Scrambled Eggs, Cheese, and Avocado Tortilla Bowl Recipe
September 16, 2025
Chicken Francese Recipe
Flippantly battered pan-fried chicken breast with a chic white wine lemon sauce. It’s like Chicken Piccata, however a thicker sauce, extra of it, no capers, with refined lemon flavour. It’s bought a terrific crust that soaks up the sauce! Pretty restaurant dish that’s easy to make at house.
Chicken breast, being a lean, impartial flavoured protein, is a terrific clean canvas to get inventive with. Stuff it, sear it, crumb it, bake it, fry it, marinate it, poach it – see the various, some ways I prepare dinner it in my chicken breast recipe assortment!
At present, we’re battering and saucing. The battering is a little bit distinctive. Chicken Francese is dredged in egg then pan fried which supplies the chicken a beautiful golden crust with wonderful sauce clinging capabilities.
Talking of the sauce! It’s a chic white wine sauce that’s savoury with a refined brightness from lemon. It doesn’t style winey as a result of it’s diminished to prepare dinner out the alcohol. And it’s not meant to be actually lemony, it simply has a refined flavour from the juices of lemon slices put into the sauce. I personally suppose most recipes use manner an excessive amount of lemon which makes it lip-puckeringly bitter.
Additionally, not all recipes thicken the sauce, it’s thinner. I’m firmly within the thickened sauce camp. Like so:
So, if all that sounds good to you, learn on!
Right here’s what that you must make Chicken Francese:
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Chicken breast is the lower generally used for Chicken Francese. We solely want 2 as a result of we lower them in half horizontally to kind 4 skinny steaks in whole. Get massive ones, so one piece makes a adequate serving for a meal. You could possibly additionally get chicken breast that’s already lower / pounded skinny, normally offered labelled as “chicken schnitzel” right here in Australia (it comes un-crumbed).
Boneless thighs may also work. Pound to even thickness to get a pleasant flat floor on each side so the egg batter cooks evenly.
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Eggs and milk whisked collectively make up the batter than the chicken is dipped in earlier than frying.
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Flour is used to thicken then sauce and for coating the chicken earlier than dipping within the egg. It makes the egg cling higher to the chicken and in addition makes the crust a little bit bit crispy.
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Wine – Chardonnay is the very best all-rounder cooking wine, in my view, for flavour. It’s the solely white wine I inventory for cooking nowadays. No want to make use of an costly one! Fairly properly documented by cooking authorities that there’s no want to make use of costly wine for cooking. Purchase discounted bottles – I take advantage of ~$15 bottles discounted to ~$5.
Substitute with non-alcoholic white wine. Else, miss the wine and add 2 – 3 tablespoons lemon juice to make a beautiful lemon sauce as a substitute.
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Chicken inventory/broth is the opposite liquid that makes up the sauce.
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Butter for the sauce and olive oil for cooking the chicken. We discard the excess olive oil (which will get black bits in it) earlier than including the butter.
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Lemon – Lower into slices then pan fried earlier than including again into the sauce. A really particular Chicken Francese step! Extra on this within the How To Make part beneath.
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Parsley for elective garnish.
A pleasant, leisurely 15 minute prepare dinner. We first pan-fry the battered chicken cutlets then make the sauce in the identical pan. The chicken is returned into the sauce on the finish so the crust will get soaked within the sauce, in addition to re-warming the chicken.
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Lower every breast in half horizontally to kind 4 skinny steaks in whole.
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Flour coating – Combine flour, salt and pepper on a plate (I take advantage of my fingertips). Coat the chicken within the flour first, shaking off extra, then put aside on a plate when you warmth the oil within the pan, able to prepare dinner.
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Egg dredge – As soon as the oil is scorching, dip the chicken within the egg, coating each side, then maintain it up for a few seconds to let the surplus drip off.
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Cook dinner chicken – Put the chicken straight into the pan. Then proceed to coat the remaining chicken items.
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Cook dinner the chicken for 3 minutes till golden. Flip, decrease warmth to medium, then prepare dinner for 4 minutes till the chicken is golden (goal inner temperature 68°C/155°F). Then take away onto a plate. The chicken will relaxation whereas we’re making the sauce. It’s okay if it cools down, it would heat up after we put it again within the sauce.
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Pan fry lemon slices – Subsequent, prepare dinner the lemon slices for about 1 1/2 minutes till calmly browned or they turn out to be mushy (normally the latter for me). On this step, the lemon slices are absorbing the tasty bits left within the pan from cooking the chicken (it’s known as fond). This flavour is then launched into the sauce after we pop the lemon slices in on the finish.
This can be a step that’s distinctive to Chicken Francese! Nice method. 🙂
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Clear the pan by giving it a fast wipe down with paper towels. You’ll see there are many black bits from cooking the chicken. No want to clean with detergent, simply do away with many of the black bits.
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Roux – Subsequent, we transfer onto the sauce. Soften the butter over medium warmth then prepare dinner the flour for 1 minute to prepare dinner out the uncooked flour flavour. This pasty combination within the pan is named a roux and that is what thickens the sauce.
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Make the sauce – Whereas stirring, slowly pour in half the inventory. Preserve stirring till the roux is combined into the inventory. Then you may pour the remaining inventory in together with the wine, salt and pepper. Then combine to mix.
Lump free! The strategy of stirring when you slowly pour in some inventory ought to forestall lumps forming in your sauce. But when you find yourself with pesky lumps, swish a whisk throughout the floor of the liquid to take away them, taking care to not scratch the non-stick floor of the pan. Worst case – pressure it. 🙂
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Simmer to thicken – Simmer the sauce for round 4 minutes, stirring once in a while, till it thickens right into a syrupy consistency.
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Sauce thickness – That is what you’re aiming for. Concerning the thickness of maple syrup. It is going to thicken extra when the chicken is returned into the pan, from flour bits within the crust mixing into the sauce.
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Ending – As soon as the sauce is the proper thickness, it’s time to convey all of it collectively! With the pan nonetheless on the range, pop the chicken items again in together with the lemon slices and let it simmer for about 30 seconds to heat by way of and convey the flavour collectively.
Then spoon sauce all around the chicken, then it’s dinnertime!
This recipe makes a beneficiant quantity of sauce as a result of it’s laborious to make much less in massive pans. You’ll find yourself with over a cup within the pan along with the sauce clinging to the chicken. That’s quantity to serve this over mashed potato (or fake mash), rice, or different related starchy automobiles (risoni/orzo, couscous).
Alternatively, should you select bread for mopping (as pictured), then you definately won’t use all of the sauce. However, having an excessive amount of sauce is a way more fascinating place to be in than not sufficient sauce (*her coronary heart thuds in concern on the thought*) and this valuable liquid gold goes to make your morning scrambled eggs or a plain omelette SO MUCH MORE EXCITING. Who wouldn’t need white wine lemon sauce on their breakfast eggs???! – Johnsat x
UPDATE in response to reader questions – YES I take advantage of the leftover egg to make an omelette! There may be lower than the equal of 1 egg left so it makes a skinny omelette crepe. So long as you prepare dinner the omelette by way of totally, and since it’s so skinny, you may, it’s advantageous to eat even after dipping uncooked chicken into it!
Ingredients
- 2 large chicken breasts , skinless boneless (250-300g / 8-10oz each)
- 1/4 cup flour , plain / all-purpose
- 1 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tbsp milk (any fat %)
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lemon , thinly sliced 0.3cm / 1/8″
- 50g / 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp flour , plain / all-purpose
- 2 cups chicken stock/broth , low sodium
- 1/3 cup Chardonnay or other dry white wine (Note 1)
- 1/2 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt (no pepper!)
- 1 tbsp finely chopped parsley , for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Cut each breast in half horizontally to form 4 thin steaks in total.
- Whisk eggs and milk in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Flour coating – Mix flour, salt and pepper on a plate (I use my fingertips). Coat the chicken in the flour, shaking off excess, then set aside on a plate.
- Heat the oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat.
- Cook chicken – Dip the chicken in the egg, allow excess to drip off, then put into the pan. Cook for 3 minutes until golden. Flip, lower heat to medium, then cook for 4 minutes until the chicken is golden (internal temp 68°C/155°F). Remove onto a plate.
- Lemon – Add the lemon slices to the pan. Cook for a minute or until the lemons go soft / brown, then turn and cook the other side for 30 seconds. Remove onto a plate. (Note 2)
- Wipe the pan clean using paper towels.
- White wine sauce – Still on medium heat, melt the butter in the pan. Add flour and stir for 1 minute using a wooden spoon. While stirring, slowly pour in half the stock. Once the flour is dissolved into the liquid, stir in remaining stock, then the wine and salt. (See Note 3 for lumps tip)
- Thicken sauce – Turn the heat up slightly then simmer for 3 – 4 minutes or until the sauce thickens into a syrupy consistency.
- Sauce it! Return the chicken and lemon slices to the pan, then spoon the sauce all over the chicken. Sprinkle with parsley then serve the chicken with the sauce (use it ALL!).
Notes
UPDATE – Yes, I use the leftover egg to make a thin crepe-omelette! Cook it through thoroughly so it’s safe to eat even after dipping raw chicken into it. I actually had this in the video but cut it out because I thought the video was too long!! 🙂
1. Wine – Chardonnay is the best cooking wine, in my opinion. Pretty well documented these days that there’s no need to use expensive drinking wine, buy discounted bottles for cooking (I use ~$15 bottles discounted to ~$5).
Substitute with non-alcoholic white wine. Else, leave out the wine and add 2 – 3 tbsp lemon juice to make a lovely lemon sauce instead.
2. Pan frying the lemon slices makes them soak up the tasty flavour left in the pan by the chicken (it’s called fond!) which is then released into the sauce at the end when we put the lemon slices in. So don’t skip this step!
3. Lumps in sauce – The method of stirring while you slowly pour in some stock should avoid lumps. But if you end up with pesky lumps in your sauce, swish a whisk across the surface of the liquid to remove them, taking care not to scratch the non-stick surface of the pan. Worst case – strain it. 🙂
4. Serving – Pictured with pan seared asparagus (drizzle with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, pan sear in hot pan until lightly charred. Do this while the sauce is simmering). For sauce mopping, I used bread but mash (or faux mash), rice and similar are excellent sauce-soaking options.
5. Leftovers will keep for 3 days in the fridge though the crust does loosen.
6. Nutrition per serving assuming all the sauce is consumed.
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