The Cozy Cookbook is here! This Lemon Chicken Piccata is a restaurant-quality meal that is easy to make at home! You will love this flavorful white wine reduction sauce that has just the right amount of lemon and butter! With this recipe, there is plenty of sauce to go around.
Serve this with Creamy Herb Pasta, Parmesan Garlic Pasta or Buttered Noodles.
Chicken Piccata
If you want to make a restaurant-worthy meal at home, get ready- you’re about to do it.
I’ll start by saying this: Preparing the chicken (i.e. Slicing, pounding, dredging, searing), is the most laborious part of this recipe. From there, it’s really quick and easy.
Unlike most recipes, this one includes the addition of chicken broth, which adds great flavor and helps create even more of that flavorful, gourmet-worthy sauce. It’s not overly loaded with butter and the flavor from the lemon is perfect but not overwhelming.
Check out my step-by-step shots on how to make this, PRO tips, storage info, and more:
How to Make it
See recipe card at bottom of post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Cut the chicken into 2-3 thinner slices (I prefer 3 if using very large chicken breasts.) This cuts down on the pounding time. Flash freezing the chicken for 5 minutes makes it easier to slice.
Place the chicken in between saran wrap and pound it to 1/4 inch thin.
Pat dry and dredge in a seasoned flour/Parmesan mixture. Tap off excess. Heat olive oil and butter and sear the chicken in batches for 3-4 minutes per side. Set aside and wipe pan, leaving a small amount of brown remnants in the pan.
Add white wine and garlic and let it bubble gently and reduce until there is very little liquid left. Add capers, chicken broth, and lemon juice.
Add chicken back to the pan, spoon sauce on top, and cover partially for 4-5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and swirl in 2 Tablespoons cold butter. Tilt pan to distribute sauce and spoon over the chicken. Serve with One Pot Garlic Parmesan Pasta or Creamy Lemon Pasta.
Pro Tips
- Chicken plumps up when cooked so be sure to really pound it thin (1/4 inch) beforehand. This also ensures even cooking and really tender chicken.
- Preparing the chicken is the most labor-intensive part of this recipe but is well worth it. After that, it’s smooth sailing.
- Use juice from a freshly squeezed lemon, it’s far more flavorful than from a bottle.
- Use fresh garlic from a clove, it’s much better than a jar.
- Use a high quality butter, I prefer Land O’ Lakes salted butter. Unsalted works as well.
- In this recipe, we add 2 tablespoons of cold butter to the sauce at the end, which is a technique that chefs use called “monter au beurre”, which creates a smooth, velvety finish.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 104!
What to Serve with Chicken Piccata
- Creamy Herb Pasta, One Pot Garlic Parmesan Pasta or Creamy Lemon Pasta
- Buttered Noodles
- Mashed Potatoes or Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes
- Garlic Bread with Cheese or Buttermilk Biscuits
- Roasted Carrots, Green Beans, or Broccoli
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Chicken Piccata makes a great freezer meal as well. Store it in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- This is the skillet I used in this recipe, (and in 90% of my recipes). It’s pricey, but it conducts heat really well and is oven safe. The size is perfect and the quality is great.
- Meat Tenderizer. Essential for this recipe!
- Kitchen Tongs– Makes it easy to handle the chicken when searing.
- Silicone Spatula– Makes it easy to scrape up any brown bits left in the pan and incorporate them into the sauce for more flavor.
Try These Next!
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- Chicken Spaghetti
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- Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits
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- Chicken Scampi
-
- Cube Steak and Gravy
-
- Creamy Bacon Pasta
-
- Sausage Tortellini Soup
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Chicken Piccata
Ingredients
Chicken
- 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup flour
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon salted butter
Sauce
- ½ cup dry white wine, like chardonnay or pinot grigio
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 2 Tablespoons capers, drained
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons cold salted butter
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
Instructions
Cut, Pound, Dredge, and Sear the Chicken:
- Note: This is the most time consuming part, after this section, this meal is a breeze.
- Combine the flour, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, salt, and pepper on a large plate. Set aside.
- Cut each chicken breast into 3 thinner slices. Place in between saran wrap and use a meat tenderizer to pound it very thin, about ¼ inch thick. It will plump more once it’s cooked so pounding thin is key.
- Pat the chicken dry and dredge each side in the flour mixture. Tap off excess.
- Heat 3 Tbsp. olive oil and 1 Tbsp. butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken in batches for 3-4 minutes per side, until a golden crust has developed. Add a splash of olive oil and/or reduce heat as needed during cooking. Set the chicken aside on a plate and turn off heat when finished.
Prepare the Sauce:
- Carefully wipe the pan, but leave a few brown bits for added flavor.
- Add the wine and garlic. Set heat to medium. Bubble gently for 4-5 minutes, until just a small amount of liquid remains. Use a silicone spatula to “clean” any remaining brown flecks on the pan while the wine reduces. This will add flavor.
- Add the capers, chicken broth, 2 Tbsp. lemon juice and stir to combine.
Add the Chicken back and Finish the Meal:
- Add the chicken along with any juices from the plate.
- Spoon the sauce over the chicken and cover partially, cook for 3-5 minutes. The sauce will thicken slightly and become more flavorful.
- Reduce heat to low. Add 2 Tablespoons cold butter and let it melt into the sauce. Tilt the pan to distribute the sauce throughout and spoon it over the chicken again. Remove from heat.
- Garnish with parsley and serve. My Garlic Parmesan Pasta or Creamy Lemon Pasta is great with this meal.
Notes
- Chicken plumps up when cooked so be sure to really pound it thin (1/4 inch) beforehand. This also ensures even cooking and really tender chicken.
- Use juice from a freshly squeezed lemon, it's far more flavorful than from a bottle.
- Use a high quality butter, I prefer Land O' Lakes salted butter.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 104!
Nutrition information is an estimate and includes all of the flour dredge ingredients but it's likely that there will be some left on the plate. Nutrition information is per serving, there are 4 servings in this recipe.
Hi – do I have to use white wine? Can I replace with more chicken broth? Thanks
Hi Kristen! You can replace the wine with chicken broth, but the wine in this particular recipe really enhances the flavors and adds that “something” extra. They also have non alcoholic wine widely available! But as mentioned, chicken broth will work! Enjoy!
l love that you say this is freezable ! What is your recommendation for freezing and reheating? Could I fry the chicken and freeze it and just. do the. sauce day of?
Hi Karen! I actually usually just freeze leftovers, but I don’t incorporate freezing as part of a make-ahead method. If you sear the chicken ahead of time and then freeze it, you’ll be losing all of that “fond” in the skillet (the little brown remnants left behind), which adds a lot of flavor to the sauce. So I do recommend making it fresh if possible. If you freeze leftovers, I would let them thaw in the fridge overnight and then you can reheat it by baking in a small, covered baking dish at 350 for 20 minutes or so! 🙂
I hear you on the ‘good bits’. I am hoping to make this ahead for a holiday dinner coming up. Do I dare make it 2 days in advance and reheat??
Hiii! To make this ahead of time, I would probably prepare it all as outlined (be careful not to overcook the chicken), and then let it cool completely and store it together. To reheat, bake in a covered casserole dish at 350 for about 20-25 minutes. If you can let it sit out for 30 minutes prior to baking it, it will bake more evenly.
Followed the recipe and hands down, this is the best chicken piccata I’ve ever made. The wine just adds that certain required flavor. Many other recipes don’t call for it. Husband loved it. Grandkids loved it. This will be served on a regular basis at my house. Thank you for the recipe and easy to follow instructions!
Hi Gramma T! I am sooo happy that you loved the chicken piccata! That is a staple at our house, we just love it! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it! -Stephanie
Outstanding recipe as always. I found the flour mixture didn’t really stick to the chicken As much ans I had expected and was wondering if dipping in beaten egg first might be a good idea? Seems the cheese and garlic powder got left behind.
Hi Simona! For some reason I never have an issue with the flour mixture sticking to the chicken and I’m not sure why, my chicken is sticky even after patting it dry! (That rhymes. 😆) However you absolutely could dip it in whisked egg, I would slide any excess egg off the chicken with your fingers, and then transfer to the flour. (If it’s too wet, the egg bleeds through.) Whisked egg whites work well too! 🙂 I’m glad that you enjoyed the recipe, thank you so much for the review!! -Stephanie
Thank you for putting the “fear factor” of making Piccata to the side! Perfect & delicious!
My pleasure Debra! I’m so happy it was a success. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💖
I made this recipe (Chicken Piccata) last night for dinner and it was a huge hit! The flavor was SO GOOD! The key to a good dish (I think) is salt and the adding of the salted butter at the end was a surprise because “normally” recipes call for unsalted butter. However, this was a great choice and didn’t make the dish salty at all, but resulted in a nice balance of flavor!
My family and I are grateful for leftovers tonight and this recipe will be added to our family favorites!!!
I am so happy that you enjoyed it Karen!! I love the buttering technique at the end too! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave such a wonderful review, I appreciate it so much!! -Stephanie❤️
You’re welcome and thank you for a great recipe! <3
Hi Karen. Would you mind telling me what brand and variety of wine you used for this recipe? I have never cooked with wine.
Hi Kathy! I would use Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio, I usually use Josh Cellars brand and its great!
I plan to make this for company. Do you have a suggestion or recommendations as to how far in advance of serving I could prepare this and how to keep it warm?
Hi Sandy! To make this ahead of time, I would probably prepare it all as outlined (be very careful not to overcook the chicken), and then let it cool completely and store it together. To reheat, bake in a covered casserole dish at 350 for about 20-25 minutes. If you can let it sit out for 30 minutes prior to baking it, it will bake more evenly. Enjoy!
Yum!!!
Thanks Mimi!💖
Really easy to make and delicious! This from someone who hasn’t geared off my normal path of chicken, rice and vegetables.
Hi April! I’m so happy that you loved this recipe and were able to switch things up from your regular routine a bit! Thank you so much for the review as well, you’re the best! -Stephanie
Was delicious and easy to fix. I added mushrooms to mine.
I’m so happy you liked it Kimberly! Mushrooms are yummmmy, I wish I got to add them more often but my husband isn’t a fan 🙄. Thanks for the great review!