chicken stock. Would either if these be an okay substitute? Thanks!
Hi Leah, I have subs listed in the recipe notes – I hope you love it!! N x
Absolutely delicious! My “hard to impress” husband said it was restaurant quality and wants it again soon. The tangy sauce really made it and went well with the steamed asparagus. Thank you Nagi!
That’s fantastic Pam – I’m so glad you and your husband enjoyed it! N x
OMG nagi you are a legend this recipe was brilliant my wife thinks I’m a chief and a legend too so thank you cheers from paul
Sounds like you absolutely nailed it Paul 👏 N x
My husband is a bit tired of me raving about your website to everyone I know, but he is NOT at all weary of trying out your recipes! This Chicken Piccata is amazing! I just discovered your blog a couple of months ago and it has changed the way I plan meals. We are enjoying so many new tastes! Thank you!! And… Dozer is the best!
That’s fantastic Lori, I truly love hearing what people think of my recipes!!!! ❤️ N x
Hi Nagi….can you give me some suggestions for sides for this dish…I’m having family over and I need help….lol
Hi Jullie, if you scroll up and have a read, I list some recipes that work great as a side here 😉 N x
I agree with everything here (especially the parmesan crusted chicken) except for cleaning the pan. This is a pan sauce. The point of the wine and/or stock is to deglaze the pan and incorporate all that delicious fond. Use that all in the sauce, trust me. Otherwise great recipe 🙂
I just find that the parmesan really ramps up the flavour here Paul – and you know I’m all for flavour! N x
Exactly on point about the pan sauce. I would rather have the flavor than the sauce be clear.
I made your turkey, dry brined and it was the best turkey dinner I have every ate. The gravy was the best. I have loved all the recipes I have tried from your web site. Thank you for the amazing how to videos!
Wahoo – that’s awesome Jo, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!! N x
You are right! This Chicken Picatta recipe is easy and delicious. Made it tonight and I have leftovers for tomorrow I’m so excited!!!
Wahoo! That’s awesome Mary! N x
Love this recipe Nagi with the sauce ,will be making it soon .
Thank you for all you wonderful recipes ,and the bonus is Dozer ,what a treat he is .
You’re so welcome Jen, thanks so much!! N x
Just made this for dinner today! Everyone loved it so much. I never am disappointed when making one of your recipes they have all been so good. Now when my daughter wants to make something she always says “I wonder if Nagi has a recipe for that” and looks to see if you do! 😝😁 keep them coming! lol
Thanks so much Tina, I truly love hearing this!!! N x
Simple but tasty 😋
Exactly Brenda, no need to overcomplicate things 🙂 N x