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Chicken Lunch Dinner One Pot Italian
4.6 from 357 votes

Lemon Chicken Piccata

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By: Joanna Cismaru •8/5/23 288 Comments

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pin for chicken piccata.

This Lemon Chicken Piccata is a simple, yet impressive dish! Delicious chicken in a tasty lemon, butter and capers sauce. Made entirely in one pan, it’s perfect with pasta for a quick and delicious dinner.

chicken piccata in a skillet garnished with parsley.
Table of Contents Open
  • Easy Chicken Piccata Recipe
  • Why We Love This Chicken Piccata Recipe
  • Ingredients You’ll Need
  • How To Make Chicken Piccata
  • What Is Chicken Piccata?
  • What Type Of Wine Works Best?
  • How To Serve
  • Expert Tips
  • Leftovers
    • Freezing
  • More Great Recipes To Try
  • Chicken Piccata
    • Video
    • Ingredients
    • Instructions
    • Equipment
    • Notes
    • Nutrition Information
  • Did You Make This?

Easy Chicken Piccata Recipe

This chicken piccata is the perfect romantic dish for a special occasion. You know they say “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” It’s true! And if you don’t believe me, I dare you to try it, cook him a meal like this!

My lemon chicken piccata is an impressive dish, yet it’s so simple to make. It’s amazing how you can turn a few basic ingredients into a fabulous and totally delicious dish!

It’s such an easy dish to make and so full of flavor! The ingredient list is incredibly simple and the entire meal takes just over 40 minutes start to finish. Plus, you only need one skillet, which makes cleanup a breeze! If you love the bright taste lemons, this dish is for you!

overhead shot of lemon chicken piccata on a serving platter.

Why We Love This Chicken Piccata Recipe

  • One Pot Meal. I love it when there is only one dish to wash, less cleanup more time to do what you like.
  • Easy To Make And Ready In Just 40 Minutes. All you need is chicken breast, a handful of basic ingredients and a pan. Quick, easy and painless!
  • Impressive and Delicious. This classic chicken piccata is perfect if you want to impress your significant other, because it delivers on both taste and presentation.

Ingredients You’ll Need

overhead shot for all the ingredients needed to cook lemon chicken piccata.
  • Chicken Breasts – You want them boneless and skinless. You can also do this with boneless skinless chicken thighs, for the dark meat lover. If using larger breasts, make sure you cut them in half lengthwise, as seen in the video.
  • Flour – All purpose flour for dredging our chicken through.
  • Butter – I always use unsalted, this way I can control how much salt is in my food.
  • Olive oil – Pretty much my oil of choice all the time, especially for dishes such as this. Substitute sunflower, safflower or avocado oil.
  • Lemon juice – This is the star of this recipe, so you want to make sure is fresh lemon juice for best flavor.
  • White wine – A dry white wine will work great such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio.
  • Capers – This is another key ingredient in this recipe, they’ll give the dish more lemony, oily and salty flavor.
  • Salt And Pepper – You’ll need a bit of salt and some black pepper to season our dish.

How To Make Chicken Piccata

process shots showing how to prep chicken and cook it for chicken piccata.
  1. Prep Chicken: If the breasts are too thick, you’ll need to slice them in half lengthwise. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in flour and shake off any excess.
  2. Cook Chicken: In a large skillet melt 2 tbsp of butter with the olive oil, over medium high heat. Add chicken pieces to the skillet and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes per side until browned. When the chicken is cooked, remove it from the skillet.
  3. Add Ingredients: Remove skillet from heat. Add lemon juice, chicken stock or wine, capers and scrape up the brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Return the skillet to heat and bring to a boil. Taste the sauce and season with additional salt and pepper if needed. Add the chicken back to skillet and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add remaining butter to the sauce in the skillet and whisk for about a minute. Sauce will thicken slightly.
  4. Finish and Serve: Pour the sauce over the chicken garnish with parsley and lemon wedges.
process shots showing how to make sauce for chicken piccata and how to finish the dish.

What Is Chicken Piccata?

Piccata is a method of preparing food where meat is sliced, coated, sautéed and served in a sauce. The dish is Italian as the name would imply, but it is originally made with veal. Here I chose to make mine with chicken breasts, thinly sliced, or butterflied.

What Type Of Wine Works Best?

It’s important to deglaze the pan, and the wine adds a nice depth of flavor. I would recommend using your favorite dry white wine, such as a Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc! If you want a non-alcoholic version, you can substitute chicken broth! It will work just as well.

How To Serve

This lemon chicken piccata is perfect over buttered noodles or mashed potatoes. You can also serve this over rice, with a side of roasted broccoli or green beans.

chicken piccata in a skillet garnished with parsley.

Expert Tips

  1. Make sure to scrape all those delicious brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. That’s where all the flavor is, so you want to make sure you scrape really well.
  2. Substitute chicken broth for the wine if you’re looking for an alcohol free version.

I had Lemon caper chicken piccata at a restaurant recently and so enjoyed it. Found your recipe and it is every bit as good and exactly what I was looking for… AND I had everything needed on hand (even better)! Thank you!!!

freshly made chicken piccata in a skillet garnished with parsley and lemon wedges.

Leftovers

You can store this chicken piccata easily in the fridge. In an airtight container, it will keep for 3 – 5 days, just be sure it’s properly cooled before storing.

Freezing

If you’d like to make and freeze this chicken piccata ahead of time just place it in the fridge until it’s completely cooled. Store in an airtight container, then transfer to the freezer. It should last for 3 months.

When ready to serve, allow it to thaw overnight in the fridge before popping it back in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes. Alternatively, you could heat it up in a skillet.

chicken piccata on a white plate with a fork holding a piece.

More Great Recipes To Try

  • Creamy Lemon Chicken Piccata Fettuccine
  • Cheese and Prosciutto Stuffed Chicken Breasts
  • Chicken Francese
  • Chicken Marsala
  • Lemon Chicken Rice Bake

Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.

chicken piccata in a skillet garnished with parsley.
4.59 from 357 votes

Chicken Piccata

Prep 15 minutes minutes
Cook 25 minutes minutes
Total 40 minutes minutes
4
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This Lemon Chicken Piccata is a simple, yet impressive dish! Delicious chicken in a tasty lemon, butter and capers sauce. Made entirely in one pan, it's perfect with pasta for a quick and delicious dinner.
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Video

Ingredients

  • 2 chicken breasts (skinless and boneless, cut in half lengthwise)
  • ¼ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
  • ½ teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour (for dredging)
  • 4 tablespoon butter (unsalted)
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • ⅓ cup lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
  • ½ cup white wine (dry)
  • ¼ cup capers (brined)
  • ⅓ cup parsley (fresh, chopped)

Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.

Instructions 

  • Prep Chicken: If the breasts are too thick, you'll need to slice them in half lengthwise. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in flour and shake off any excess.
  • Cook Chicken: In a large skillet melt 2 tbsp of butter with the olive oil, over medium high heat. Add chicken pieces to the skillet and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes per side until browned. When the chicken is cooked, remove it from the skillet.
  • Add Ingredients: Remove skillet from heat. Add lemon juice, chicken stock or wine, capers and scrape up the brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Return the skillet to heat and bring to a boil. Taste the sauce and season with additional salt and pepper if needed. Add the chicken back to skillet and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add remaining butter to the sauce in the skillet and whisk for about a minute. Sauce will thicken slightly.
  • Finish and Serve: Pour the sauce over the chicken garnish with parsley and lemon wedges.

Equipment

  • 12″ AllClad Stainless Skillet

Notes

  1. Substitute chicken broth for the wine if you’re looking for an alcohol free version.
  2. You can store this chicken piccata easily in the fridge. In an airtight container, it will keep for 3 – 5 days, just be sure it’s properly cooled before storing.
  3. If you’d like to make and freeze this chicken piccata ahead of time just place it in the fridge until it’s completely cooled. Store in an airtight container, then transfer to the freezer. It should last for 3 months.
  4. When ready to serve, allow it to thaw overnight in the fridge before popping it back in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes. Alternatively, you could heat it up in a skillet.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1chicken pieceCalories: 289kcal (14%)Carbohydrates: 9g (3%)Protein: 13g (26%)Fat: 20g (31%)Saturated Fat: 9g (56%)Cholesterol: 66mg (22%)Sodium: 520mg (23%)Potassium: 279mg (8%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 1g (1%)Vitamin A: 803IU (16%)Vitamin C: 16mg (19%)Calcium: 20mg (2%)Iron: 1mg (6%)

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.

chicken piccata in a skillet garnished with parsley.

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Recipe Originally Published December 2014.

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Joanna Cismaru

Joanna Cismaru

I’m Joanna (Jo for short) and this is my blog where I share with you my culinary adventures. Through Jo Cooks, I invite you to join me in my kitchen as we explore delicious recipes from around the globe, celebrate the joy of cooking, and make every meal a memorable one. Happy cooking!

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288 Comments
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Raymond
Raymond
Posted: 1 month ago

5 stars
I made this dish for my kids 23 and 20. They said that it was amazing. I just wanted to thank you for all the wonderful work you did so people like myself would be able to make this wonderful dinner. Do you have any recipes for a beef wellington and a baked salmon?

0
Reply
Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Raymond
Posted: 1 month ago

Thank you so much for your kind words, I really appreciate it and I’m happy to hear that you’re enjoying my recipes. Here is the beef wellington recipe: https://www.jocooks.com/recipes/beef-wellington/
And the baked salmon, though there are a few on the blog: https://www.jocooks.com/recipes/easy-baked-salmon/
You can find all the salmon recipes here: https://www.jocooks.com/category/ingredient/salmon/

0
Reply
Jess
Jess
Posted: 3 months ago

5 stars
I’ve been making this for several years now, and it never disappoints! I’ve made meatless versions using cauliflower, served both chicken and veggie versions over rice, with pasta, or even with some good crusty bread. When I serve with linguine, I will 1.5x the sauce ingredients, undercook the pasta for a few minutes, and finish in the sauce in the pan, reserving some pasta water as needed until fully cooked. It’s the standard recipe in our house for chicken piccata, thanks!!

0
Reply
Barbara
Barbara
Posted: 5 months ago

5 stars
Delicious!

0
Reply
Hoot
Hoot
Posted: 7 months ago

5 stars
Made this several times now. My small children love it and it’s a quick weeknight recipe. Delicious and simple. A staple when I don’t know what to cook. Thank you ☺️

0
Reply
Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Hoot
Posted: 7 months ago

Happy to hear you guys like it!

2
Reply
Jana
Jana
Posted: 9 months ago

5 stars
This is the best Chicken Piccata recipe! Easy, festive and taste great!

0
Reply
Almae
Almae
Posted: 10 months ago

5 stars
Yum!

0
Reply
Lise
Lise
Posted: 11 months ago

5 stars
I’ve made chicken piccata before, but this version was by far the simplest and dare I say, the tastiest I’ve ever made. This will be my go-to from now on… thank you!

0
Reply
Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Lise
Posted: 11 months ago

So glad you liked it, Lise!

0
Reply
Minette Satterwhite
Minette Satterwhite
Posted: 1 year ago

5 stars
This is a go to for my family! I pound the breast halves thin and add a little thyme to the flour and pan at the end. So yummy!

0
Reply
G
G
Posted: 1 year ago

5 stars
Great recipe!! We make this all the time but we also add 1 cup of chicken broth/stock bc we like a lot of sauce. We serve it with fettucini with a little garlic-oil, roasted asparagus tips and halved grape tomatoes-all mixed together. My husband always has to make the garlic bread, broiled-so yummy! The sauce is then added to the chicken AND the pasta dish. Thanks so much for sharing!

0
Reply
Kelli Deann Franks
Kelli Deann Franks
Posted: 1 year ago

5 stars
This is truthfully the best. My family loves when I make this. Question though, can I use almond flourinstead of regular flour?

0
Reply
Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Kelli Deann Franks
Posted: 1 year ago

Yeah, it should be fine. 🙂

0
Reply
Kelli
Kelli
Reply to  Joanna Cismaru
Posted: 1 year ago

5 stars
I used fish instead of chicken with the almond flour and it was amazing!

0
Reply
David Hill
David Hill
Posted: 2 years ago

5 stars
Absolutely delicious! Will make this time and time again

0
Reply
Jo Cooks Team AMJ
Jo Cooks Team AMJ
Reply to  David Hill
Posted: 2 years ago

So glad to hear that David!

0
Reply
Candace
Candace
Posted: 2 years ago

3 stars
This was good but it was so tart, any suggestions on what to do instead of so much lemon juice?

0
Reply
Jo Cooks Team AMJ
Jo Cooks Team AMJ
Reply to  Candace
Posted: 2 years ago

Hi Candace,

For the tartness, you can try to add half of the recommended amount of lemon juice and see if that helps out the taste. Let us know how it turns out!

0
Reply
Austin M
Austin M
Posted: 2 years ago

4 stars
I liked the recipe however, I found the sauce to be a little to acidic for my taste. I will probably use 1 cup of wine next time to dillute the fresh lemon juice a little.

0
Reply
Diana
Diana
Posted: 2 years ago

5 stars
Can I make a couple hours in advance and keep warm in an electric skillet?

0
Reply
Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Diana
Posted: 2 years ago

Absolutely!

0
Reply
Christina
Christina
Posted: 2 years ago

5 stars
Sooo Amaaaaaaazing!!!!!!! Seriously a staple meal in my kitchen forever. Thank you so much for sharing!

0
Reply

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I’m Joanna (Jo for short) and this is the place where I share my passion for easy and delicious recipes. From comforting classics to global flavors, I believe that cooking should be fun, approachable, and most importantly, rewarding. Join me on this culinary journey and let’s get cooking!

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