When I first began my cooking career in the eighties, Veal was King, and my veal piccata recipe with tender pieces of veal, sauteed with mushrooms and artichokes, finished in a buttery, lemon white wine sauce, was one of the more popular veal dishes on our menu.
This classic Italian dish is easy enough for busy weeknights and fancy enough for your next dinner party.
Veal Piccata is a simple unassuming dish that lets you enjoy the delicate flavors of tender veal in a light lemon white wine sauce.
Most veal piccata recipes you find will include capers, but I’ve never been fond of capers and feel that they overpower this classic Italian dish, so you won’t find them in my veal piccata recipe.
Prefer chicken to veal? Try my Classic Chicken Piccata.
Ingredients to make Veal Piccata
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make Veal Piccata. In Chef Speak, this is called the “Mise en Place,” which translates to “Everything in its Place.”
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
- veal cutlet
- white mushrooms
- artichoke hearts
- fresh lemon juice
- unsalted butter
- all-purpose flour
- onion powder
- black pepper
- chicken broth
- white wine (pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc are good choices)
- fresh parsley
Do I have to use mushrooms or artichokes in this dish?
No, you don’t. I have a very simple rule when it comes to non-essential ingredients that I use in dishes I make. If you don’t like them, leave them out.
I’m not a fan of artichokes, but I have found that the flavor softens the dish, cutting some of the lemon flavors back. This gives my veal piccata a more balanced flavor. But again, if you don’t like them, leave them out.
How to make Veal Piccata
The first step is to cut the veal into medallions and pound them into thin veal cutlets using a meat mallet. This type of thin veal cutlet is also referred to as veal scallopine (referring to the cut of veal and not the dish).
Dredge the pounded veal cutlets in all-purpose flour seasoned with salt and black pepper. Shake off any excess flour.
Add the mushrooms to a large skillet with olive oil over medium-high heat. Saute the mushrooms until they’re almost fully cooked. Add the floured veal to the pan.
Add additional olive oil if needed.
When the veal has been cooked on both sides, add a little white wine to the pan, deglazing the pan, which will release all the tasty browned bits from the bottom of the pan adding flavor to the veal piccata.
Remove from the heat, adding the artichoke heart slices, lemon juice, chicken broth, and seasonings to the pan.
Do I have to use wine in my Veal Picatta?
No, you don’t. If you can’t have alcohol, simply leave the wine out of the veal piccata. You can also use sparkling water to deglaze the pan instead of wine.
When you’re ready to serve the veal piccata, coat 1-2 tablespoons of butter with the seasoned flour you used for the veal and place it into the pan. The butter-flour compound is called a beurre manie.
Bring the veal piccata to a light boil, mixing the beurre manie into the lemon sauce.
Place the veal and piccata sauce on a serving platter. Garnish the dish with lemon slices and a little bit of finely chopped fresh parsley.
This restaurant-style dish can be made individually or two orders in one large saute pan.
Chef Dennis Tip
If you need to make more than two portions, cook the veal medallions, remove them from the pan, and then make the sauce. Keep the veal warm, and then top it with the hot piccata lemon sauce.
Wouldn’t veal be a nice break from chicken? The best part is this delicious easy dinner can be done in less than 15 minutes.
Recipe FAQ’s
Veal Piccata is a classic Italian dish made of thin slices of veal that are dredged in flour, sautéed, and served in a lemon, white wine, and butter sauce.
Just about any type of potato goes well with a piccata sauce. Green beans, spinach, or asparagus also go very well with veal piccata.
No, you don’t. Use a little cold chicken broth to deglaze the pan. Wine will enhance the flavor of the lemon sauce but isn’t required if you can’t have wine in your diet.
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Veal Piccata
Ingredients
- 7 ounces veal cutlet cut into 8 medallions
- 6 ounces white mushrooms sliced
- ½ cup artichoke hearts sliced
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice fresh
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon flour
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ⅙ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 ounces chicken stock or more if needed
- 1 ounce white or rose wine optional
- 1 teaspoon Italian parsley finely chopped for garnish
Instructions
- Cut the veal slices into medallions and pound them thin using a meat hammer.
- Dredge the pounded veal in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Set aside until needed.
- Saute the mushrooms in olive oil over medium-high heat until they’re almost fully cooked. Add the floured veal to the pan.
- When the veal has been cooked on both sides, add a little white wine to the pan to deglaze the pan and stop the cooking process. Remove from the heat.
- Add the artichoke heart slices, lemon juice, chicken stock and seasonings to the pan.
- Coat a tablespoon of butter with the seasoned flour you used for the veal and place it into the pan. The butter-flour compound is called a beurre manie.
- Bring the veal piccata to a light boil, mixing the beurre manie into the sauce.
- Garnish the dish with lemon slices and finely chopped Italian parsley.
Cat E says
Thanks for the recipe. I am not fond of Capers either and when I was in Italy they weren’t in the recipe. I so appreciate you sharing. It’s delicious.
Chef Dennis Littley says
I happy to hear you enjoyed my veal piccata recipe, without the capers!
Natalia says
So many delicious layers of flavors in this amazing veal piccata! Love the combination of meat and mushrooms, it’s just perfect!
Maren says
Made this for a family dinner recently and it was a hit. My husband loves veal so this recipe he truly enjoyed!
Liz says
I’ve never had Veal Piccata before, but seems simple and easy to make.
Elaine says
Easy and flavorful – what else to wish for, right? It is amazing how certain recipes stay with us through years…
Denise says
This looks absolutely delicious, I cannot wait to make this! Thanks for sharing and the instructions are so easy to follow!