Impromptu Culinary Caper

I felt like something salty, briny, lemony — so I made chicken piccata for lunch. It’s funny how the brain works. I never cook this dish, but suddenly I had an intense craving for it. Seemingly out of nowhere, a fully-formed vision appeared like a culinary ghost from one of my mom’s 1970’s cookbooks. Tangentially, a few hours later, I read in The New York Times that decadent ’70s-era desserts are making a big comeback. I think that’s so great. I could really use something flamboyant right about now. Like a giant piece of baked Alaska or a slice of black forest cake with kirsch-soaked cherries and whipped cream.

While chicken piccata is so basic that it hardly needs a recipe, here are the ingredients and directions:

• 2 chicken breasts (butterflied and pounded with a meat mallet) to create 4 thin pieces
• 2 T olive oil
• 4 T butter
• Flour for dredging the chicken
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1 shallot
• 1 lemon (cut in rounds), 1 lemon for juice
• 1 oz capers
• 3/4 C chicken stock

1. Salt and pepper both sides of thinly sliced and pounded chicken breasts and dredge them in flour.
2. Cook half of the chicken in a hot cast iron skillet with two tablespoons olive oil and a generous pat of salted butter until they are lightly browned (about 3 minutes on each side). Repeat. Add more oil if needed.
3. Set the chicken aside and add a diced shallot and sliced lemon rounds to the pan. Cook until browned.
4. Add 3/4 cup chicken stock. Cook on high until the volume is reduced by half.
5. Lower heat and add 1 tablespoon lemon juice, another pat of salted butter, and capers to taste. (I love capers, so I used about 1/3 of a 2oz jar.)
6. Cook for a few minutes until the sauce thickens and browns.
7. Serve the chicken on a plate with the sauce drizzled over the top.

As you can see, it’s a very quick and easy recipe. And yet, there’s something rather dazzling about it. In this case, I think it’s the one-two punch of the salty capers and the vibrant citrus, along with the sheer visual appeal of the dish. Typically the way I go about cooking is to just dive in with very little research using whatever I happen to have on hand. Later, after I’ve satisfied my hunger, and deemed the idea a keeper, I’ll think about improvements and variations. Obviously, this dish is all about the sauce.

While exploring other options, I found a chicken piccata recipe on Bon Appétit that looks really good. Their sauce is similar to my approach today, however they use a heavy dose of garlic, and white wine instead of chicken stock. I’m not sure if garlic is really needed, but I can see how white wine might be preferable. So next time, I’ll give their version a try. In the meantime, I’m already thinking about ways to use the leftovers in a sandwich tomorrow. Perhaps flatbread with a cold chicken breast, grainy mustard, and a bit of fresh cilantro. Mmmmm….I love leftovers!