Chicken Piccata (or Veal Piccata) is one of those staple dinner recipes that I like to make for a dinner party. It’s simple and delicious. Surprisingly, it is a dish that most people think is difficult or complicated. Making a dinner like Chicken Piccata is actually so much easier than you think and I hope this recipe becomes one that is most useful to you, especially if you’re looking for the perfect entree for a small (or even large) dinner party.

In the recipe below and the video demonstrating how to make Chicken Piccata, I’ll show you that this dish is only a few steps and that you can make this for 4 or 40 people and they’ll all be amazed at how great you made it. Look for the full recipe details and cooking tips right below the video.

Ingredients:

• 4 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied, pounded thin and then cut in half
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, for dredging
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 lemons, 1 juiced, 1 sliced
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 bullion cube
• 2 tablespoons capers, drained
• 1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:

On a cutting board, fillet each chicken breast and trim off any fat. Place two pieces of chicken at a time between two pieces of parchment paper. Pound with a flat mallet, until the cutlets are about 1/4-inch thick. Set aside and repeat until all the chicken is pounded thin. I like to cut the breasts into two pieces to make them more manageable and they also make more reasonable serving sizes like this.

Put some flour in a shallow dish. First, season each side of the chicken cutlets with salt and pepper and then dredge each cutlet lightly on each side with flour.

Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is nice and hot, brown a few cutlets at a time for 3-5 minutes on each side until golden. Once the chicken is brown, place the pieces in a single layer on a cookie sheet with a rim, or a glass casserole dish. Continue until all the chicken is browned. You don’t need to cook the chicken now. Just brown it. You’ll finish cooking it in the oven.

Turn up the heat and pour the white wine in the pan and boil down for a minute so the alcohol cooks off. Then add the lemon juice, chicken stock, bouillon, butter and then, the capers.  Allow the sauce to cook for a minute or two. Pour the sauce over the chicken, place the lemon slices on top, cover with foil and place in a 350-degree oven for about 20 minutes. Remove chicken and sprinkle with fresh parsley before serving.

Cook’s Tips:

If you are making this for just 3-4 people, you could both brown the chicken and then cook it in the same pan to avoid using the oven. In that case, you would brown the chicken, then cover the pan and simmer on low for about 15 minutes instead of using the oven.