How to Make Chicken Picatta

 

Looking to change things up a bit a dinner? This recipe is easy to adjust depending on your taste, or what happens to be on sale.  It works just well with turkey breast or pork tenderloin in place of the chicken.

Since this dish cooks very quickly you’ll want to make sure you have all your ingredients set to go before starting.The key is to flatten the meat to a uniform thickness. This ensures it cooks quickly and evenly.

Performing a Dairyectomy When preparing traditional piccatas, the thinly pounded and breaded chicken (or veal) is sauteed in a mixture of olive oil and butter and the sauce is thickened with even more butter. Here, I've cooked the cutlets in olive oil and finished the sauce with a little cornstarch to achieve the same texture and richness.

Chicken Piccata

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup Italian-style breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 (14-ounce) can low-sodium chicken broth
2 lemons (1 thinly sliced, 1 juiced)
11/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon capers
Fresh parsley, to taste

Cut each chicken breast in half horizontally. Place chicken between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; flatten to 1/4-inch thickness, using a rolling pin or the flat side of a meat mallet.  Season chicken with pepper and salt and dredge in breadcrumbs. 

Heat large skillet over medium-high heat until hot.  Add 1 tablespoon oil and add half the chicken and cook 2 minutes per side or until golden brown and fully cooked. Remove from pan, keeping warm.  Repeat with remaining oil and chicken.

Reduce heat to medium-low, add garlic and cook 30 seconds.  Stir in wine and cook until almost completely evaporated. Add chicken broth and half of the lemon slices; bring mixture to a simmer and cook until reduced by 2/3, stirring to loosen the browned bits in the pan.

Stir together lemon juice and cornstarch.  Add mixture to pan, stirring constantly, until thickened.  Remove from heat and add capers.  Pour over chicken and garnish with parsley and remaining lemon slices. 

Serves 4