This is my homey, lazy way take on a classic recipe. I don't pound chicken breasts. In the past I have been afraid to butterfly them so I haven't even done that. I have discovered that butterflying the breasts is really not hard as long as your knife is sharp. It's definitely easier to get good coverage of the coating if you do bother with this step. This sauce is fat conscious, as most of my cooking is. If you want to be even more so, use egg beaters or whites to make the egg wash, and use the least amount of oil you can get away with to brown the chicken breasts. You don't have to add the butter, but I find it does add something lovely to the sauce. I've cut it down from about four tablespoons.
Enjoy!
Ahnna's Homestyle Chicken Piccata
Takes about 30 minutes to make and serves 4 generously
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, butterflied (see below)
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
1 cup bread crumbs
1 Tbsp Garlic powder (or to taste)
1 egg, beaten with 2 Tbsp water
Salt and pepper
4 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp butter
1 1/2 cup chicken stock or dry white wine
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup brined capers
1 heaping Tbsp corn starch
1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley (or 2 Tbsp dried)
1 Cut the chicken breast halves horizontally (this is called butterflying, and is not hard to do if your knife is sharp) almost all the way through so they will lay flat in the pan. I have made this dish without butterflying the breasts, but you need to cook them a little longer if you don't, and you get better coverage of the coating if you do. Classic recipes call for pounding the breasts. I don't find this necessary.
2 Mix together the bread crumbs, salt, pepper, garlic powder and grated Parmesan. Coat the pieces of chicken one by one, dipping first in the egg wash and then in the breadcrumb mixture until they are well coated. Reserve on a plate until ready to cook.
3 Heat olive oil in a large skillet (with a tight fitting lid) on medium high heat. Add half of the chicken pieces, do not crowd the pan. Cook until golden brown on each side. The chicken will not be cooked through at this point but it's ok. Remove the chicken from the pan and reserve to a clean plate. Cook the other breasts in the same manner, remove from pan. Set them aside while you prepare the sauce.
4 Add the chicken stock (or white wine), lemon juice, and capers to the pan. Use a spatula to scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Whisk in 1 tablespoon of butter. If using dried parsley I add it at this point. Let the sauce come to a boil. I really eyeball rather than measure the chicken broth depending on how much sauce I want, anywhere from 1/2 a cup to a 1 and 1/2 cup Dissolve the cornstarch in cold a cup of cold water. Add the cornstarch mixture to the boiling sauce and stir until the sauce starts to thicken. Turn the heat down to low and add the chicken pieces back into the sauce. Turn the breasts so both side are coated. Put the lid on the pan and let the sauce and chicken simmer on a very low heat for about 10 minutes to fully cook the chicken and thicken the sauce. Remove the chicken to a serving platter, spoon some sauce over it and sprinkle with chopped parsley if you are using fresh. I generally serve this with spaghetti, but you can use any kind of pasta. Spoon the sauce over the pasta, too.
