I keep some abnormal hours at the bakery. Most tend to start very early in the day - between 4 and 6 am - whereas I start my ten hour shift at 8:30 am and finish at 6:30. After my hour long commute from Williamsburg to the Upper East Side, it's 7:30 and the absolute last thing I want to do is make dinner. That's where this 20-minute chicken piccata comes in.
Chicken piccata is a classic Italian preparation, piccata meaning to dredge something in flour and serve with a wine, butter, and lemon sauce. You can use any protein and veal is a classic preparation. Here, we've used a chicken breast and I've added capers for a hit of bright brininess and herbal tarragon. (It's a thing of mine, really, to throw tarragon in everything I can.) It's fast as hell - going from raw ingredients to your plate in less than twenty minutes - and easy to throw together.
1 skinless, boneless chicken breast
1.5 tsp salt
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp capers
2 tbsp tarragon, minced
Preheat oven to 350. Mix salt with flour. Dredge chicken on both sides in flour mixture. Heat a 10" skillet over high heat. Add oil and allow to get very hot. Place chicken, top side down, gently in the pan. Cook until it forms a golden brown crust and comes away from the pan easily, about 3-4 minutes. Repeat on opposite side. Remove pan from heat and place in oven. Remove when chicken is 160 degrees Fahrenheit and allow to rest for five minutes.
Meanwhile, pour the oil out of the pan and add wine, lemon juice, capers, and tarragon. Reduce halfway. Mix in butter, one tbsp at a time, stirring constantly. Serve chicken with pan sauce drizzled on top.
