Chicken Piccata is one of those classic dishes that’s full of flavor thanks to fresh lemon, briny capers, and rich butter. Make this a complete meal and serve it alongside our simple roasted broccolini or steamed asparagus.
The Best Chicken Piccata Recipe
Table of Contents
We love this dish for its delicious sauce, tender and crispy chicken, and versatile serving options. With classic Italian seasonings, simple ingredients, and an easy to follow cooking method, you’ll have fresh lemon chicken piccata on the table in under an hour. Served on top of mashed potatoes or your favorite pasta, this dish will leave you feeling satisfied and comfortably full for hours.
Love chicken recipes – try some Baked Chicken Cutlets + Creamy Tomato Pasta!
What Is Chicken Piccata
This is a classic Italian recipe with chicken breasts coated in Italian seasonings and pan-fried to give it a slightly crunchy yet tender texture. But what really makes this meal shine is its rich and lemony piccata sauce made of savory butter, zesty lemon, sharp garlic, classic olive oil, and pungent capers.
What You Will Need
- chicken breasts – Select boneless and skinless as you’ll cut through them to make cutlets.
- flour – All-purpose flour or gluten-free flour will work great.
- garlic powder – There can never be enough garlic.
- onion powder – Pairs nicely with the minced shallot in the pan sauce.
- Italian seasoning – Classic flavors of basil, oregano, thyme, and much more.
- butter – The base of the delicious piccata sauce. Salted or unsalted butter will both work, but its always a good idea to taste test and adjust seasonings as needed.
- olive oil – Extra virgin olive oil is our favorite.
- shallot – Found next to the onions in the grocery store, this little vegetable has a more delicate and sweet flavor than a traditional onion.
- garlic – A kick of heat and flavor.
- chicken broth – Helps add depth to the pan sauce.
- white wine – Pinot grigio is the perfect compliment to the savory butter and other rich Italian flavors.
- fresh lemon juice – Fresh truly is better, but store bought will work too.
- lemon zest – This extra step adds an undeniable amount of citrus in each bite.
- lemon – Sliced and laid in the sauce to make your plating game look extra special.
- capers – These are actually tiny edible flower buds from the caper bush, offering a briny, full-flavored topping to bring your dish to the next level.
- kosher salt & ground black pepper – season to your liking
For Serving
- shaved parmesan – Just a bit sprinkled on top for serving.
- mashed potatoes – Another tasty and savory serving option.
- pasta of your choice – Linguini and spaghetti noodles are our favorites for this recipe.
How To Make Chicken Piccata
Set up your prep area with a sturdy cutting board, a sharp knife, and your boneless and skinless chicken breasts. To ensure that they cook quickly and evenly, slice chicken breasts in half lengthwise to create chicken cutlets.
Season all of the chicken cutlets with salt and pepper and set them aside.
To season the chicken cutlets, get a shallow bowl and combine your flour, garlic powder, onion powder and Italian seasoning and mix to combine. Take one cutlet at a time and place it in the flour mixture, being sure that each piece is fully coated.
Throw out the remaining flour mixture and set the fully coated chicken cutlets on a clean plate and set aside.
Bring a large skillet to medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon of butter and olive oil to coat the pan. Add the chicken pieces in batches, making sure to evenly sear both sides for 2-3 minutes or until the chicken is light golden brown. Place the seared chicken on a clean plate and set aside.
Now it’s time for the sauce. Add the remaining two tablespoons of butter along with the shallots and garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes or until fragrant.
Next, add the broth, white wine, lemon juice, lemon zest, lemon slices and capers. Let the sauce simmer until it has reduced by half, which takes around 5-6 minutes.
Nestle the seared chicken back into the skillet and bring everything to a gentle simmer for 5-10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Use a meat thermometer to ensure that the internal chicken temperature reaches 165°F.
What To Serve With Chicken Piccata
Choose your own adventure here, friends. We love this dish on top of classic linguini or spaghetti noodles cooked al dente and sprinkled with shaved parmesan, but you could also serve it on top of our favorite mashed potatoes.
Make it a full meal and serve it up with our fresh fennel salad or our strawberry spinach salad. And we didn’t forget about dessert. Try our favorite Monster Cookie Magic Bars or seven layer bars to end your meal with a bang.
This easy chicken piccata recipe is perfect for a busy weeknight meal, hosting friends and family, or eaten as a tasty lunch leftover. No matter when or how you chose to serve it, we’re confident that it’ll be among one of your favorites.
Recipe FAQs
- dairy-free: Make this recipe dairy-free by using plant-based butter and omit the parmesan cheese.
- storage: store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Made this recipe and loved it?! We would love it if you would take a minute and leave a star rating and review – it is also helpful if you made any substitutions or changes to the recipe to share that as well. THANK YOU!
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Other Recipes You Might Like
Chicken Piccata
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner/Entree
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Italian-Inspired
Description
Chicken Piccata – a delicious and easy chicken piccata recipe that is sure to impress! Serve over mashed potatoes or your favorite pasta!
Ingredients
- 3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cutlets
- 2/3 cup flour (all-purpose or gluten-free)
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 4 tablespoons butter, divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons shallot, minced
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons white wine
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 lemon, sliced
- 2 tablespoons capers
- serving: serve with mashed potatoes or over pasta of your choice. Sprinkle with shaved parmesan cheese.
Instructions
- Chicken Cutlets: take each boneless, skinless chicken breast and cut in half lengthwise to create two thin cutlets (these will cook faster and more evenly than whole chicken breasts). Season each cutlet with a little kosher salt and pepper; set aside.
- Prep Cutlets: In a medium bowl combine flour, garlic powder, onion powder and Italian seasoning. Stir to combine. Taking chicken cutlets one at a time, place them in the flour mixture and ensure each piece is fully coated. Place coated chicken cutlets on plate; set aside. Discard flour mixture.
- Sear Chicken: Bring large cast iron skillet to medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter. Let butter melt and then, in batches, cook chicken cutlets 1-3 minute per side or until chicken is light golden brown. Place chicken on a clean plate; set aside.
- Sauce: Add remaining 2 tablespoons of butter to the pan along with the shallots and garlic. Sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add broth, white wine, lemon juice, lemon zest, lemon slices and capers. Let simmer until reduced by half – about 5-6 minutes. Nestle chicken back into the pan and bring to a gentle simmer for 5-10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
- Serve over your favorite mashed potatoes with some roasted broccolini or with the pasta of your choice!
Notes
- Dairy-Free: to make this recipe dairy-free use a plant-based butter and omit the parmesan cheese.
- Storage: store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Nutrition: Nutrition information does not include the noodles or optional toppings.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 187
- Sugar: 1.9 g
- Sodium: 308.6 mg
- Fat: 10.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 17.2 g
- Protein: 5.8 g
- Cholesterol: 31.9 mg
Virginia D says
Delicious recipe and the lemony garlic flavors really stuck out!
Erin says
Thanks, Virginia!!
Sandi says
In your notes for chicken picata you state that to make this dairy free to use a plant based butter and omit the parmesan cheese…I don’t see parmesan cheese in the recipe. Did I miss something?
I LOVE your site. Thank you Erin!
Erin says
Hi Sandi! So in the Ingredient section the last line item is “serving” and there is just a suggestion to serve it with shaved parmesan, which is totally optional! Hope that helps – and thank you so much, Sandi!! I appreciate it!