Lightly battered pan-fried chicken breast with an elegant white wine lemon sauce. It’s like Chicken Piccata, but a thicker sauce, more of it, no capers, with subtle lemon flavour. It’s got a terrific crust that soaks up the sauce! Lovely restaurant dish that’s simple to make at home.
Chicken breast, being a lean, neutral flavoured protein, is a terrific blank canvas to get creative with. Stuff it, sear it, crumb it, bake it, fry it, marinate it, poach it – see the many, many ways I cook it in my chicken breast recipe collection!
Today, we are battering and saucing. The battering is a little unique. Chicken Francese is dredged in egg then pan fried which gives the chicken a lovely golden crust with excellent sauce clinging capabilities.
Speaking of the sauce! It’s an elegant white wine sauce that’s savoury with a subtle brightness from lemon. It doesn’t taste winey because it’s reduced to cook out the alcohol. And it’s not meant to be really lemony, it just has a subtle flavour from the juices of lemon slices put into the sauce. I personally think most recipes use way too much lemon which makes it lip-puckeringly sour.
Also, not all recipes thicken the sauce, it’s thinner. I am firmly in the thickened sauce camp. Like so:
Servings: 4
WW Points: About 3–4 points per serving
Ingredients
- 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tbsp skim milk
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- Cooking spray
- 1 tbsp light butter
- 1 lemon, thinly sliced
- 1½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- ¼ cup dry white wine (optional)
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tbsp cold water
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Slice each chicken breast horizontally to create 4 thin cutlets.
- Season both sides with salt and pepper.
- Place the flour in a shallow bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk.
- Lightly dredge each chicken cutlet in the flour, then dip into the egg mixture.
- Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and cook the chicken for 3–4 minutes per side, or until golden and cooked through. Remove and set aside.
- In the same skillet, melt the light butter and add the lemon slices. Cook for 1 minute.
- Pour in the chicken broth and white wine (if using). Simmer for 3–4 minutes.
- In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch and cold water. Stir into the sauce and cook until slightly thickened.
- Return the chicken to the skillet and simmer for 2–3 minutes.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.
Tip: Serve with steamed vegetables, green beans, or a side salad for a delicious low-point meal.
Lasha