Unlike most families, our schoolyear began only this week. As a result, I have two Twinkies who are moping their way through life. Poor Twinks; I guess they assumed life could be lived without the knowledge of atoms, molecules and pythagorean theorems- they’re devastated. I keep trying to reassure them that their kindles won’t die without them, but it won’t work. To bribe them, I decided to make one of their favorite meals- Chicken Piccata with Asparagus.
In case you didn’t know, my twins are food-snobs. Like, legit, card-carrying bougie foodies. No, I have no idea where they got it from (yes, I do). Their Dad, for one, used to think ramen noodles and mayonnaise sandwiches was gourmet. But, I recognize I’ve raised them with certain culinary standards that are above average. No shame. None whatsoever. Sometimes, though, they take it bit too far and manage to embarrass me with their pickiness.
Like the time the girl-child told the waitress at a certain macaroni grill that she, “Wouldn’t feed my dog that boxed, imitation macaroni and cheese,” and that, “No, I don’t want anything else if your cooks can’t get that right at a pasta restaurant.” Um…okay, chill, little girl. We didn’t even have a dog at that point. Dang! I gotta be honest, I do get excited that my children not only appreciate, but recognize, good food. That’s why them loving chicken piccata came as no surprise to me. So, with the advent of our ninth year of homeschooling, I figured it would be THE perfect meal to appease their little crestfallen faces. It didn’t work. Sure, they enjoyed it, but they rolled their eyes at me more than once whilst they ate it.
Chicken Piccata got its Italian name from the preparation of the chicken breast. Butterfly a chicken breast, then pound it flat between a piece of wax paper, and you have half of the recipe. Veal, as well as fish are also piccata-able? Capable of being piccata-ed? You can make this dish with veal or fish, dang it. For my family, slicing half a chicken breast in half, then pummeling it, works just as well and provides leftovers for the Soldier’s lunch next day. If you need a more substantial meal, use a whole breast for each serving.
When butterflying a breast, or even just splitting one for portion control, the best thing you can do is lay your palm flat on top of the breast. Use a very sharp filleting knife when butterflying as dull knives will cause you to force the blade. Gently slice the chicken breast in half lengthwise stopping just before you cut through the breast completely. The exception to this is, again, if you are splitting the breast for portion control. If so, go ahead and finish the cut.
Mine, I split in half, but if I were butterflying this breast, I would’ve stopped about a 1/4″ sooner. From here, you’re going to sandwich the breast in between a piece of wax paper or plastic wrap.
Then beat the crap out of it. No, not really. Take a mallet, or in my bien Puerto Rican way- a pestle- and pound it to 1/4″ in thickness. Switch out the paper/plastic wrap if it begins to tear, but thin the remaining breasts in the same way.
Now, season your chicken breasts with kosher salt, freshly ground pepper and garlic powder. I season all meat and poultry liberally, especially at the start of cooking, because I find they retain flavor better that way. Typically, I don’t need to re-season the meats once I’m done cooking them. I actually pride myself on never having to put salt or pepper on the table. Too often, people underestimate the power of proper seasoning.
Set up a dredging station with all-purpose flour and three large eggs that have been beaten. In most recipes, Chicken Piccata is dredged in flour and then fried. I like more crunch on mine, so I dust it in flour, dip it in egg, and dredge it in flour a second time prior to frying. If you’re not a huge fan of breading, just dust it in the flour and proceed. However, if you choose to make your chicken piccata like mine, make sure you shake off as much excess flour as possible prior to frying. Too much flour, or egg for that matter, will muck up the oil and cause your breading to brown faster than you want.
Heat equal measures of unsalted butter and vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. The combo increases the smoke point of the butter while adding that delicious flavor. Fry two, or three, chicken breasts for 4 minutes on each side. You don’t want to crowd the pan because it’ll cause a drop in the temperature of the oil. The key to creating a crispy crust is keeping that oil at a constant temperature throughout the cooking process. The thinness of the breast also means it doesn’t need to cook as long as they typically would. Once they’ve browned nicely on both sides, remove it from the oil and drain them on paper towels. Transfer to a sheet pan and keep them warm in the oven while you fry the remaining pieces. Clean out your pan and it’ll be time for sauce-making.
Gather your mise en place (all the ingredients you’ll need for your recipe). A traditional chicken piccata sauce contains fresh lemon juice, wine, capers (which are optional), with a finish of butter to create a silken sauce. I, personally, love the brininess that the capers bring to the party, but if you have some aversion to them, omit, and the recipe will still be bomb. The Twinks say so.
Sauté your minced onions and garlic in a small amount of extra-virgin olive oil. Did you know that “sauté” means “to jump”, and that it’s the process of cooking foods in a little oil over moderately high heat? Well, now ya’ know. Look at you, all smart and stuff. Sauté until you see the onions beginning to look glossy.
Now, pour a cup of white wine into the pan, CAREFULLY, to deglaze the pan. Deglazing is basically scraping anything from the bottom of the pan by using a liquid- usually wine- to loosen it up. There won’t be much to “unstick” seeing as how we’ve only sautéed onions and garlic, but it still contributes nicely to the flavor of the final sauce. Using a wooden spoon, scrape the pan to loosen any bits of food stuck there.
Add your lemon juice, toss in the lemon halves just for the heck of it, and add your chicken stock. Reduce, or cook the mixture until the water has evaporated and, thus, left a concentrated sauce. You want the sauce to reduce by half.
Finally, add your capers and the finishing butter and swirl a few times. Your chicken piccata is almost complete!
Toss in your chopped asparagus and your fried chicken breast to coat both in the sauce. Serve spooned over your pre-cooked fettuccine and serve to your high-maintenance, aspiring, young food bloggers. Ha ha!!! No, I thoroughly enjoy how much my children love food. Now, if I could only get them to be as excited about comma splices!
Chicken Piccata Fettuccine with Asparagus
at Sense & EdibilityA crispy breading soaks up a lemon-butter sauce to create a sumptuous main course.
Servings: servings
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breast (filleted in 4 pieces), or 4 butterflied breasts
- kosher salt to taste
- freshly ground pepper to taste
- garlic powder 1 tbsp for seasoning
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 3 large eggs beaten
- 1 stick unsalted butter divided
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup white onion minced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup white wine pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice reserve two lemon halves
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 tbsp capers
- 1 lb asparagus woody ends removed and stalks cut into 2" pieces
- 1 lb fettuccini cooked according package instructions and drained*
- fresh parsley to garnish
*see note
Instructions
- Place the butterflied chicken breasts between a piece of wax paper and pound to a 1/4" thickness. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder on both sides.
- In a large frying pan, heat 4 tbsp of butter and the vegetable oil over med-high heat (350°F). Prepare a dredging station next to your stove with a dish full of the flour and a separate one with the beaten egg. On the opposite side of your pan, line a sheet pan with paper towels to drain the fried chicken breasts on. Set your oven to warm to keep the cooked chicken warm.
- Dredge the chicken breast first in the flour, then dip in the egg (allowing the excess to run off), then back into the flour. Shake off any excess flour, and carefully place in the hot oil. Fry on each side for four minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oil and allow to drain on the paper-towels. Keep warm.
- Once the chicken is fried, clean out your pan and, over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Sauté the onion and garlic for 3 minutes or until glossy. Carefully, add the white wine and deglaze the pan, scraping up the bits of food that may be stuck to the pan.
- Add the lemon juice and chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Allow the sauce to cook for 10 minutes or until reduced by half. Add the capers and finish by stirring in the remaining butter.
- Add the asparagus and cook for 5 minutes before adding the chicken breast. Warm the chicken and serve over the pasta. Garnish with parsley, if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
*Begin cooking the pasta when you start your sauce. Toss the cooked fettuccini in a tbsp of extra virgin olive oil immediately after draining to prevent it from sticking together while you prepare the sauce.
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Yum! I love a good chicken piccata. I will be pinning this to try this week:)
Oh, please do! I hope you love it!!
Oh yum! This looks delicious and like an amazing weeknight dinner idea!!
Yes! It’s perfect for a weeknight. I actually make this on our busy days with no issue. I hope you enjoy it!
Your pictures of this recipe are just beautiful! What kind of camera do you use?
Thanks, Sarah! Surprisingly enough, I’m using an old Nikon D3100. Not a huge fan of it, but I’m making it work for now.
This looks so delicious. I am a horrible cook (hey, we all have our strengths lol) but your instructions are so easy to follow that I feel I may attempt this one. Thank you for sharing!
I hope you do! I know you’ll rock it!
Looks delicious! I never thought of hammering out the chicken to make it thinner. I’ll have to try this recipe!
Yes! It’s the perfect way to stretch a meal too!
That looks delicious. My kids will absolutely love it too!
Yes, Jolene! I’m sure they’ll love it as much as the Twinks do!