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Chicken Piccata

Lemony, caper-topped, and just buttery enough, chicken piccata is an easy weeknight supper that’s easy to love, and so very fast—just ten minutes from sauté pan to table.

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Chicken Piccata with lemon and capers in a cast iron skillet

The TMP Food Philosophy in a Nutshell: When in Doubt, Turn to Italy.

Or at least, Italian-American cuisine. Lemony, caper-topped, and just buttery enough, our chicken piccata recipe makes for an easy weeknight supper that’s easy to love, and so very fast—just ten minutes from sauté pan to table after all, it’s basically thin scaloppine—or “thin pieces”—of chicken, fried in butter and drizzled a tangy lemon-butter pan sauce that’s studded with briny capers. What’s not to love!?

Chicken Piccatta in a skillet with lemon sauce and capers

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What Is Chicken Piccata?

If you grew up with parents that cooked often—like we did—or grew up eating out at Italian restaurants basically anywhere in America (hello, Olive Garden) you’re probably kind of familiar with “chicken piccata” as we mean it—a pan-fried chicken cutlet, topped with a lemon-butter piccata sauce. BUT! Chicken piccata as we know it doesn’t actually seem to have origins in Italy. It’s likely an Italian-American invention, a derivative of a couple of different classic Italian cooking techniques, like scaloppine which means “thin slices of meat (such as veal) sautéed or coated with flour and fried”. A lemon and butter pan sauce is a classic way of dressing pan-fried meat, and is common throughout Italy, but the (brilliant) addition of capers can’t be attributed to any one place or time. However and whenever it came into being, chicken piccata is—as far as we’re concerned—a very welcome addition to any home cook’s repertoire.

ingredients laid out for Chicken Piccata thinly cut chicken breast, flour, capers, lemon juice, olive oil, shallots

Capers and Lemons and Chicken Cutlets Fried in Butter: The Chicken Piccata Trifecta of Awesome.

Sure, chicken breast isn’t the most exciting thing ever. But, it doesn’t take much to perk it WAY up. Just a few, easy-to-find ingredients—ones that you might even have around already—and you’ll be amazed how delicious that humble chicken breast can be. Here’s what you’ll need to make chicken piccata:

  • Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • Salt & pepper
  • Flour for dredging
  • Butter
  • Olive oil
  • Chicken stock
  • Shallots
  • Garlic
  • Lemons, they brighten everything, including our Lemon Butter Chicken.
  • Capers
chicken breast cutlet dredged in flour and placed on a baking sheet
chicken breast dredged in flour and cooked in butter and olive oil in a cast iron skillet
shallot, garlic and chicken stock simmering in chicken pan drippings in a cast iron skillet
Chicken Piccata sauce in a cast iron skillet with capers, butter and lemon

How to Make Chicken Piccata Part 1: The Pan-Fry

  1. Slice the chicken breasts horizontally—you’ll need a sharp knife for this, obviously! The reason you cut the chicken breast into thin pieces is so that they can cook evenly during the pan-frying process. Thin pieces of chicken mean that when the outside is crispy and perfectly brown, the chicken will be cooked through. Magic!
  2. Dredge! Season the chicken breast pieces, and then give them a nice coating of flour. For whatever reason, kids really love to help out with this step. If they’re old enough to know to be careful with raw poultry, go ahead and outsource this step to them!
  3. Fry! Fry the chicken cutlets in a combination of olive oil and butter. The oil helps prevent the butter from burning, plus, we love the flavor of both!
lemon Chicken Picatta recipe finished in a cast iron skillet

How to Make Chicken Piccata Part 2: The Piccata Sauce

Our piccata sauce is simply a pan sauce, which means that we use the good crispy, chicken-tinged buttery bits that are left in the skillet after frying the chicken cutlets to make a sauce. Here’s how to make this lemony piccata sauce:

  1. Sauté shallots and garlic in the pan drippings—i.e. the leftover oil and butter.
  2. Add stock! Simmer for a few minutes to reduce it.
  3. Stir in more butter, plus the requisite capers and lemon juice.
  4. Season with a little salt and pepper.
  5. That's it! You made a pan sauce!

Tools You’ll Need:

Five Easy Chicken Recipes To Perk Up Your Weeknight Dinners:

Chicken doesn’t have to be bland. Healthy and quick, think of it as the ultimate blank slate. Here are five of our favorite fast chicken recipes to add some flavor to your weeknight routine:

easy chicken piccata recipe with lemon and capers

Piccata is the Difference Between “Chicken Again??” and “Chicken Again, YAY!”

We’re crazy about this simple chicken piccata recipe, and hope you love it, too! Snap a photo of your gorgeous finished dish, and maybe even a video of the beautiful people you feed it to. Tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper. Happy eating!

Chicken Piccata

  • Serves: 6
  • Prep Time:  10 min
  • Cook Time:  30 min
  • Calories: 457

Video

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken cutlets or breasts, butterflied to create thinner pieces
  • ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
  • 1¾ teaspoons sea salt
  • 1 cup flour
  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 shallot, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic (from 4-6 cloves)
  • 1½ cups chicken stock
  • 1 teaspoons lemon zest (from 1 lemon), plus more to taste
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons capers, drained
  • Fresh parsley, chopped, optional

Method

  1. Season the chicken all over with the pepper and 1½ teaspoons of the salt. Place the flour in a shallow bowl. Dip each piece of the chicken in the flour, turning to coat and shake off any excess. Discard the flour when finished dredging.

  2. Heat 3 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet set over medium-high until the butter has melted. Add half of the chicken and cook until golden brown and cooked through, about 2-3 minutes per side. Repeat with the remaining chicken, adding more butter and oil to the skillet as needed. Transfer the chicken to a seerving platter.

  3. Add the shallot to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 minute more. Stir in the stock and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, 4-5 minutes. Reduce heat to low, then stir in 4 tablespoons of the butter, capers, lemon zest, lemon juice and the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt.

  4. Pour the sauce over the chicken and garnish with parsley before serving.

Nutrition Info

  • Per Serving
  • Amount
  • Calories457
  • Protein27 g
  • Carbohydrates19 g
  • Total Fat30 g
  • Dietary Fiber2 g
  • Cholesterol109 mg
  • sodium536 mg
  • Total Sugars2 g

Chicken Piccata

Questions & Reviews

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  • Fairie

    I just want to tell you this looks delicious and just the way I expect it to look when I order it in a restaurant! I make it like this and everyone loves it! Thanks!!!

    Thanks Fairie!

  • Linda

    What can I replace the shallot with?

    You could use 1/4 of a sweet onion. The flavor won't be the exact same but it should be ok. Hope you enjoy Linda!

  • Ellen

    What to serve with chicken piccata? Linguini and a green vegetable?
    Thanks.

    Linguine, mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, roasted asparagus or broccoli, italian salad and crusty bread. Any of those would go fabulously!

  • Briana

    How long do I simmer the broth to be sure it is reduced? Or what would be a tell tale sign it’s been reduced enough?

    It should take about 4-5 minutes and the liquid should look lower in the pan then it did before.

  • Nicolas

    I'm just going to guess when the actual lemon SLICES are added

    they are not needed in the actual recipe. We use them as garnish for presentation. Hope you enjoy Nicolas!

  • Emily

    Wow! This was AMAZING. I took the recommendation of others and doubled the sauce.

    Thanks Emily, we are so glad you loved it!

  • Nicola

    A firm favorite!!

    I always have homemade chicken bone broth so use that & and always double the sauce.

    Even the kids love it!!

    Thanks Nicola, we are so glad you loved it!

  • Nicola

    So good!

    I always have homemade chicken bone broth on hand so use that, and ALWAYS double the sauce recipe.

    It's a firm fav in this house, even the kids agree 🤤

    Thanks Nicola! We are so happy your family loves it!

  • JM

    Excellent! I like mine more lemony and lots of capers so I did add to my liking. Delicious!

    Thanks JM, we are so glad you loved it!

  • Skye

    Great recipe, bit I always add a bit of white wine instead of all broth.

    Delicious! Glad you enjoyed Skye!