Chicken Dinner Total Winner

Chicken Piccata Toss. Oh, how I need you. I can't believe this is your first appearance on my little blog. But it's those old reliable workhorses of a dish that sometimes get forgotten. The specialness of this dinner is the ease and familiarity of it all. Chicken. Rice. Lemon. The basics. We all have these ingredients hanging in our kitchen. Forgive me for forgetting you, Chicken Piccata Toss.

I have been making this for a bazillion years. Literally. It makes frequent appearances when I am swamped with work, cleaning, life, etc. It's just something that is so delish and comforting and requires little brain function to whip up.

I like to add grape tomatoes and parsley for some brightness and color. Love it. This is easier to make then standard chicken piccata just because you don't need to dredge the chicken in flour. Less clean up and less time cooking. Which I know is what the people want. Usually.

Chicken Piccata Toss with Rice
Makes 4 to 5 servings

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. butter
2 1/2 lbs. boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 small shallots, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup dry white wine
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth (1 14.5 oz. can)
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. capers, rinsed
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
Salt and pepper to taste
To serve: Cooked rice and parmigiano cheese

In a large pan, add olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Add chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Brown on all sides. About 6-8 minutes. Remove cooked chicken to a plate.

In the same pan over medium heat, add butter. Add shallots, garlic and lemon zest. Cook for 3 minutes. Add flour. Whisk to cook flour down. Add white wine. Deglaze pan and reduce wine to about half. Add chicken broth, lemon juice and capers. Bring to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for about 5 minutes.

Return chicken to pan. Cover and simmer for five minutes, occasionally stirring the mixture. Add grape tomatoes. Cover and cook for 5 five more minutes. Top with parsley. Serve over rice.  Top with grated parmigiano, if desired.

Classic for a Reason: Chicken Piccata

I was going to post the recipe last night - the actual day of making it. But it didn't seem right. A gal safe and sound in her house in Jersey sharing a classic, uncomplicated recipe for Chicken Piccata while all this turmoil was going on across the pond in Manchester.

I don't know.  I guess I take my news hard. After scouring the news channels and internets for hours, I just headed to bed where I tossed and turned and didn't sleep much - for about the thirtieth night in a row.

Cooking settles my soul.  I'm surrounded by chaos it seems day in, day out - regardless of what is happening in the current news cycle. I'm sure everyone feels at times that the hustle and bustle of work and child-rearing, bill paying and housekeeping can wear you down. That's when I turn to making something wonderful in my kitchen.

Chicken Piccata is a classic. It doesn't require fancy ingredients, and it often is a crowd pleaser. I find it very comforting as well. Two years ago, I suffered a miscarriage. My family insisted I eat something upon returning home from the hospital trying to conclude the most unsettling day I have ever had in my life. Head pounding, heart breaking, delirious from trying to understand the unfathomable. I ordered some Chicken Piccata from a local restaurant. I ate about five bites before collapsing into a bed filled with loss and tears. But in some way that simple Chicken Piccata made me feel like maybe everything will be ok. I like to make this dish when we need our spirits lifted. When we need a fabulous dinner without a lot of thought. I hope you do the same. 

Chicken piccata

Makes 4-6 servings

2 lbs. thinly cut chicken cutlets

½ cup flour, plus 2 Tbsp.

Zest and juice of 2 lemons

1 cup of white wine

1 cup chicken broth

2 Tbsp. capers

4-6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 shallot, finely chopped

¼ finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Salt and pepper to taste

On a baking sheet, line up your chicken. Season lightly on both sides with salt and pepper.

In a shallow dish – like a pie dish – whisk together flour with salt and pepper to taste. Dredge the seasoned chicken cutlets in the flour.

Meanwhile, in a large pan heat up a Tbsp. olive oil. Lightly brown chicken on each side – about three to four minutes per side. Remove to a covered dish. Repeat until all chicken is cooked and removed from pan.

Melt butter and a little more olive oil in the pan over medium high heat. Add garlic, shallots and lemon zest. Saute until fragrant. Add 2 Tbsp. flour. Whisk until blended.

Add white wine. Bring to a boil and allow wine to reduce to about half. Mixture should slightly thicken. Add chicken broth. Bring to a simmer. Add lemon juice and capers. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for about five minutes.

Return chicken to pan. Cover. Cook over medium-low heat until everything is cooked through.

Top with chopped parsley and serve.