Chicken piccata an easy and elegant mid-week meal

October 19, 8:43 PMMinneapolis Italian Food ExaminerClaudia Haas

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Chicken Piccata
Claudia Haas

Chicken piccata is my go-to recipe midweek when I want something a wee bit elegant but still easy. This was one of my favorite recipes from my childhood - but when I queried all of the Gresios about how to make it I was told, "You put a little bit-a that, a lotta- bit of this..." so I watched them.  What is wonderful about the chicken piccata is - if you add too much lemon, you can balance it with the broth. In short - as most Italian recipes are - it is forgiving. I shall give amounts, but I will admit to having fallen victim to the Gresio-syndrome of adding "what looks right." Today, I paid attention to amounts.

 Chicken Piccata Recipe - 4 Servings

2 large chicken breasts, sliced across and through the middle (I don't pound for thinness; I slice)

3 T olive oil (virgin or extra virgin, canola also works)

2 T butter (or margarine)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 lemon

*1/4 cup dry white wine (don't use cooking wine; it's laden with salt) - optional

3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth

parsley for garnish

Chicken Piccata Instructions:

- Slice and cut your chicken - two breasts will yield 8 pieces

- put flour in a bowl

- zest 1/2 of the lemon over the flour

In a heavy large skillet, heat oil and butter over medium-high heat.  Dredge chicken in flour-lemon- zest mixture shaking off excess. (Keep it light!) When oil-butter mixture starts to sizzle, put in chicken. Brown each side (about 3-4 minutes the first side and three minutes the second side). They do not need to be cooked through - you will finish them in the sauce. Remove chicken to plate and keep warm.

You can deglaze the pan with the wine scraping up the brown bits. (I turn off the heat when I do this - not wild about possible flames as the alcohol reaches the pot! I flambe nothing.) I think the wine complements the lemony-broth and adds flavor. I boil the wine down to just a few tablespoons. Or you can skip this step and go right to the addition of the broth. Simply add a little broth, scrape up the tasty brown bits and then add the rest. Slice the 1/2 lemon that you zested and squeeze the juices into the pan. Throw in the lemon slices. Save the other half of the lemon. Bring to a simmer. Put the chicken back in the skillet, cover and simmer for ten minutes. You will know the chicken is cooked through if you can easy slice a chicken piece in half with a spatula. I slice them all in half so there are different size pieces for people to choose.

Put on plate.  Add remaining fresh lemon slices and parsley. Boil down the sauce left in the pot for about three minutes. Serve, passing the sauce separately. This is very good over rice. Tonight, I stuffed eggplant with fresh vegetables and a little cheese and it complemented the meal well.

Other suggestions for the recipe: Many people add 1/2 cup of capers to the sauce while the chicken is cooking. It does add a nice briny touch. Others will saute some shallots in the oil-butter mixture before adding the chicken. And some use only butter and no oil. I tend to be a creature of habit and do what Grandma did.

Tomorrow I will give you the simple eggplant recipe. Today, I hope you make plans to fit some chicken piccata into your week. It's one of the lighter chicken cutlet recipes and does well after a warm autumn day. As the temperature cools into the eve, your ktichen has the aroma of lemony goodness.

My chicken breasts are from Otis Family Farms. All the other ingredients are pantry staples.

You mal also like: Chicken Cutlets Italian Style