Christian Haller Online

Similar to the Austrian Schnitzel (and you thought was German), Piccata is a lightly breaded and fried cutlet. Different from our fried chicken in that there is no chicken skin involved - and therefore none of the chicken fat.  This dish is easy to prepare and a serious crowd pleaser for both children and adults alike. Serve it with a simple side of spaghetti or buttered flat noodles tossed with a little bit of parmesan for an outstanding after dinner meal.

 Ingredients:

• 2 large lemons
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts - about 1 ½ pounds, trimmed of fat
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons small capers, drained
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

 Procedure:

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position, set large heatproof plate on rack, and heat oven to 200F.

Halve one lemon length-wise.  Trims the ends from one half and then slice crosswise into 1/8 inch slices.

Juice the remaining 1 ½ lemon and measure out ¼ cup juice - retain for now.

Slice each breast across the flat so as to reduce the thickness in half.  In other words, hold your knife parallel to the cutting board with the cutting edge down. Rotate your wrist 90 degrees clockwise if you’re right handed (counterclockwise if left handed). Use your non-cutting hand to hold the breast down using your palm and cut the breast in half parallel to the board.

Sprinkle both sides of cutlets with salt and pepper.

Measure flour into pie tin or shallow baking dish. Working one cutlet at a time, coat with flour, and shake to remove excess.

Heat your 12-inch cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until hot, about 2 minutes

Add 2 Tablespoons oil and swirl pan to coat.

Lay half of chicken pieces in skillet and sauté cutlets, without moving until lightly browned on first side, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes.

Turn cutlets and cook until second side is lightly browned, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes longer. Remove pan from heat and transfer cutlets to plate in oven.

Add remaining 2 Tablespoons oil to skillet and heat until shimmering. Add remaining chicken pieces and repeat the sauté process.

Add shallot to now-empty skillet and return skillet to medium heat. Sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add stock and lemon slices, increase heat to high, and scrape skillet bottom with wooden spoon or spatula to loosen browned bits.

Simmer until liquid reduces to about 1/3 cup, about 4 minutes.

Add lemon juice and capers and simmer until sauce reduces again to 1/3 cup, about 1 minute.

Remove pan from heat and swirl in butter until butter melts; stir in parsley.

Plate chicken and spoon sauce over chicken and serve immediately.