Veal Piccata In A Lemon Caper Sauce

I need a little break from chicken and chicken recipes so I needed to do a little searching for a recipe like veal piccata in a lemon caper sauce that doesn’t use chicken. The recipe calls for veal which yes, does happen to come from the beef family but at least it is a different version of beef to give a little variety.

Lot’s of people make chicken piccata but did you know the recipe originated in Italy and it was made with veal? Ever had a veal milanese before or perhaps you are a fan of Schnitzel? You take a veal cutlet, pound it out, cover in bread crumbs or flour and then lightly fry it in a pan. Simple and really delicious by the way. Veal piccata is essentially the same recipe except the Milaneses are served in a lemon-caper and wine sauce.

Some of you will want to make the dish with chicken but I highly recommend you try it with veal, it’s amazing. If you don’t feel like making this dish with veal at least try making it with pork chops instead of chicken. The recipe will be a cross between piccata and German Schnitzel if you go with pork.

Ingredients

• 1 1⁄2 lb veal cutlets, pounded out to 1⁄4″ thick
• 1⁄4 cup flour
• 1 egg, whisked
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• 1⁄4 cup dry white wine
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
• 1 1⁄2 tablespoons capers, drained
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lemon (sliced and used as a garnish *optional*)

Instructions

1. Dip each of the pounded out cutlets into the whisked egg, season each side with salt and pepper then dredge with flour.
2. Heat a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter and oil, heating both until the butter is completely melted. Pan fry 2-3 cutlets at a time in the oil/butter mixture. Cook 2-3 minutes on one side, flip then cook another 2-3 minutes. Once cooked, place the cutlets on a plate and set aside.
3. Add white wine to the pan. Allow the wine to cook down until it has almost reduced by half. Add the chicken stock and lemon juice. Allow the liquid to boil and reduce to about half. Turn off the heat, add the capers and parsley. Stir a few times making sure both are incorporated.
4. Add the cutlets back to the pan making sure to coat them in the sauce. Served the desired amount of cutlets on a plate and drizzle some of the sauce over each cutlet. Decorate with lemon slices (optional).

Photo source: @chefalanmiller