Name: Chicken Piccata Pasta
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; 1 pound chicken breasts (, cubed); 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (, divided); 1 teaspoon kosher salt (, divided); 8 ounces brown mushrooms (, sliced ); 1 1/2 cups chicken broth; 1 cup white wine; 6 tablespoons cold butter; 3 lemons; 2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes; 3.5 ounces capers; 1 pound linguine (, or other long pasta); Minced parsley, Italian panko bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese for serving

This chicken piccata pasta’s lemony white wine, butter and caper sauce makes a light and snappy coating for linguine with tomato bursts and mushrooms for an easy pasta dinner that won’t weigh you down.

I’m a serious fan of taking bleak weather days and giving them a zesty punch up with easy comfort food dinners that won’t leave you asking for an antacid for dessert.

Fast to make chicken dinners that straddle the line of healthy but aren’t stingy with flavor are always a popular fave. Case in point: My full of lemon sunshine chicken piccata recipe. And what starch is better to serve alongside piccata than pasta noodles? So why not just bring the two together as one?!!

This chicken piccata pasta is the perfect pucker upper. Let’s start!

What’s In Chicken Piccata Pasta

This chicken piccata pasta is a quick and easy dinner made with familiar, easy to access ingredients to create a pasta dinner with zing. Because the ingredients won’t expire too quickly, this is one of those recipes you can shop for at the beginning of the week then make later.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Mushrooms (I use brown mushrooms but white are fine)
Cherry or grape tomatoes (keep them whole)
Butter
White wine (anything drinkable will do)
Chicken broth
Lemons
Capers
Linguine or your favorite pasta
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

How to Make Chicken Piccata Pasta

Not only does browned chicken breast add protein to this dish, it’s time spent sizzling in the skillet adds loads of caramelized bits that create flavor for the sauce too.

In my original chicken piccata recipe, boneless breasts are seasoned and tossed in flour before it’s cooked. In this dish, I skip the flour and simply season with kosher salt and pepper instead.

When cooking the chicken, do so in batches with extra olive oil if needed. Crowding the pan will cause the chicken to steam, adding moisture to the pan so the chicken doesn’t brown and caramelize. Allow the chicken to cook and sizzle without a lot of flipping or stirring. You want those caramel-ey bits and browning. That’s where the flavor hides.

So your chicken doesn’t overcook and become dry, transfer to a bowl once it’s browned, before moving to the sauteeing of the veg.

Add Veggies and Make This Piccata a Pasta Special

There’s no need to rinse out the skillet, simply brown the sliced brown mushrooms and whole grape or cherry tomatoes in the same pan as the chicken, where they’ll benefit from being touched by chicken bits flavorful greatness.

As the tomatoes and mushrooms cook, they’ll release moisture. Stirring them as they cook will start the flavor-releasing process from the frond of your skillet. But not to worry if there’s not much moisture there. The next step is sure to do the job.

Chicken Piccata Pasta’s Light Creamy Sauce

The sauce for this pasta isn’t cloying or overwhelming. With white wine, chicken broth, and lemon juice, it’s the perfect pucker-upper. But what about the cream? There is none! This sauce thickens as it cooks and reduces, allowing the flavors to come together and concentrate. Whisking in cold butter to the warm sauce adds a creamy richness that won’t monopolize the sauce’s tangy flavors, while keeping it on the light side.

Bursting grape tomatoes and briney capers add another layer of acid to this well-balanced sauce, that coats each noodle when mixed and tossed.

I love the tangy bite of cooked sliced lemons so I slice a lemon thin, then nestle them into the sauce. The rind becomes soft and jammy and is just another layer of flavor I can’t get enough of. This step is totally optional if the tart tang ain’t yo’ thang.

The Best Types of Pasta for Piccata Pasta

For any pasta dish, always choose a high quality semolina flour pasta such as DeLallo pasta. Because this pasta has chunks of ingredients that taste best entwined and eaten with each bite of the pasta, I suggest a sturdy pasta like the following shapes:

Linguine
Fettuccine
Spaghetti
Bucatini
Penne
Fusili
Cavatappi

Cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the recommended cooking time, drain, and add to the sauce, toss, and continue to cook so the pasta absorbs the sauce as it continues to cook in it. Don’t rinse the pasta before adding to the sauce.

What to Serve with Chicken Piccata Pasta

If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo and tag me on Instagram with #foodiecrusheats.

Chicken Piccata Pasta | foodiecrush.com #chicken #pasta #dinner #piccata #capers #healthy

4.74 from 102 votes

Chicken Piccata Pasta

The lemony white wine butter and caper sauce makes a light and snappy coating for linguine, tomatoes and mushrooms for a flavor burst in every bite.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Keyword chicken piccata

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings

Calories 436kcal

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound chicken breasts , cubed
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper , divided
1 teaspoon kosher salt , divided
8 ounces brown mushrooms , sliced
1 ½ cups chicken broth
1 cup white wine
6 tablespoons cold butter
3 lemons
2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes
3.5 ounces capers
1 pound linguine , or other long pasta
Minced parsley, Italian panko bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese for serving

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the time on the package directions.
While the pasta is cooking, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil. Toss the chicken pieces with ½ teaspoon pepper and ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Add the chicken to the skillet and cook for 5-7 minutes, turning once or twice, until lightly browned. Transfer the chicken to a plate. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet. Add the mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes, then add the tomatoes and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer the mushrooms and tomato to the bowl with the browned chicken.
Add the chicken broth and wine to the skillet, bring to a bubbling simmer, and scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Whisk in 4 tablespoons of the butter. Juice 2 lemons and add to the sauce. Add the capers. Cook for 5-8 minutes or until the sauce reduces by a third. Add the chicken, mushrooms and tomatoes back to the sauce. Thinly slice the remaining lemon and nestle the lemon slices amongst the chicken and vegetables. Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter to emulsify and thicken the sauce.
Drain the pasta and add it in batches back to the skillet with the sauce, tossing to coat as the pasta continues cooking and absorbs some of the buttery wine sauce. If your skillet isn't large enough, drain the pasta then add it back to the pot it was cooked in, then add the sauce to the pasta. Toss to coat over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.
To serve, sprinkle with minced parsley, Parmesan cheese, or Italian panko bread crumbs if desired.

Notes

Use a high sided skillet to cook the chicken and sauce. The pasta is best when added to the sauce to finish cooking and absorb the buttery wine sauce. If your skillet isn't large enough, add the drained pasta back to the pot it was cooked in and toss with the chicken and sauce over medium heat.

Nutrition

More Pasta Recipes to Try for Dinner Now

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