Skip to Content
Recipes

Traditional Chicken Piccata

The brief story and delicious recipe behind chicken piccata, a classic Italian American dish.

Chicken piccata

Chicken piccata. Photo: Low Country Bella

Chicken Piccata is an Italian American dish that originated in the 1930s. Therefore, it’s not something you will see on menus when visiting Italy. Piccata is not a region, it’s a way of cooking. It is an Italian word meaning larded. Referencing a way of preparing food, it means sliced and sauteed in a sauce containing lemon, butter, and spices. It’s assumed that the creator was most likely Sicilian because the "piquantly flavored" dish contains tart and zesty ingredients, commonly used in Sicilian cuisine.

PSA!! Use light olive oil, which has a higher smoke point; therefore you will not burn the chicken. 

Traditional Chicken Piccata

Traditional Chicken Piccata

Recipe by Low Country Bella
5.0 from 1 vote
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

20

minutes
Cooking time

10

minutes

Ingredients

  • 4 4 chicken breasts

  • 3/4 cup 3/4 all purpose flour

  • 1/2 cup 1/2 dry white wine

  • 1 cup 1 chicken bone broth

  • 2 tbsp 2 capers in brine drained

  • 1 tbsp 1 fresh lemon juice

  • 2 tbsp 2 butter

  • 2 2 -3 tbsp light olive oil

  • Salt and pepper

  • Chopped parsley

Directions

  • Cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise so you have thin cutlets. Cover them with a sheet of plastic wrap (cling film) and pound them gently and evenly with a meat mallet or rolling pin until they are around 1/4 inches thick.
  • Season the chicken with salt then dredge each cutlet in flour, making sure to shake off any excess.
  • Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet or frying pan, once hot fry the chicken cutlets in batches for 4 minutes on each side until golden brown and cooked all the way through. Place the cooked chicken on a clean plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
  • Turn the heat down low and add 1 tbsp of butter. Once melted add the wine and the broth, then turn the heat to high and whisk the sauce until it starts to thicken slightly (about 5-6 minutes).
  • Add the remaining tbsp of butter, capers and lemon juice. Stir well until the butter has melted. Add the chicken back to the pan. Serve chicken on a nice platter ensuring all the sauce is encompassing the chicken. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @appetitomagazine on Instagram and hashtag it with #italianfoodanddrink

Like this recipe?

Follow @Appetitomagazine on Pinterest

Follow us on Facebook!

Follow us on Facebook

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Appetito

The Neapolitan Roots in Chef Matthew Cutolo’s Torta Caprese

Episode Four of Joanna Moeller's Regional Italian series features a Neapolitan dessert from Chef Matthew Cutolo of Gargiulo's Restaurant.

May 19, 2026

How to Make a Signature Pasta Dish of Sardinia

From his debut cookbook, Chef Francesco Mattana shares the recipe for Malloreddus alla Campidanese, a signature pasta dish from Sardinia.

May 19, 2026

What a Sicilian Stuffed Artichoke Can Teach About Memory and Family

The first installment of Sicilian chef Mario Traina’s new column, I Will Be Your Grandmother, reflects on memory, family, and the emotional rituals surrounding Nonna Pina’s stuffed artichokes.

May 18, 2026

Tutto Fa Brodo: The Italian Expression That Refuses to Waste Anything

In Italian kitchens, usefulness rarely ends with first use.

May 18, 2026

How to Make Nonna Pina’s Stuffed Artichokes

In the first recipe from I Will Be Your Grandmother, Sicilian chef Mario Traina shares the stuffed artichokes his grandmother made slowly and generously for family dinners in Sicily.

May 15, 2026

How to Make Crispy Salmon and Prawn Tagliatelle with Roasted Lime

Crispy salmon, king prawns, roasted lime, and silky parmesan cream sauce turn this tagliatelle into the kind of pasta dinner that feels both comforting and impressive.

May 14, 2026
See all posts