Chicken Scallopini is one of those dishes that you wish you had tried sooner! Tender chicken breasts are sautéed with mushrooms in a buttery lemon wine sauce, creating a restaurant-style dinner that can be on your table in under 30 minutes.
You’re absolutely going to love these fork-tender, thinly pounded chicken breasts, paired with the tangy lemon butter sauce. Chicken scallopini is perfect for weeknight meals, yet fancy enough for a dinner party.
Chicken scallopini is similar to a traditional chicken piccata recipe, but with subtle flavor variations that elevate this classic dish to a new level of deliciousness.
If you love easy-to-make restaurant-style chicken dishes, make sure to try our Chicken Marsala and Chicken Milanese recipes.
Ingredients for Chicken Scallopini
Let’s start by gathering the necessary ingredients to prepare our Chicken Scallopini recipe. Culinary professionals refer to this as mise en Place, which means “everything in its Place.”
Setting up your ingredients not only helps speed up the cooking process but also ensures you have all the necessary ingredients on hand to make the recipe.
Can I Change Up the Recipe?
Absolutely. If you’re not a fan of mushrooms, leave them out. For added flavor, try adding artichoke hearts to the savory sauce.
Create a lemon caper sauce by adding a tablespoon of briny capers.
Some recipes add tomatoes to the dish. Tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, or tomato sauce can be added for extra flavor. If you do add tomatoes, leave out the fresh lemon juice.
Sundried tomatoes, or grape tomatoes, can be added to the dish. If you want to add some green to the dish, add spinach, small broccoli florets, or asparagus tips to the lemon butter sauce.
How to Make Chicken Scallopini
Follow along with my simple step-by-step instructions to learn how to make chicken scallopini in your home kitchen.
- Cut the chicken in half lengthwise to make four smaller cutlets. Then, pat them dry with paper towels.
- Place the sliced chicken breast between two pieces of plastic wrap and gently pound it with a meat mallet.
- Add the all-purpose flour to a shallow bowl and season it with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Whisk to combine and set aside.
- Season the thin chicken breasts on both sides with salt and black pepper.
- Dredge the chicken breasts in the flour mixture.
- Add the olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken pieces and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through. Remove the cooked chicken breasts from the pan.
- Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the sliced mushrooms to the pan, adding more olive oil if needed. Sauté the mushrooms until well browned, 4 to 6 minutes.
- Add the shallots, garlic, and two tablespoons of butter to the pan. Cook for 1 minute, until fragrant. Stirring as needed.
- Deglaze the pan with dry white wine (such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio), scraping the pan to remove all the tasty bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan.
- Remove the pan from the heat, add the fresh lemon juice and chicken broth to the pan. Cook for one minute.
- Add the grated Parmesan cheese (such as Locatelli Romano) and mix until well combined, ensuring the sauce is smooth and creamy.
- Roll three tablespoons of butter in flour, pressing it into the flour.
- Add the butter to the pan, whisking to incorporate it. This is a beurre manie, and it will thicken the sauce.
- Add the chicken cutlets back into the pan and heat until they’re hot. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
- Garnish the chicken scallopini with chopped fresh parsley, lemon zest, and grated cheese.
*If the sauce is too thick, add a little more chicken broth or water to the pan.
Chicken Scallopini is one of my favorite recipes from my restaurant days. Made with simple ingredients, this delicious meal couldn’t be easier to make and is guaranteed to become a family favorite!
Store leftover chicken scallopini refrigerated in an airtight container or well wrapped with plastic wrap for 2-3 days. It can be stored in the freezer for up to two months.
To reheat, place in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add a little chicken stock to make more sauce, along with a pat of butter. If you need to thicken the sauce, use a beurre manie.
Recipe FAQs
Scaloppini originates from the Italian word “scaloppini,” which translates to “small scallop.” But it actually refers to the cut of meat and style of cooking. Thin slices of meat are floured and sautéed. The dish is typically served with a butter wine sauce, which may also include cream.
Pasta, rice, farro, roasted potatoes, or your favorite grain can be served with this dish. Serve that with a salad, or with your favorite green vegetable for a complete meal.
If you don’t have a meat mallet, you can use the bottom of a skillet or saucepan to pound them. You can also use the side of a regular hammer or a rolling pin. Just wrap them in plastic wrap or aluminum foil before using them to pound the meat.
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Chicken Scallopini
Ingredients
- 16 ounce boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 8 ounces baby Bella mushrooms – sliced
- ½ shallot – finely minced
- 1 garlic clove – finely minced
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ⅓ cup dry white wine or chicken broth
- ⅓ cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons Locatelli Romano cheese – finely grated
- 1 tablespoon Italian parsley – finely chopped
- lemon zest -for garnish
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter to make the beurre manie
Instructions
- Add the all-purpose flour to a shallow bowl and season it with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Whisk to combine and set aside.
- Cut the chicken in half lengthwise to make 4 smaller cutlets, then pat them dry with a paper towel.
- Place the sliced chicken breast between two pieces of plastic wrap and gently pound it with a meat mallet.
- Season the chicken breasts on both sides with salt and black pepper. Set aside until needed.
- Dredge the chicken breasts in the seasoned flour.
- Add the olive oil to a large frying pan over medium heat.
- When the oil is hot, add the chicken and cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until browned and cooked through.
- Remove the chicken from the pan.
- Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the sliced mushrooms to the pan, adding more olive oil if needed. Sauté the mushrooms until well browned, 4 to 6 minutes.
- Add in the shallots, garlic, and two tablespoons of butter to the pan. Cook for 1 minute, until fragrant. Stirring as needed.
- Deglaze the pan with the white wine, scraping the pan to remove all of the tasty bits that have stuck to the pan.
- Remove the pan from the heat, add the lemon juice, and chicken broth to the pan. Cook for one minute.
- Add the grated cheese and mix until well combined and the sauce is creamy.
- Roll three tablespoons of butter in flour, pressing it into the flour. Add the butter to the pan, whisking to mix it in.This is a beurre manie, and it will thicken the sauce.
- Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
- Add the chicken back into the pan and heat until the chicken is hot.*If the sauce is too thick, add a little more chicken broth or water to the pan.
- Garnish with chopped parsley, lemon zest, and grated cheese.
Sandy H says
Delicious chicken dinner! Easy to prepare and the sauce with grated cheese was a perfect finish. Enjoyed!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thanks for letting us know you enjoyed our chicken scallopini recipe!