Name: Chicken Piccata
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 1.5 lb chicken breasts, butterflied and pounded thin; 0.5 cup all-purpose flour; 3 tbsp olive oil; 3 tbsp unsalted butter; 0.25 cup lemon juice; 0.5 cup chicken stock; 2 tbsp capers; 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped; 1 tsp kosher salt

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Chicken Piccata

StovetopMediumPrep 10 minCook 15 minServes 4

Thin chicken cutlets in a bright lemon-caper butter sauce — elegant, fast and endlessly reliable.

Ingredients

1½ lb chicken breasts, butterflied and pounded thin
½ cup all-purpose flour
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp unsalted butter
¼ cup lemon juice
½ cup chicken stock
2 tbsp capers
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp kosher salt

Steps

Season the cutlets and dredge lightly in flour.
Sear in hot oil for 3-4 minutes per side until golden; remove to a plate.
Deglaze the pan with the stock and lemon juice, scraping up the browned bits.
Swirl in the butter and capers until the sauce turns glossy.
Return the chicken to the pan, spoon the sauce over it and scatter with parsley.

Serve with: angel hair pasta and a green salad.

Pound the cutlets evenly so they cook in the same time.

Find this recipe in the Chicken & Meat section on the RecipeDelish home page, where you can scale it, print a clean PDF, download the shopping list and use cook mode.

Tips & mistakes

Pound the cutlets to an even thickness — thin spots overcook while thick spots stay raw, and the pan can't fix that.
Dredge lightly and shake off the excess flour; too much flour makes a gummy coating that slides off in the pan.
Sear in batches if the pan is crowded — crowded chicken steams instead of browning, and you lose the golden crust.
Add the butter at the end, off the heat, and swirl until glossy; boiling butter breaks the sauce and makes it greasy.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use chicken thighs? Yes: boneless thighs work; pound them thin and cook a minute longer per side. Thighs stay juicier than breasts, which is forgiving if you overshoot the time slightly.

What can I use instead of capers? Chopped green olives give a similar salty bite. Use the same amount, and rinse them first if they are very salty.

Can I make the sauce ahead? Make it fresh; the butter sauce separates if it sits, though a quick whisk brings it back. If it does separate, a splash of warm stock whisked in usually saves it.

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