Fresh pasta elevates chicken scallopini lemon caper sauce

Ginna Parsons, Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, Tupelo
·2 min read

Dec. 7—I picked up a package of chicken cutlets on sale last week, then had to decide what to do with them. While in the grocery store, I mentally scanned my fridge and cabinets, and realized I had everything to make chicken with a lemon caper sauce, also call piccata.

This is one of our favorite meals, and one we hadn't had in a while. What really put the dish over the top was using refrigerated pasta instead of dried — it's so silky and soft. My only regret is not making more sauce.

CHICKEN SCALLOPINI WITH CAPERS AND LEMON

1 1/2 pounds chicken cutlets, pounded 1/4-inch thick

Salt and pepper

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup chicken broth

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons capers

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 (9-ounce) package refrigerated linguine pasta

Season cutlets with salt and pepper. Dredge half of cutlets in flour, shaking off excess. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over high heat until hot but not smoking. Cook chicken until browned on both sides and just cooked through, about 4 minutes total. Transfer to a platter and cover. Dredge and cook remaining chicken with another 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in same manner.

Add remaining tablespoon oil to skillet and cook garlic over moderate heat, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add broth and deglaze, scraping up brown bits. Boil until broth is reduced to about 3/4 cup. Stir in lemon juice and capers. Add butter and swirl with a whisk until a smooth sauce is formed. Return chicken to skillet with any juices on platter. Simmer until heated through, about 1 minute. Serve over cooked, drained pasta.